The Venue : The Palais des Congrès of Liège
All conference activities will be held in the Palais des Congrès of Liège, centrally located directly on the banks of the river Meuse and easily reached from all directions.
Esplanade de l'Europe 2
4020 Liège
T: +32 (0)4 349 20 00
How to reach Liège
For information on how to reach Liège, please click here.
WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING IN LIEGE ?
About Liège
Liège is a tourist city, located in the South-East of Belgium. It offers its visitors both a modern cosmopolitan atmosphere and an ancient and cultural background. With more than eight centuries of History, this former independent Principality of the Germanic Empire guarantees a warm welcome to the SOFT2012 participants.
Situated at the crossroads of an important motorway network linking Paris, Amsterdam and Cologne, and being the third largest river port of Europe, Liège is focused on being a European city of importance.
What's more Liege is a City of Sciences and Art, having seen the birth of Georges Simenon one of the most prolific authors of the 20th century, Renquin Sualem, who designed the machine to supply Louis XIV Versailles with water, Zénobe Gramme, the inventor of the dynamo, and the reputed composers and musicians A. Grétry, Eugène Ysaye and César Frank.
Liège - Historical Background
During the prehistoric era, a small number of people settled at the confluence of the rivers Meuse and Legia, now occupied by the Place Saint Lambert and the Palace of the Prince-Bishops.
Much later, during the 2nd century AD, a vast Roman Villa was built on the same spot and a large population attracted by the proximity of the rivers settled around it.
The inhabitants became Christian believers, and thus the settlers soon built a chapel in which Lambert, bishop of Tongres-Maastricht, was assassinated in 705. As a result, more and more pilgrims were attracted to the place of Lambert's death. The little village grew into a town. Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus) was born in Liège where he later spent time, as well as in Aachen.
With the change of location of the Bishopric from Maastricht to Liège, the town development was further assured. Liège became the centre of a vast Principality spreading from Southern Holland to Burgundy.
After the battle of Waterloo (1815), Liège rapidly developed into an important cultural and industrial centre. The University was established in 1817 and a theatre built in 1818. The construction in 1820 of a large steel works by John Cockerill, an Englishman, begins the industrial development of the city. In 1825 the famous Val Saint-Lambert crystal works opened, followed by a number of steel mills between 1835 and 1840.
The people of Liège obtained great wealth during this period and in the years leading to the two world wars, reflected in some of the town's architecture.
Main Sights
The 16th century Palace of the Prince-Bishops of Liège is built on the Place St Lambert, where the old St. Lambert's Cathedral used to stand before the French Revolution. An archeological display, the Archeoforum, can be visited under the Place St Lambert.
The perron on the nearby Place du Marché was once the symbol of justice in the Prince-Bishopric and is now the symbol of the city. It stands in front of the 17th century city hall.
The present Liège Cathedral, dedicated to Saint Paul, contains a treasury and Saint Lambert’s tomb. It is one of the original seven collegiate churches, which include the German-Romanesque St Bartholomew's Church (Saint Barthélémy) and the church of St Martin.
The church of Saint-James (Saint-Jacques) is probably the most beautiful medieval church in Liège. It is built in the so-called Flamboyant-Gothic style, while the porch is early Renaissance. The statues are by Liège sculptor Jean DelCour. Saint-Jacques also contains 29 spectacular 14th century misericords.
The main museums in Liège are: MAMAC (Museum of Modern & Contemporary Art), Museum of Walloon Life, and Museum of Walloon Art & Religious Art. The Curtius Museum is an elegantly furnished mansion from the 17th century along the River Meuse, it reopened in March 2009 as the expanded Grand Curtius museum housing the collections of the archaeology, decorative arts, religious art and Mosan art museums.
Other sites of interest include the historical city centre (the Carré), the Hors-Château area, the Outremeuse area, the parks and boulevards along the Meuse river, the Citadel, the 400 steps stairway "Montagne de Bueren", leading from Hors-Château to the Citadel, 'Mediacité' shopping mall designed by Ron Arad Architects and the Liège-Guillemins train station designed by Santiago Calatrava.
More museums in Liège here.
Eating in Liège
Liège has so many good places to eat that the hardest thing is to decide where to go. From a small no-nonsense meal to a luxurious dinner, local specialities or the most exotic of dishes, you will always be able to find a cuisine to suit you. And for those who like food and are interested in discovering something new, you can enjoy the traditional cuisine of Liège. The menu includes: boulets-frites (meatballs and chips/fries), salade liégeoise (green beans, potatoes, diced bacon), fricassee (omelette with bacon or sausage), rognons de veau (veal kidneys), gaufres (waffles), pèkèt (gin/juniper spirit), café liégeois (Liège coffee), etc.
Sight-seeing train rides : info