The city of Leuven, in the former Duchy of Brabant, has been the seat of four universities:
1425: The University of Leuven (1425–1797) or Studium Generale Lovaniense or Universitas Studiorum Lovaniensis, was founded by the French prince Jean de Valois Bourgogne, Duke John IV of Brabant, with the consent of Pope Martin V. This university was suppressed in 1797, however, many university professors taught at the Catholic University of Louvain which is regarded by many as the continuation of the old university.
1835: The new Catholic University of Mechlin was established in Leuven and took the name of Catholic University of Leuven.[1] The University Faculty which was originally composed almost entirely of clergy was under the direct leadership of the bishops of Belgium. This university was divided into two parts French and Dutch.
^The Cour de Cassation of Belgium on 26 November 1846 ruled: "The Catholic University of Leuven can not be regarded as continuing the old University of Leuven", in, Table générale alphabétique et chronologique de la Pasicrisie Belge contenant la jurisprudence du Royaume de 1814 à 1850, Brussels, 1855, p. 585, column 1, alinea 2. See also: Bulletin Usuel des Lois et Arrêtés, 1861, p.166