At the request of the Belgian government, which supported the development of history painting in the country, the Antwerp city administration gave Leys in 1861 a commission to decorate the interior of the restored Antwerp Town Hall. He was asked to paint over a period of 10 years 10 monumental murals depicting key events in the city's history. Four of the murals along with 11 portraits of historical rulers of Belgium were completed between 1863 and 1869, the year in which Leys died. Leys had also received a commission from the Brussels city administration for a similar program of murals in its town hall but this commission was never commenced due to the untimely death of Leys in 1869 in Antwerp.