History of Belgium
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For most of its history, what is now Belgium was either a part of a larger territory, such as the Carolingian Empire, or divided into a number of smaller states, prominent among them being the Duchy of Brabant, the County of Flanders, the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, the County of Namur, the County of Hainaut and the County of Luxembourg. Due to its strategic location as a country of contact between different cultures, Belgium has been called the "crossroads of Europe"; for the many armies fighting on its soil, it has also been called the "battlefield of Europe"[1] or the "cockpit of Europe".[2]
Belgium's modern shape can be traced back at least as far as the southern core of the medieval
The first half of the twentieth century was tumultuous. Its historic neutrality was violated in each of the World Wars. During World War I, frustrated German invaders launched the
Domestically, the country has faced divisions over
Names
Belgium and Flanders were the first two common names used for the Burgundian Netherlands which was the predecessor of the Austrian Netherlands, the predecessor of Belgium.[3] The County of Flanders was the original foothold of the Burgundian dukes in the region, to which other territories were later attached.
"Belgium" is originally a Latin term used by Julius Caesar,[4] referring to an area now mostly in Northern France, where the tribes ruling the military alliance of the Belgae lived.[5] Under Roman rule this region was the equivalent of the province of Belgica Secunda, which stretched into the coastal Flemish part of modern Belgium.
In late Roman and medieval times the term Belgium tended to be used to refer to Roman Belgica Prima, and its successor
Prehistory
On Belgian territory Neanderthal fossils were discovered at Engis in 1829–30 and elsewhere, some dating back to at least 100,000 BC.[6]
The earliest Neolithic farming technology of northern Europe, the so-called LBK culture, reached the east of Belgium at its furthest northwesterly stretch from its origins in southeast Europe. Its expansion stopped in the Hesbaye region of eastern Belgium around 5000 BC. The Belgian LBK is notable for its use of defensive walls around villages.[7][8][9]
So-called "Limburg pottery" and "La Hoguette pottery" are styles which stretch into northwestern France and the Netherlands, but it has sometimes been argued that these technologies are the result of pottery technology spreading beyond the original LBK farming population and being made by hunter gatherers.[10] A slightly later-starting Neolithic culture found in central Wallonia is the so-called "Groupe de Blicquy", which may represent an offshoot of the LBK settlers. One notable archaeological site in this region is the Neolithic flint mines of Spiennes.[8]
Farming in Belgium failed to take permanent hold at first. The LBK and Blicquy cultures disappeared and there is a long gap before a new farming culture, the Michelsberg culture, appeared and became widespread. Hunter gatherers of the Swifterbant culture apparently remained in the sandy north of Belgium, but apparently became more and more influenced by farming and pottery technology.[8]
In the third and late fourth millennia BC, the whole of Flanders shows relatively little evidence of human habitation.
The population of Belgium started to increase permanently with the late Bronze Age from around 1750 BC. Three possibly related European cultures arrived in sequence. First the
Celtic and Roman periods
When
.The exact nature of the distinction between the Belgae to the North and the Celts to the south, and the Germani across the Rhine, is disputed.
The leaders of the Belgic alliance which Caesar confronted were in modern France, the Suessiones, Viromandui and Ambiani and perhaps some of their neighbours, in an area that he appears to distinguish as the true "Belgium" of classical times.[14] Concerning the territory of modern Belgium, he reported that the more northerly allies of the Belgae, from west to east the Menapii, Nervii, and Germani cisrhenani, were less economically developed and more warlike, similar to the Germani east of the Rhine river. The Menapii and northern Germani lived among low thorny forests, islands and swamps, and the central Belgian Nervii lands were deliberately planted with thick hedges to be impenetrable to cavalry. There is also less archaeological evidence of large settlements and trade in the area.
Modern linguists use the word "germanic" to refer to languages but it is not known for sure whether even the Belgian Germani spoke a
The Menapii and Nervii flourished within the Roman province of Gallia Belgica, along with the southern Belgae and the Treveri. These Roman provinces were broken into civitates, each with a capital city, and each representing one of the major tribal groups named by Caesar. At first, only one, Tongeren capital of the Tungri, was in modern Belgium. Later, the capital of the Menapii was moved from Cassel in modern France to Tournai in Belgium. The Nervian capital was in the south of the territory in modern France, at Bavay, and later moved to Cambrai. Trier, the capital of the Treveri, is today in Germany.
The northeastern corner of this province, including Tongeren and the area of the earlier Germani, was united with the militarized Rhine border to form a newer province known as Germania Inferior,[16] with capital Colonia Agrippina (Cologne in Germany).[16] Emperor Diocletian restructured the provinces around 300, and split the remaining Belgica into two provinces: Belgica Prima and Belgica Secunda. Belgica Prima was the eastern part and had Trier as its main city, and included part of the Belgian province of Luxembourg. It became one of the most important Roman cities in Western Europe in the 3rd century.
Christianity was introduced to Belgium during the late-Roman period, and the first known bishop in the region
Early Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, the old Roman civitates became the basis of Christian dioceses, and the row of dioceses which form the core of modern Belgium (Tournai, Cambrai, and Liège) were the most northerly continental areas to retain a Romanized culture. The modern Belgian language boundary derives from this period, as the area was a contact point of Frankish and Romanized populations.
As the
The Merovingian dynasty was succeeded by the
in 800.The Vikings raided widely throughout this period, but a major settlement that had caused problems in the area of Belgium was defeated in 891 by Arnulf of Carinthia in the battle of Leuven.
The Frankish lands were divided and reunified several times under the
Through the early Middle Ages, the northern part of present-day Belgium (Flanders) was a Germanic language-speaking area, whereas in the southern part people had continued to be Romanized and spoke derivatives of Vulgar Latin.
