Margaret of Austria was regent of the Habsburg Netherlands between 1507 and 1530. Her residential palace was the Hof van Savoye (Court of Savoy), the first renaissance building in the Low Countries. The renaissance spread from here. Note the magnificent charming garden. From 1616 to 1796 the palace was home to the Great Council, the highest court of law in the Southern Netherlands. The facade still features Margaret’s coat of arms, alongside the coat of arms of Charles V and a figure of Lady Justice (Justitia). Today the building is a court of law.*

*From Hotelmagazine 2014-2015 Welcome in Mechelen