his sister Susanna and her husband Cobergher. At this time the Archdukes Albert and Isabella invited Cobergher to work for them at the court in Brussels causing him to leave Italy with his family. Jacob remained in Rome. At some point he got involved in a lawsuit regarding some stolen precious stones. The stones were rediscovered before the end of the trial. In the years 1607 and 1608 he was residing near the Santa Maria della Pace in Rome. Franquart returned to his homeland at the end of the trial and before the summer of 1611. Some authors have stated that Franquart worked in the workshop of Rubens in Antwerp and that they were old friends. There is no documentary evidence for this. It is possible that the two artists got to know each other during their residence in Italy. Rubens' later purchase of Franquart's Premier Livre d'Architecture... (First book of Architecture) published in 1616 was possibly a sign of his respect for Franquart. Rubens may also have acquired the book purely for practical reasons as at that time he was carrying out renovations on his newly purchased home in Antwerp. One month after the publication of Franquart's Premier Livre d'Architecture (Premier livre d'architecture de Iaques Francart : contenant diuerses inuentions de portes seruiables à tous ceux qui désirent bastir et pour sculpteurs, tailleurs de pieres, escriniers, massons et autres : en trois langues, in English First book of architecture of Jaques Francart : containing various inventions of doors useful to all those which wish to build and for sculptors, stone cutters, manufacturers of cases, masons and others: in three languages), he was asked to complete the Jesuit church in Brussels (destroyed in 1812). Construction of the church had started in 1606 with Hendrik Hoeimaker as the building master. Franquart's involvement in this project launched his career as an architect. In 1620 he was put in charge of the construction of the Augustine church in Brussels. In June 1621 he designed the funeral procession of the Archduke Albert. In 1629 he was commissioned to design the Beguinage Church in Mechelen. Franquart also rebuilt the church of Our Lady by the Dijle, Mechelen, by adding a choir chapel and two side chapels as a continuation of the 16th-century choir. After Cobergher's death in 1632 Franquart was appointed engineer to the Spanish king. Franquart taught his niece Anna Francisca de Bruyns to