As the Holy Roman Emperors and French Kings lost effective control of their domains in the 11th and 12th centuries, the territory more or less corresponding to the present Belgium was divided into relatively independent feudal states, including:
- The County of Flanders
- The Marquisate of Namur
- The Duchy of Brabant (see also Duke of Brabant)
- The County of Hainaut
- The Duchy of Limburg
- The County of Luxembourg
- The Prince-Bishopric of Liège (the territory over which the bishop ruled as a lord, which was smaller than the diocese)
The coastal county of Flanders was one of the wealthiest parts of Europe in the late Middle Ages, from trading with England, France and Germany, and it became culturally important. During the 11th and 12th centuries, the
Late Middle Ages and Renaissance
In this period, many cities, including Ypres, Bruges and Ghent, obtained their city charter. The Hanseatic League stimulated trade in the region, and the period saw the erection of many Gothic cathedrals and city halls.[17] With the decline of the Holy Roman emperors' power starting in the 13th century, the Low Countries were largely left to their own devices. The lack of imperial protection also meant that the French and English began vying for influence.
In 1214, King Philip II of France defeated the Count of Flanders in the Battle of Bouvines and forced his submission to the French crown. Through the remainder of the 13th century, French control over Flanders steadily increased until 1302 when an attempt at total annexation by Philip IV met a stunning defeat when Count Guy humiliated the French knights at the Battle of the Golden Spurs. Philip launched a new campaign that ended with the inconclusive Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle in 1304. The king imposed harsh peace terms on Flanders, which included ceding the important textile-making centers of Lille and Douai.
Thereafter, Flanders remained a French tributary until the start of the Hundred Years' War in 1337. Paris's influence in the Low Countries was counterbalanced by England, which maintained important ties to the coastal ports and came to dominate the wool-shipping business. Flemish cloth remained a highly valued product, highly dependent on English wool. Any interruption in the supply of that invariably resulted in riots and violence from the weavers' guilds. Flanders received imports from other areas of Europe, but itself purchased little abroad except wine from Spain and France. Bruges became a great commercial center after the Hanseatic League set up business there. From early on, the Low Countries began to develop as a commercial and manufacturing center. Merchants became the dominant class in the towns, with the nobility largely limited to countryside estates.
By 1433 most of the Belgian and
Especially during the Burgundy period (the 15th and 16th centuries), Tournai, Bruges, Ypres, Ghent, Brussels, and Antwerp took turns at being major European centers for commerce, industry (especially textiles) and art. Bruges had a strategic location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade and the southern trade routes. Bruges was already included in the circuit of the Flemish and French cloth fairs at the beginning of the 13th century, but when the old system of fairs broke down the entrepreneurs of Bruges innovated. They developed, or borrowed from Italy, new forms of merchant capitalism. They employed new forms of economic exchange, including bills of exchange (i.e. promissory notes) and letters of credit.[18] Antwerp eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably the Portuguese pepper and spice traders.[19][20]
In art the
The
Dutch Revolt and 80 Years' War
The northern part of Belgica Regia, comprising seven provinces and eventually forming the Dutch Republic, became increasingly
After the Iconoclastic Fury of 1566, Spanish authorities were able to largely gain control of the Low Countries. The most notable event of this period was the Battle of Oosterweel, in which Spanish forces destroyed an army of Dutch Calvinists. King Philip II sent in Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba, as Governor-General of the Spanish Netherlands from 1567 to 1573. Alba established a special court called the Council of Troubles (nicknamed the "Council of Blood"). The Blood Council's reign of terror saw it condemn thousands of people to death without due process and drive the nobles into exile while seizing their property. Alba boasted that he had burned or executed 18,600 persons in the Netherlands, in addition to the far greater number he massacred during the war, many of them women and children; 8,000 persons were burned or hanged in one year, and Alba's Flemish victims totalled at least 50,000.[22]
The
With the arrival of large numbers of troops from Spain, Farnese began a campaign of reconquest in the south.
On August 17, 1585, Farnese laid siege to
In 1601, the Spanish besieged Ostend, producing more than 100,000 casualties before Ostend finally fell in 1604. While the former northern part of Belgica Regia, the Seven United Provinces, gained independence, Southern Belgica Regia remained under the rule of Spain (1556–1713). The southern part spoke various romance languages and the northern part used Dutch, yet court accounts were kept in Spanish.
-
The Sack of Antwerp in 1576, in which 17,000 people died.[28]
-
Siege and capture of Tournai, 1581. Cannons firing. Town with fortifications, gate and churches. Transport of cannons on their carriages. Clouds of smoke. Explosion.
-
The Siege of Maastricht (1579) by an anonymous painter
-
The Battle of Nieuwpoort (1600)
17th and 18th centuries
During the 17th century, Antwerp continued to be blockaded by the Dutch but became a major European center for industry and art. The
Wars between France and the Dutch Republic
After the
Brabant Revolution
The First
French control
Following the
New rulers were sent in by Paris. Belgian men were drafted into the French wars and heavily taxed. Resistance was strong in every sector, as Belgian nationalism emerged to oppose French rule. The French legal system, however, was adopted, with its equal legal rights, and abolition of class distinctions. Belgium now had a government bureaucracy selected by merit, but it was not at all popular.[33] Until the establishment of the Consulate in 1799, Catholics were heavily repressed by the French. The first University of Leuven was closed in 1797 and churches were plundered.
