Kortenberg is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant, about halfway between the cities of Brussels and Leuven.
A Benedictine abbey has been present since 1222. In 1312, John II, Duke of Brabant signed the Charter of Kortenberg in the abbey, thereby establishing a constitution for the entire Duchy of Brabant and granting powers to a precursory democratic institution. After the Magna Carta, it is the second document in western history to limit the powers of monarchs in favor of a number of civil freedoms.
