Waterloo set for spectacular face-lift

11 May 2004

BRUSSELS – The site of the famous battle of Waterloo, which saw Britain’s Duke of Wellington defeat French Emperor Napoleon in 1815, is set for a multi-million euro facelift, the Belgian press reported on Tuesday.

Under the plan, the battle site, which is today part of Belgium’s French-speaking Walloon region, will be totally revamped by 2008.

The ugly visitor centre that has been unceremoniously dubbed ‘the bunker’ will be demolished and replaced by rather more aesthetically pleasing premises.

Roads around the site and its famous hill topped with a sculpture of a lion will also be diverted, making the former battlefield a pedestrian zone.

Wallonia’s Economics Minister Serge Kubla said the work would cost a total of EUR 30 million.

“For years people have said this site should be worthy of its reputation while what was on offer was relatively little,” Kubla said at a press conference on Monday.

After the renovation work Waterloo would be a “first-class” tourist site and a kind of “gateway to Wallonia,” Kubla added.

Subject: Belgian news