During this early period of the French rule, the Belgian economy was completely paralyzed as taxes had to be paid in gold and silver coin while goods bought by the French were paid for with worthless
United Kingdom of the Netherlands
After Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo in 1815, the major victorious powers (Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia) agreed at the Congress of Vienna on uniting the former Austrian Netherlands (Belgium Austriacum) and the former Seven United Provinces, creating the United Kingdom of the Netherlands as a buffer state against any future French invasions. This was under the rule of a Protestant king, William I. Most of the small and ecclesiastical states in the Holy Roman Empire were given to larger states at this time, and this included the Prince-Bishopric of Liège which now became formally part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
The
William I was a
William I actively promoted economic modernization. His authority was shared with a legislature partly chosen by himself and partly elected by the more prosperous citizens under the constitution. Government was in the hands of national ministries of state, and the old provinces were reestablished in name only. The government was now fundamentally unitary, and all authority flowed from the center. The first fifteen years of the Kingdom showed progress and prosperity, as industrialization proceeded rapidly in the south, where the Industrial Revolution allowed entrepreneurs and labor to combine in a new textile industry, powered by local coal mines. There was little industry in the northern provinces, but most of the former Dutch overseas colonies were restored, and highly profitable trade resumed after a 25-year hiatus. Economic liberalism combined with moderate monarchical authoritarianism to accelerate the adaptation of the Netherlands to the new conditions of the 19th century.
Unrest in the southern provinces
Protestants controlled the new country, although they formed only a quarter of the population.[43] In theory, Roman Catholics had full legal equality; in practice few held high state or military offices. The king insisted that schools in the South end their traditional teaching of Roman Catholic doctrine, even though almost everyone there was of that faith.[44] Socially, the French-speaking Walloons strongly resented the king's policy to make Dutch the language of government. There was also growing outrage at the king's insensitivity to social differences. According to Schama, there was growing hostility to the Dutch government.[45]
Political liberals in the south had their own grievances, especially regarding the king's authoritarian style; he seemed uncaring about the issue of regionalism, flatly vetoing a proposal for a French-language teacher-training college in francophone Liège. Finally, all factions in the South complained of unfair representation in the national legislature. The south was industrializing faster and was more prosperous than the north, leading to resentment of northern arrogance and political domination.
The outbreak of revolution in France in 1830 was used as a signal for revolt. The demand at first was Home Rule for "Belgium", as the southern provinces were now being called, rather than separation. Eventually, revolutionaries began demanding total independence.[46]
Belgian revolution
The
On a political level, the Belgians felt significantly under-represented in the Netherlands' elected Lower Assembly and disliked the unpopular Prince of Orange, the future William II who was the representative of King William I in Brussels. The French-speaking Walloons also felt ostracised in a majority Dutch-speaking country. There were also significant religious grievances felt by the majority Catholic Belgians.
The king assumed the protest would blow over. He announced an amnesty for all revolutionaries, except foreigners and the leaders. When this did not succeed he sent in the army. Dutch forces were able to penetrate the
Belgian independence was not allowed by the 1815
The
The state of conflict (but not open warfare) with the Netherlands lasted another eight years, but in 1839, the
Independence to World War I
Industrial Revolution
Most of society was highly traditional, especially in rural areas, and the quality of education was low.[53] Nevertheless, Belgium was the second country, after Britain, in which the industrial revolution took place. It developed into an open economy focused on industrial exports with strong ties between the banking sector and industry.[54] Industrialization took place in Wallonia starting in the mid-1820s, and especially after 1830. The availability of cheap coal was a main factor that attracted entrepreneurs. Coke blast furnaces as well as puddling and rolling mills were built in the coal mining areas around Liège and Charleroi. The leader was a transplanted Englishman, John Cockerill. His factories at Seraing integrated all stages of production, from engineering to the supply of raw materials, as early as 1825.[55]
Industry spread through the Sillon industriel ("industrial district"), Haine, Sambre and Meuse valleys.[56] By 1830 when iron became important the Belgian coal industry had been long-established, and used steam engines for pumping. Coal was sold to local mills and railways as well as to France and Prussia. The textile industry, based on cotton and flax, employed about half of the industrial workforce for much of the industrial period. Ghent was the premier industrial city in Belgium until the 1880s, when the center of growth moved to Liège, with its steel industry.[57]
Wallonia had rich coalfields over much of its area. Deep mines were not required at first so there were a large number of small operations. There was a complex legal system for concessions; often multiple layers had different owners. Entrepreneurs started going deeper and deeper (thanks to the innovation of steam pumping). In 1790, the maximum depth of mines was 220 meters. By 1856, the average depth in the area west of Mons was 361, and in 1866, some pits had reached down 700 and 900 meters; one was 1,065 meters deep, probably the deepest coal mine in Europe at this time. Gas explosions were a serious problem, and Belgium had high fatality rates. By the late 19th century the seams were becoming exhausted and the steel industry was importing some coal from the Ruhr.[58]
Cheap and readily available coal attracted firms producing metals and glass, both of which required considerable amounts of coal, and so regions around coal fields became highly industrialised. The Sillon industriel, and in particular the Pays Noir around Charleroi, were the centre of the steel industry until the Second World War.
