The Berlaymont () is an office building in Brussels, Belgium, which houses the headquarters of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union (EU). The structure is located on the Robert Schuman Roundabout at 200, rue de la Loi/Wetstraat, in what is known as the "European Quarter". The unique form of the Berlaymont's architecture is used in the European Commission's official emblem. The building is named after the . Usage The building has housed the European Commission since its construction, and has become a symbol of the European presence in Brussels and a metonym for the EU's executive power. The Commission itself is spread over some 60-odd buildings, but the Berlaymont is the commission's headquarters, being the seat of the President of the European Commission and its College of Commissioners. The following Directorates-General (departments) are also based in the Berlaymont: Human Resources and Security (HR), European Political Strategy Centre, formerly known as Bureau of European Policy Advisers (BEPA), Communication (COMM), Brussels Office of Infrastructure and Logistics (OIB), Secretariat-General (SG) and the Legal Service (SJ). The office of the president, the commission, and the boardroom, are on the 13th floor, together with the meeting room of the "Hebdo", as well as the restaurant La Convivialité. Ursula von der Leyen is the first Commission's president to actually reside in the Berlaymont. She sleeps in a small private area next to her main office on the 13th floor. History Background With the number of European civil servants rapidly growing since their arrival in Brussels in 1958, the European Commission required more and more office space across the city. By 1965, the Commission alone had 3,200 staff scattered across 8 different cramped buildings. The situation, which started as soon as they arrived due to the lack of large office blocks, became critical and the Commission tried to concentrate its staff in a number of rented buildings around the Robert Schuman Roundabout. The Belgian government, becoming aware of the problem and keen to ensure that the Commission stayed, offered to build a prestigious administration complex large enough to house the entire staff. President Walter Hallstein was interested but cautious about making long-term commitments while the issue of where the institutions were based was still being discussed. However, the need for office space was overwhelming. The Belgian government's proposal required sufficient land which would preferably be in the Leopold Quarter (where they were already