On January 7, 1835, king Leopold the first, of the brand new nation of Belgium, signed a decree to honour the memory “of the Belgians who had made a contribution to the glory of their homeland”. The first person to qualify for this honour, as you would have guessed, was Peter Paul Rubens. His monument was originally intended to stand on the bank of the river Scheldt as a greeting for visitors. At that time, the 1840’s, such visitors arrived in Antwerp mainly by ship.

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My name is Pietro Pauolo Rubens and today, I’ll take you on a walk through my city.

Antwerp is my city indeed. Here, I spent most of my life, got my education and built up my name and reputation. It’s a certainty that I was born in 1577. But both the exact date and place of birth have long been the subject of debate.

It has been assumed that I was born in Siegen, Germany. But these days, more and more arguments seem to indicate that I was born in this very city of Antwerp.

The birth date of June 28, 1577, may be correct, due to the custom to baptize the younger children after the saint of the day. The elder brothers and sisters had already been given the names of their parents, grandparents, godfather or godmother. Therefore, I carry the double first name of the apostles Peter and Paul. Their feast day indeed falls on June 29, which is traditionally known as my official birthday.

I grew up and followed primary school in Cologne, Germany, until I was twelve, so that city too is a special place for me. If you visit Sankt Peter’s Church, you can still see the tombstone of my father Jan. By coincidence, the painting you see there is my very last work; it depicts the martyrdom of Saint Peter.

After my father’s death, my mother, Maria Pijpelincx, returned to her own hometown Antwerp, with her children. Here I studied Latin at the Cathedral school. And later on, I had no less than three masters who taught me the noble craft of painting.

My teacher Otto Van Veen advised me to go to Italy. I stayed and painted there for eight years. In December 1608, I was back here, in Antwerp. I still like Italy so much, that I sign my letters with first names in Italian: Pietro Pauolo.

If you want proof of my true European identity: I worked in Mantua, at the service of the Duke Vincenzo Gonzaga; in Madrid, it was King Philip IV; in Paris, I served queen Maria de’ Medicis; in London, it was king Charles I; and in Brussels, I often worked for our archdukes Albert and Isabella.

I’ll take you the places where I have lived and worked. Along the way we’ll meet my esteemed teacher Otto Van Veen, but also Adam Van Noort, teacher and later father-in-law of Jacques Jordaens. Later on, we’ll meet Anthony Van Dyck, as well as my deeply regretted first wife Isabella Brant. Not to forget, of course, my dearest darling, Helena Fourment, my second wife. Every now and then we shall pretend, with a wink, that events of the past are still happening today.

Just think of today’s street map; even before Belgian independence, in 1819, two of the Antwerp quays had been given the names of Jordaens and Van Dyck. From 1830 onwards, it was the young state of Belgium, and the growing city of Antwerp, that honoured the glorious past with their name-giving. Around the City Park, you can stroll from one painter’s street to another: Van Eycklei, Quinten Matsijslei, Rubenslei; other streets are named after Brueghel, Jacob Jordaens, Antoon Van Dyck, Adam Van Noort and Abraham van Diepenbeeck. However, don’t go looking for streets named after Tobias Verhaecht, my very first teacher, or Hendrick Van Baelen, Anthony Van Dyck’s teacher.

Southern route: leave Groenplaats on the southwest side, Groenkerkhofstraat, which changes into Reyndersstraat.