Railways
The nation provided an ideal model for showing the value of the railways for speeding the Industrial Revolution. After 1830, the new nation decided to stimulate industry. It funded a simple cross-shaped system that connected the major cities, ports and mining areas, and linked to neighboring countries. Belgium thus became the railway center of the region. The system was very soundly built along British lines, so that profits and wages were low but the infrastructure necessary for rapid industrial growth was put in place. Léopold I went on to build the first railway in continental Europe in 1835, between Brussels and Mechelen.[59] The development of smaller railways in Belgium, notably the Liège–Jemappes line, was launched by tendering contracts to private companies which "became the model for the extension of small local railways all over the low countries."[60]
By the 1900s, Belgium was a major exporter of trams and other rail components, exporting vast quantities of railway materials. In South America, 3,800 kilometers of track were owned by Belgian firms, with a further 1,500 kilometers in China.[60] One Belgian entrepreneur, Édouard Empain, known as the "Tramway King", built many public transport systems across the world, including the Paris Métro.[61]
Other important businesses included
Liberalism and Catholicism
Before the arrival of the socialists in the 1890s, the nation was polarised between the conservative Catholic Party and the secular Liberal Party. The Liberals were anticlerical and wanted to reduce the power of the Church. The conflict came to a head during the "First School War" of 1879–1884 as Liberal attempts to introduce a greater level of secularism in primary education were beaten back by outraged Catholics. The School War ushered in a period of Catholic Party dominance in Belgian politics that lasted (almost unbroken) until 1917.[62]
Religious conflict also extended to university education, where secular universities like the Free University of Brussels competed with Catholic universities like the Catholic University of Leuven.
Linguistic conflict
The majority of those in the north of the country spoke Dutch and other
The Flemish goal of linguistic equality (especially in schools and courts) was finally achieved by a series of laws in the 1920s and 1930s. Dutch became the language of government, education, and the courts in the northern provinces of East and West Flanders, Antwerp, Limburg, and eastern Brabant. French remained the official language in Wallonia; Brussels, which had seen a major language shift to French, became an officially bilingual region. Meanwhile, a small separatist Flemish movement had emerged; the Germans had supported it during the war, and in the 1930s it turned fascist. In the Second World War it collaborated with the Nazis.[67]
Foreign relations and military policy
In the mid-1860s during the
Belgium was not a belligerent in the
Rise of the Socialist Party and the trade unions
The economy was stagnant during the long depression of 1873–95, as prices and wages fell and labour unrest grew.
On several occasions, Belgian general strikes escalated into violence. In 1893, soldiers fired on the striking crowd, killing several. Karl Marx wrote, "There exists but one country in the civilised world where every strike is eagerly and joyously turned into a pretext for the official massacre of the Working Class. That country of single blessedness is Belgium!"[72]
Nevertheless, Belgium created a welfare net particularly early, thanks in part to the trade unions. Sickness compensation was established in 1894, voluntary old-age insurance in 1900 and unemployment insurance in 1907, achieving good coverage nationwide much more quickly than its neighbours.[73]
Catholic governments and social policy
Various reforms were introduced under the Catholic governments that led Belgium from the late nineteenth century onwards. In 1887, the system of paying workers in kind and in pubs was outlawed, and joint industrial and labour councils were established. In 1889, labour law councils were reformed, "with employers facing increasing working class representation." That same year, legislation on social housing and women's and child labour was reformed. In 1900, the first law on old-age pensions was approved, while a 1903 law on industrial accidents "stipulated it was no longer up to the worker to prove his innocence." From 1900 onwards, Catholic governments began subsidising unemployment funds, health services and savings banks. Mandatory Sunday rest was approved in 1905, while other reforms were carried out such as reduced working hours for miners, the outlawing of night work for women, and pensions for the military and civil service.[74] Under a law that came into effect in 1892, the employment of women and children under the age of 21 was prohibited.[75] In 1890, a fund of providence and relief for victims of industrial accidents was introduced by law.[76] In 1894, state subsidies were established for sickness funds.[77]
Following the elections of 1894 and 1896, according to one study, "The Catholics continued steadily carrying out their programme of social reforms, and various Acts were passed for the welfare of the working-classes-old-age pensions, workmen's dwellings, employers liability, subsidies to savings banks and mutual societies for the encouragement of thrift."[78] An 1896 law made workshop regulations compulsory for all companies employing at least 10 workers (which changed to 5 workers in 1900),[79] while other social policy measures included employers' industrial accident funds in 1903 and small state subsidies to voluntary unemployment funds in 1907.[80] In 1914, compulsory education was introduced for children between 6 and 14.[81] A National Crisis Fund as set up at the end of 1920 which, according to one study, "marked an important step towards general compensation for involuntary unemployment."[82] Healthcare subsidising by the national government was expanded, as characterised by disability funds in 1912, general medical care (expenses for general practitioner and pharmacist) in 1920, an anti-tuberculosis fund in 1921, basic treatment in 1927, expansion from general to particular medical care (surgery, hospitalisation, preventive medicine); cancer in 1931, and insurance for women and families (marriage premium and premium for death of spouse); death benefits in 1936.[83] In 1919 a scheme for the war-injured was introduced and for the victims of occupational diseases in 1927. From 1928 onwards, means-tested allowances were provided to physically disabled persons.[84] In August 1930, a law was passed making family allowances compulsory in private industry.[85] In 1921, an Act was passed providing for an 8-hour day and 48-hour working week, and in 1936 annual paid holidays were introduced in most industries.[86]
