Banners of Judicial Power? The architectural speeches of prisons and courthouses from the Independence to the First World War

Courthouses and prisons, as places of decision and punishment, constitute the principal “theatres” of justice. These edifices are the bearers of a discourse that architects have interpreted and translated into images by selecting forms, elements, materials and techniques. After Belgium became independent until the end of the First World War, we witness the foundation of new courthouses and prisons and the re-use of many existing ones. Those edifices that can be found all over Belgium are not randomly built or situated. In truth, they represent the political and judicial structure of the new emerging state. This PhD thesis will first study the buildings directors, who made decisions during the 19^th century, determining which messages had to be put forward. Then, the process of the building conception will be analysed. At the same time, G. Dubois will study the architect’s figure and the role he played in the representation of justice. Finally, she will look for parallels or dialogues that may have existed between the architectural programme of prisons and the one of courthouses. This work innovates because it studies the existing relationship between two images of justice that are put forward through the construction of courthouses and prisons. Due to this double approach, G. Dubois hopes to be able to outline the ways in which the Belgian authorities used the monuments of justice to, on the one hand, unify the territory and, on the other hand, inspire the first judicial representations of the State.

Thesis directors: Xavier Rousseaux and Philippe Bragard