The original university library, established in 1636, was housed in the present day University Hall in the Naamse Straat in Leuven.
During the first world war in 1914, the German army set fire to the original library building. The University Library was rebuilt on the Ladeuzeplein between 1921 and 1928. It was designed in neo-renaissance style by the American architect Whitney Warren. New books were collected and donated and the library was duely resplenished. In 1940 during the second world war, the library burned again, and much of its content was destroyed. Again, it was restored and restocked with valuable books after the war.
The Ladeuzeplein, where the University Library is located, is the largest square in Leuven