Voting rights
In 1893, the government rejected a proposal for universal male suffrage. Outraged, the Belgian Labour Party called a General Strike; by April 17, there were more than 50,000 strikers. Violent confrontations broke out with the Garde Civique (the Civil Guard or militia) around the country. The government soon backed down, and passed male universal suffrage but reduced its impact by creating plural votes based on wealth, education and age. The Catholic conservatives, with 68% of the seats, remained in power.[87]
Again, in 1902 and 1913, there were general strikes aimed at forcing electoral reform and ending the system of plural voting. After the 1913 strike, a commission was created and was expected to remove plural voting, but implementation was delayed by the 1914 German invasion. In 1918, King Albert forged a post-war "Government of National Union" and brought about one man, one vote universal male suffrage. The last restrictions on women's voting were lifted in 1948.[88]
Culture
Artistic and literary culture in Belgium began a revival towards the late 19th century. A core element of Belgian nationalism was the scientific study of its national history. The movement was led by Godefroid Kurth, a student of the German historian Ranke. Kurth taught modern historical methods to his students at the University of Liège. The most prominent Belgian historian was Henri Pirenne, who was influenced by this method during his period as a student of Kurth.[89]
Architecture and Art Nouveau
At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, monumental
Nevertheless, Brussels became one of the major European cities for the development of the
Empire
Stanard rejects the widely held notion that Belgians were "reluctant imperialists". He argues that "ordinary people came to understand and support the colony. Belgians not only sustained the empire in significant ways, but many became convinced imperialists, evidenced by the widespread, enduring and eagerly embraced propaganda in favor of the Congo."[90]
Congo Free State and Belgian Congo
King
The era of the Congo Free State is most infamous for the large number of atrocities committed under it. Since it was, in effect, a business venture, run by a private company headed by Leopold himself, it aimed to gain as much money as possible from primary exports. Leopold's personal fortune was greatly increased through the proceeds of selling Congolese rubber, which had never previously been mass-produced in such quantities, to the growing market for tyres. Between 1885 and 1908, as many as eight million Congolese died of exploitation and disease while the birth rate dropped.[97] These are only rough estimates, as no figures are available for the period.[98]
To enforce the rubber quotas, the
Following reports from missionaries, there was growing moral outrage, particularly in Britain and the United States. The
The Belgian parliament long refused to take over the colony, which was considered a financial burden. In 1908, the Belgian parliament responded to the international pressure, annexing the Free State. After World War II, Belgium was criticized by the United Nations for making no progress on the political front. Despite propaganda campaigns within Belgium, few Belgians showed much interest in the colony. Also, the government limited the possibility of Congolese settling in Belgium.[102]
Political rights were not granted to the Africans until 1956 when the growing middle class (the so-called
China 1902–31
The
Ruanda-Urundi 1917–61
After the defeat of Germany in World War I, Belgium inherited League of Nations mandates over Ruanda-Urundi.
The colony was administered in a similar way as by the former German administrators, continuing policies such as ethnic identity cards. In 1959, moves towards independence could be seen in the territory and agitation by
Ruanda-Urundi gained independence in 1962 and its two regions, Rwanda and Burundi, separated.
World War I
When World War I began, Germany invaded neutral Belgium and Luxembourg as part of the Schlieffen Plan, trying to take Paris quickly. The threat to France caused Britain to enter the war, using the 1839 agreement as justification. The Belgian army is remembered for their stubborn resistance during the early days of the war, with the army – around a tenth the size of the Germany Army – holding up the German offensive for nearly a month, giving the French and British forces time to prepare for the Marne counteroffensive. The German invaders treated any resistance—such as sabotaging rail lines—as illegal and subversive, and shot the offenders and burned buildings in retaliation.
Belgium had a prosperous economy at the start of the war but after four years of occupation, it emerged in a poor state, although Belgium itself had suffered few deaths. The Germans had "brutally and efficiently stripped the country bare. Machinery, spare parts, whole factories including the roofs, had disappeared eastward. In 1919, 80 percent of its workforce was unemployed."[104]
Military role
Belgian soldiers fought delaying actions in 1914 during the initial invasion. They succeeded in throwing the elaborate German invasion plan off schedule and helped sabotage the Schlieffen Plan that Berlin had counted on for a quick victory over France. At the
Forces from the Belgian Congo played a major role in the African Campaign and a small unit of Belgian soldiers served on the Eastern Front.
Occupation 1914–18
The Germans governed the occupied areas of Belgium through a
The whole country was ruled under martial law.[105] On the advice of the government, civil servants remained in their posts for the duration.[105]
The German army executed between 5,500[105] and 6,500[106] French and Belgian civilians between August and November 1914, usually in near-random large-scale shootings ordered by junior German officers. Individuals suspected of partisan activities were summarily shot.[107] Several important Belgian figures, including politician Adolphe Max and historian Henri Pirenne, were deported to Germany.
