The Mariemont Museum in Hainaut Province is putting Mary of Hungary, who served as governor of the Habsburg Netherlands, in the spotlight. She was the sister of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V and wielded considerable influence in the 16th century, both politically and artistically. An extraordinary woman, she hunted like a man, built innovative palaces and commissioned paintings from artists including Titian.
Mariemont in Hainaut Province literally stands for “Marie-mont” or “Mount Mary”. The name is no coincidence: the town is named after Mary of Hungary (1505-1558), who once had a hunting lodge built here.
The Mariemont Museum is currently staging a fascinating historical exhibition devoted to Mary of Hungary, “one of those regents who shaped our history and was also an important patron of Renaissance art”, explains Krista De Jonge, emeritus professor of architectural history at Leuven University. And yet her name is much less well known than that of her male contemporaries.
Who was Mary of Hungary?
It’s the 16th century. Our regions are part of the Habsburg Empire. Charles V, Emperor Charles, is in power. His sister is Mary of Hungary. She grows up in Mechelen, under the care of her aunt Margaret of Austria. Her husband, the King of Hungary, is killed in the war against the Ottoman Empire leaving her widowed. ‘Underneath her widow's garb, she was a free woman,’ Krista De Jonge says.
Mary of Hungary is then appointed as governor of the Netherlands. She moves into the Coudenberg Palace in Brussels, the remains of which are located under the current Koningsplein. Immediately, she has a spacious gallery built for herself, ‘as a male ruler would do’.
Mary plays a crucial role in the succession to the throne of her nephew. Emperor Charles’s only son, Philip II, is a “prince who was raised in Spain and whom no one here knows”. Mary accompanies Charles and Philip on all kinds of joyful processions. Today, we would call this a promotion campaign. Mary, Charles and Philip: these three characters are central to the exhibition in Mariemont.
Eight days of celebrations for the joyful arrival of Philip II
‘The apotheosis of these joyful arrivals took place in August 1549 in Mariemont and Binche,’ explains Krista De Jonge. Mary had meanwhile moved from Brussels and had had a palace built in Binche (Hainaut Province) and a hunting lodge in Mariemont. For eight days, she directed masquerades, banquets and balls, culminating in a mock battle involving hundreds of extras. The Habsburgs were fond of spectacle.
In the exhibition, images and sound allow you to experience what such a celebration must have looked like. Modern digital technology brings a rare watercolour painting of the Binche banquet hall to life. You can see the dancers moving, hear the music and the conversation in a soundscape. It is entirely scientifically accurate according to the principles of a new discipline called “archaeoacoustics”.
Palaces destroyed after only a few years
Nothing remains of the hunting lodge in Mariemont and only the foundations of the palace in Binche still exist. That is the tragedy of this story. ‘Hainaut was for centuries a battlefield. The hunting lodge and palace, built in modern Renaissance style, were constructed between 1547 and 1549. Barely three years later, there was an attack by the French, the arch-enemies of the Habsburgs,’ says Krista De Jonge.
‘The hunting lodge was pillaged, and even the trees that Mary had had brought from the Sonian Forest outside Brussels at great expense were uprooted.’ It was a very targeted action against Mary of Hungary, which also highlights the position of power she held.
According to the standards of the time, she remained in the shadows. But she was a woman of stature. ‘Like all Habsburgs, she loved hunting. She rode a horse like a man during dangerous wild boar hunts in the Sonian Forest; she conducted military inspections herself along the strongholds on the southern border; she held important meetings in her apartments.’
She was also an important patron of various artists, commissioning the Italian master Titian, who was asked to paint Habsburg portraits. In short, Mary of Hungary was ‘an extraordinary character. She was much more prominent than her predecessors or successors,’ says Krista De Jonge, although she certainly, as a woman, faced limitations.
The exhibition in Mariemont is not her life story but sketches the context in which this extraordinary woman lived. Paintings, sculptures, drawings, engravings, manuscripts, precious metalwork and archival documents from more than 40 museums and private collections set the scene. The ruined hunting lodge of Mariemont can be seen in a painting by Jan Brueghel, Mary’s portrait in a painting, after Titian. All kinds of handwritten documents can be viewed under glass.
A special object is a handkerchief from 1548 (!) on which a song for Mary is printed. The song has been recorded especially for this exhibition and can be viewed and listened to on site.
A brand-new addition to the Mariemont Museum itself is a 16th-century tapestry, which may depict the Mariemont hunting lodge. Over the past year, it has been perfectly treated and preserved by the Royal Manufactory De Wit in Mechelen.
Practical information: the trilingual exhibition “Mary of Hungary. Art and Power during the Renaissance” – part of the Europalia Spain Festival –Domain & Royal Museum of Mariemont. From 22 November 2025 to 10 May 2026.