La Monnaie (Dutch: De Munt) is an opera house in Brussels. It is the leading opera company in Belgium. It is one of the few cultural institutions which receives financial support from the federal government of Belgium.
The original theater on the site was commissioned by the Italian financier Gio Paolo Bombarda (banker to Maximilian-Emmanuel of Bavaria, the last governor of the Spanish Netherlands). It was inaugurated in 1700. It was replaced in 1819 by a new theater, which burnt to the ground on January 21 1855. The current theater was reconstructed shortly thereafter. It was completely renovated during the 1985-1986 season.
La Monnaie played a prominent role in the formation of Belgium. In August 1830, stirred by a performance of Auber's La Muette de Portici at La Monnaie, the Belgian Revolution broke out.
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