The German occupying authorities viewed the Flemish as an oppressed people and had taken several Flemish-friendly measures, known as Flamenpolitik. This included introducing Dutch as the language of instruction of all state-supported schools in Flanders in 1918.[108] This prompted a renewed Flemish movement in the years following the war. The Flemish Frontbeweging (Soldiers' Movement) was formed from Flemish soldiers in the Belgian army to campaign for greater use of Dutch language in education and government, though not separatist.[109]
The Germans left Belgium stripped and barren. Over a 1.4 million refugees fled to France or to neutral Netherlands.[110] After the systematic atrocities by the German army in the first few weeks of the war, German civil servants took control and were generally correct, albeit strict and severe. There was never a violent resistance movement, but there was a large-scale spontaneous passive resistance of refusal to work for the benefit of German victory. Belgium was heavily industrialized; while farms operated and small shops stayed open most large establishments shut down or drastically reduced their output. The faculty closed the universities; many publishers shut down their newspapers. In 1916 Germany shipped 120,000 men and boys to work in Germany; this set off a storm of protest from neutral countries and they were returned. Germany then stripped the factories of all useful machinery, and used the rest as scrap iron for its steel mills.[111]
International relief
Belgium faced a food crisis and an international response was organized by the American engineer Herbert Hoover.[112] It was unprecedented in world history. Hoover's Commission for Relief in Belgium (CRB) had the permission of Germany and the Allies.[113] As chairman of the CRB, Hoover worked with the leader of the Belgian Comité National de Secours et d'Alimentation (CNSA), Émile Francqui, to feed the entire nation for the duration of the war. The CRB imported millions of tons of foodstuffs for the CN to distribute, and watched over the CN to make sure the German army did not appropriate the food. The CRB became a veritable independent republic of relief, with its own flag, navy, factories, mills, and railroads. Private donations and government grants (78%) supplied an $11-million-a-month budget.[114]
At its peak, the American arm, the ARA fed 10.5 million people daily. Britain grew reluctant to support the CRB, preferring instead to emphasize Germany's obligation to supply the relief; Winston Churchill led a military faction that considered the Belgian relief effort "a positive military disaster".[115]
Interwar period
King Albert returned as a war hero. In contrast, the government and the exiles came back discreetly. Belgium had been devastated—not so much by combat, but rather by German seizure of valuable machinery. Only 81 operable locomotives remained, out of the 3,470 available in 1914. 46 of 51 steel mills were damaged, with 26 destroyed totally. More than 100,000 houses had been destroyed, as well as more than 120,000 hectares (300,000 acres) of farmland.[116]
Waves of popular violence accompanied liberation in November and December 1918 and the government responded through the judicial punishment of collaboration with the enemy conducted between 1919 and 1921. Shop windows were broken and houses sacked, men were harassed, and women's heads were shaved. Journalists who had boycotted and stopped writing called for harsh treatment of the newspapers that submitted to German censorship. Many people stigmatized profiteers and demanded justice. Thus in 1918, Belgium was already confronted with the problems associated with occupation that most European countries only discovered at the end of World War II.[117]
However, despite the status quo, Belgium recovered surprisingly quickly. The first postwar Olympic Games were held in Antwerp in 1920. In 1921, Luxembourg formed a customs union with Belgium.
Reparations
German reparations to Belgium for damage incurred during the
Belgian requests to annex territory considered as historically theirs from the Dutch, who were perceived as collaborators, was denied.[116]
Between January 1923 and August 1925, Belgian and French soldiers were sent to the Ruhr in Germany to force the German government to agree to continue reparation payments. The Occupation of the Ruhr led to the Dawes Plan which allowed the German government more leniency in paying reparations.
The League of Nations in 1925 made Belgium the trustee for the former
Art and culture
The Expressionism painting movement found a distinctive form in Flanders under artists like James Ensor, Constant Permeke and Léon Spilliaert. Belgian Surrealist art grew during the inter-war period, including works by René Magritte and Paul Delvaux.
Belgian comics are a distinct subgroup in the comics history, and played a major role in the development of European comics, alongside France with whom they share a long common history. While the comics in the two major language groups and regions of Belgium (Flanders with the Dutch language and Wallonia with French) each have clearly distinct characteristics, they are constantly influencing one another, and meeting each other in Brussels and in the bilingual publication tradition of the major editors. As one of the few arts where Belgium has had an international and enduring impact in the 20th century, comics are known to be "an integral part of Belgian culture". Major contributors include Hergé with The Adventures of Tintin, Dupuis with Spirou, Willy Vandersteen with Suske en Wiske, Bessy, De Rode Ridder, Robert en Bertrand and many others, Marc Sleen with The Adventures of Nero, Peyo with The Smurfs, Jef Nys with Jommeke, and so many more.
Sales of comic books make up 14% of all book sales in Belgium's northern region of Flanders.
Belgium has played a major role in the development of the 9th art. In fact, even the designation of comics as the 9th Art is due to a Belgian. Morris introduced the term in 1964 when he started a series about the history of comics in Spirou. Belgium's comic-strip culture has been called by Time magazine "Europe's richest", while the Calgary Sun calls Belgium "the home of the comic strip". Belgium has several museums dedicated to comic books, comic book heroes and their authors.
The growth of comic strips was also accompanied by a popular art movement, exemplified by Edgar P. Jacobs, Jijé, Willy Vandersteen and André Franquin.
World War II
Belgium tried to pursue a policy of unaligned neutrality before the war, but on May 10, 1940, the country was
Belgian Army in the United Kingdom
After the defeat in 1940, significant numbers of Belgian soldiers and civilians managed to escape to Britain to join the Belgian army in Exile.
Belgian soldiers formed the
Two Belgian squadrons, amounting to over 400 pilots, served in the Royal Air Force during the war, both 349 and 350 Squadrons, which claimed over 50 'kills'.[121]
Two
Congolese soldiers of the
Occupation 1940–44
Belgium was run by a Germany military government between its surrender and liberation in September 1944.
The former fort at Breendonk, near Mechelen was requisitioned by the Nazis and used for detainment and interrogation of Jews, political prisoners and captured members of the resistance. Of the 3,500 incarcerated in Breendonk between 1940 and 1944, 1,733 died.[123] About 300 people were killed in the camp itself, with at least 98 dying from deprivation or torture.[124][125]
In 1940, nearly 70,000 Jews were living in Belgium. Of these, 46 percent were deported from the
Resistance
Resistance against the German occupiers can be seen at all levels, but was highly fragmented. Some organisations were very left-wing, like the Communist
Resistance to the occupiers chiefly came in the form of helping allied airmen escape, and numerous lines were set up to organise this, for instance the
Collaboration
During Nazi occupation, some Belgians collaborated with their occupiers. There were pro-Nazi political organizations in both Flemish and Walloon communities before and during the war. The most significant were the Flemish
After the war, many of those who had collaborated – including many of the guards at Fort Breendonk – were tried, imprisoned or shot.
