University Library

Twice-destroyed university library rebuilt as a symbol of international solidarity

The stately university library on Ladeuzeplein is one of Leuven's most striking buildings and a powerful symbol of the city's resilience. The original medieval library was destroyed by German troops in August 1914 — one of the most notorious acts of cultural destruction in the First World War. The replacement, funded by international donations from universities across Europe and North America and designed by American architect Whitney Warren, was completed in 1928 with a tower visible across the city. It was burned again in May 1940.

The current building is a faithful reconstruction of Warren's design, completed in 1983. The entrance hall contains inscriptions naming every university that contributed to the rebuilding — a record that spans both World Wars and carries considerable historical and diplomatic weight. The library is open to the public during term time; the reading rooms are working spaces for KU Leuven researchers, but visitors can enter the entrance hall and view the inscriptions and the decorated wooden ceiling.

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A story
When German troops burned the medieval library in August 1914, they destroyed around 300,000 books and irreplaceable manuscript collections. The rebuilding effort was international: Harvard, Yale, Oxford, and hundreds of other universities donated books and funds. The donor universities are inscribed in the stone around the entrance hall — a permanent record of who helped and who did not, which caused diplomatic sensitivities for decades afterward, particularly regarding German institutions.