Verviers

Town in the Belgian province of Liège, on the River Vesdre, 21 km/13 mi east of the city of Liège; population (2001 est) 52,800. Together with its suburb Ensival, it was one of the main centres of the Belgian woollen industry, using water from the Gileppe dam, 9 km/6 mi to the east. Other industries include the manufacture of soap, leather, footwear, chocolate, and chemicals.

Verviers contains a vast number of monuments and architecture which date from the 17th to the 20th centuries. Buildings of interest include the town hall, which was built between 1775 and 1780 in the style of Louis XIV; the 17th-century church of Our Lady of Recollets, a Christian pilgrimage site, and the Church of St Remacle, a 19th-century neo-classical building. The street of Bouxhate contains examples of half-timber half-brick houses dating back to the 17th century.