Allied liberation 1944–45
Belgium was liberated late in 1944 by Allied forces. On 3 September 1944 the Welsh Guards liberated Brussels. The British Second Army seized Antwerp on 4 of September 1944, and the First Canadian Army began conducting combat operations around the port that same month. Antwerp became a highly prized and heavily fought-over objective because its deep-water port was necessary to keep the Allied armies supplied. The Battle of the Scheldt in October 1944 was fought primarily on Dutch soil, but with the objective of opening the way for boats to Antwerp. The port city was also the ultimate objective of German armies during the Ardennes Offensive which resulted in heavy fighting on Belgian soil during the winter of 1944–5.
Following liberation, 10,000 Belgians who had remained in the country during the occupation were mobilised into the Belgian army in 57 "Fusilier Battalions".
WWII to present
"Royal Question"
Immediately after the war,
A 1950 referendum produced a very close result. In
Occupation of Germany, Korean War and EDC
Belgian soldiers were assigned to occupy a section of West Germany, known as Belgian Forces in Germany or FBA-BSD. The last Belgian soldiers left Germany in 2002.[130]
In 1950, a unit of volunteers from the Belgian army was sent to fight for the
Benelux and Europe
On September 5, 1944, the
The Treaty of Brussels, signed on 17 March 1948 by Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, and the United Kingdom, is considered the precursor to the NATO agreement, which Belgium became an official member of on April 4, 1949. The headquarters of NATO are located in Brussels, and the headquarters of SHAPE near Mons.
Belgium was also one of the original founding members of the
Belgian "Economic Miracle"
Marshall Plan
The American Marshall Plan gave Belgium $559 million in grants from 1948 to 1951. A central goal of the ERP was to promote the growth of productivity along the lines of American management and labor practices. The interest among some Belgian employers in increasing rates of productivity per worker was motivated by the rise in wage levels. But the Americans also intended to inject a new "spirit of productivity" in Belgian industries, which implied, among other measures, a reinforcement of structures of corporatist negotiation. After the belated establishment of the Belgian Office for the Increase of Productivity in 1952, the political character of the program became apparent. The "policy of productivity" was successful for a time because it matched the evolution of social reforms. This policy success, however, was rendered impotent by the failure of the economic dimension of the productivity campaigns. The Americans had in effect failed to recognize the structural importance of the major financial groups which dominated heavy industry in Belgium. By not carrying out any large-scale programs of innovation and investment in the key sectors that they controlled in the aftermath of the war, these holding companies greatly restricted the scope for American influence. Consequently, it was by other means, such as the training of managers, that American paradigms entered Belgian economic culture.[135]
Growth and poverty
After the war, the government cancelled Belgium's debts. It was during this period that the well-known Belgian highways were built. In addition, both the economy and the average standard of living rose significantly. As noted by Robert Gildea, "Social and economic policy was designed to restore liberal capitalism tempered by social reform, as prepared for during the war. Trade unions were also involved in a price and wage policy to cut inflation and this, together with the Allied use of Antwerp as the main entry point for war supplies, produced the so-called Belgian miracle of high economic growth combined with high wages."[136] According to one study, Belgian workers by 1961 earned wages "second only to those of the French in the Common Market area", and earned 40% more than their Dutch counterparts.[137]
Despite postwar affluence, however, many Belgians continued to live in poverty. An organisation of several poverty action groups, known as the National Action for Security of Subsistence, claimed that more than 900,000 Belgians (about 10% of the population) lived in poverty in 1967, while in the early 1970s, a group of social scientists called the Working Group on Alternative Economics estimated that about 14.5% of the Belgian population lived in poverty.[138]
Because Flanders had been widely devastated during the war and had been largely agricultural since the Belgian uprising, it benefited most from the Marshall Plan. Its standing as an economically backward agricultural region meant that it obtained support from Belgium's membership of the European Union and its predecessors. At the same time, Wallonia experienced a slow relative decline as the products of its mines and mills came to be less in demand. The economic balance between the two parts of the country has remained less in favour of Wallonia than it was before 1939.
Second "School War" 1950–59
After victory in the 1950 elections, a
When the 1954 elections brought to power a coalition of
Congolese independence and the Congo Crisis
After riots in the Congo in 1959, the scheduled gradual transition to independence was sped up dramatically. In June 1960, the Belgian Congo was replaced by the short-lived First Republic of Congo, led by the democratically elected Congolese statesman Patrice Lumumba. Belgian forces withdrew, leaving the military Force Publique under Congo's control. Order broke down as mutinying soldiers attacked whites who remained in the country. Belgians forces were briefly sent to evacuate Belgian nationals and army officers.
In July 1960, the southern state of
General Strike of 1960–61
In December 1960, Wallonia was gripped by a general strike in response to the general decline of Wallonian manufacturing in a period of turbulence in the aftermath of the Second Schools War. The Wallonian workers demanded federalism, in addition to structural reforms. Even though the strike had been intended to be nationwide, Flemish workers appeared reluctant to support it.
The
At the beginning of the 1960s (...), a major reversal in the relationship between Flanders and Wallonia was taking place. Flanders had entered a vigorous, post–World War II period of industrialization, and a significant percentage of the foreign capital (particularly from the United States, coming into Belgium to support new industries, was being invested in Flanders. In contrast, Wallonia's coal mines and time-worn steel plants and factories were in crisis. The region had lost thousands of jobs and much investment capital. A new Dutch-speaking, upwardly mobile "populist bourgeoisie" was not only becoming visible and vocal in Flemish movements but also in both the local and national policy... [The strike of December 1960 against the austerity law of Gaston Eyskens ] was replaced by a collective expression of the frustrations, anxieties, and grievances that Wallonia was experiencing in response to its altered situation, and by the demands of the newly formed Walloon Popular Movement for...regional autonomy for Wallonia...[140]
Nationwide the economy was generally healthy with an annual growth rate of 5% in the 1960s. However old inefficient factories were being shut down in textiles and leather goods. Coal miners were angered by the closure of used-up mines. Limburg miners at the Zwartberg mine rioted in 1966 to protest its closure. Two miners were killed by police and ten were injured, while nineteen policemen were hurt.[141] In 1973 a series of worldwide crises adversely affected the Belgian economy.
"Linguistic Wars"
This Flemish resurgence has been accompanied by a corresponding shift of political power to the Flemish, who constituted the majority of the population of around 60%. An official Dutch translation of the
The linguistic wars reached a climax in 1968 with the splitting of the
Rise of the federal state
The successive linguistic disputes made the successive Belgian governments very unstable. The three major parties all split in two according to their French- or Dutch-speaking electorate. A language border was determined by the first Gilson Act of November 8, 1962. The boundaries of certain
In 1970, there was a first state reform, which resulted in the establishment of three cultural communities: Dutch, French and German. This reform was a response to the
The second state reform took place in 1980, when the cultural communities became
During the third state reform in 1988 and 1989, under
The fourth state reform, which took place in 1993 under Prime Minister
In 2001, a fifth state reform took place,
At the end of 2011, following the longest political crisis in Belgium's contemporary history, a constitutional accord between the four main political families (socialists, liberals, social-Christians, ecologists), but excluding the Flemish nationalists, ushered in the sixth state reform which provided for major institutional changes and additional transfers of competences from the federal level to the Communities and the Regions. Among other changes, the Senate ceased to be directly elected to become an assembly of regional parliaments, the Brussels-Capital Region was granted constitutive autonomy, and the Regions received economic, employment and family welfare competences as well as greater fiscal autonomy.[144]
Belgium was one of the founders of the European Common Market. Between 1999 and 2002, the Euro gradually replaced the Belgian franc (the currency of Belgium since 1830) at the rate of 1 EUR=40.3399 BEF[145] Belgian Euro coins usually depict King Albert II on the obverse.
Political parties
From the 1960s, most political parties, which had previously stood in elections in both Flemish and Walloon areas, split down linguistic divides. The
also split on regional lines in 1992."Green" politics in Belgium became quite successful in the aftermath of the
1990 to present
Marc Dutroux scandal
In 1996, confidence in the political and criminal justice systems was shaken by the news that Marc Dutroux and his accomplices had kidnapped, tortured, and murdered young girls. Parliamentary inquiries found the police forces were incompetent and bureaucratic, and the judicial system suffered from bureaucracy, very poor communication with, and support for, the victims, slow procedures and many loopholes for criminals. On October 26, 1996, about 300,000 Belgians joined the "White March" in Brussels in protest.[147]
Belgian military intervention since 1990
The
After the downing of the Rwandan and Burundian presidential plane 10 Belgian peacekeepers were murdered by the Hutu-dominated government army. In response, Belgium withdrew all of its peacekeepers, blaming UNAMIR for failing to rescue their men.[148] The Belgians had represented the largest and most capable element in the UNAMIR mission, leaving it incapacitated and unable to cope with the events of the Rwandan genocide.
Belgian paratroopers were deployed to
During the
Belgian soldiers have served in
In the 2011, the
Belgium was part of the
Debt and economic slowdown
Belgium created huge debts during times when rates were low and generated new debts to service the initial debt. Its debts amounted to about 130% of the
Internal politics
In the
In July 1999, a government of
The Belgian government was strongly opposed to the
On January 30, 2003, Belgium became the second country in the world to legally recognize
Political crisis 2010–11
The
2014–present
The 2014 election resulted in a further electoral gain for the Flemish nationalist N-VA, although the incumbent coalition maintained a solid majority. On 22 July 2014, King Philippe nominated Charles Michel (MR) and Kris Peeters (CD&V) to lead the formation of a new coalition federal cabinet.[160]
In July 2019 prime minister Charles Michel was selected as President of the European Council.[161] His successor Sophie Wilmès was Belgium's first female prime minister.[162] Alexander De Croo became prime minister in October 2020.[163]
Historiography
Modern
Since Belgium became an independent nation only in 1830, defining nationhood was a special issue for the historians of the late 19th century. The usual European solutions which defined nationhood in terms of language would not work. The challenge of defining the nation's past and present in the face of Dutch, Spanish, Austrian, French, and German influences posed a central problem. Defending the boundaries of Belgium (especially why Flanders should not be in the Netherlands) was another issue that preoccupied historical writers such as Pirenne.[165]
Belgian historiography achieved international stature in the early 20th century with the work of medievalist
See also
- BELvue Museum – a Brussels museum tracing the history of Belgium from 1830 until the present.
- History of Flanders
- History of the Jews in Belgium
- History of Wallonia
- List of Belgian monarchs
- List of World Heritage Sites in Belgium
- Politics of Belgium
- Timeline of Belgian history
Notes
- fireship designed by an Italian engineer, Federigo Giambelli.
References
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Economic, cultural and social history
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Historiography and memory
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External links
- Belgianhistory.be
- H-Net list H-Low-Countries is published free by email and is edited by scholars. Its occasional messages deal with new journal issues, methodology, archives, and teaching methods,
- Historical maps of Belgium from 1340 to 1990 on WHKMLA
- History of Belgium: Primary Documents
- Rulers.org — Belgium List of rulers for Belgium
- Overview of historical novels about The Netherland and Belgium Archived 2011-02-08 at the Wayback Machine