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About Belgium
Well
situated between France and Holland, the kingdom of Belgium encompasses
all the best that Europe has to offer in an area no bigger than
Maryland. Within the span of one day you can take a romantic cruise
down a canal in Bruges, hunt for diamonds in Antwerp, enjoy waffles
on the beach in Oostende, frolic in a festival in Binche, get lost
in a castle in Namur, discover antiques at an outdoor market in
Liege, and explore a fine art museum in Brussels. A dense train
network connects all of Belgium and makes navigation simple and
comfortable for travelers.
Often called the Essence of Europe,
Belgium is both multicultural and multilingual. Flanders in the
north, a flatland criss-crossed by canals, is proud of its medieval
art cities, Antwerp, Bruges and Ghent. To the south in Wallonia,
you will find the rolling hills of the Ardennes, countless castles,
and the cities of Liege, Namur, and Tournai. The city of Brussels
is one of the world's great cosmopolitan capitals, home to both
the European Union and NATO, as well as a wealth of international
trade and finance companies.
Belgium's history has always been
linked to both commercial and cultural exchange, and much of its
character is due to its role as the great meeting place of Western
Europe. It would be difficult to name a European country who didn’t
want to stake their claim in Belgium at one time or another. Traces
of the Austrians, Spanish, French and Dutch can still be seen in
its architecture and in the lifestyle of its people. You will see
superb examples of art and architecture past and present - Romanesque,
Gothic, Baroque, and Art Nouveau. |
History of Belgium
From the Roman Empire to the Middle
Ages
The name Belgium comes from a
Celtic tribe, the Belgae, who settled ancient Gaul around 900 BC.
In 52 BC, Julius Caesar conquered the Belgae's territory, Belgica,
putting Belgium under Roman rule.
As the Roman Empire went into
decline, a group of Germanic tribes called the Franks began settling
in what is now Belgium. In time most of the Roman region of Gaul,
including Belgium, became part of the Frankish empire. The Frankish
king Charlemagne is sometimes regarded as the founder of the Holy
Roman Empire, which lasted from 800 to 1806 and included Belgium.
Sometimes the Holy Roman Emperor had no real authority; sometimes
he had a lot.
The Frankish empire was divided
up after Charlemagne's death. His grandson Lothair's portion of
the empire included most of Belgium. The remainder became part of
France. Eventually much of Belgium split into self-ruling feudal
principalities.
In the late 1300s Belgium fell
under the rule of Burgundy. Although Burgundy is now part of France,
at that time it was an independent kingdom. In 1477 the heir to
the throne of Burgundy, Mary of Burgundy, married Maximilian of
Austria, who later became the king of Germany and the Holy Roman
Emperor. They had a son, Philip, who inherited Mary's kingdom after
her death in a riding accident, placing Burgundy -- and Belgium
-- under the rule of Austria's royal Habsburg family.
Philip, called "the Handsome,"
later married Juana the Mad, daughter of Spain's legendary rulers
Ferdinand and Isabella. Like his mother, Philip died young, leaving
behind a son, King Charles I of Spain, who was also Holy Roman Emperor
Charles V, and, of course, the ruler of Belgium, which was then
part of the Netherlands. The next two centuries were a time of great
religious upheaval, and there was much conflict between Protestants
and Roman Catholics in the Netherlands.
Belgians were used to self-government,
but in the 1780s the Habsburg emperor Joseph II tried to centralize
the government in Vienna. His opponents rejected the monarchy and
declared a new United States of Belgium, but Austria soon suppressed
this rebellion. The Belgians accepted Joseph's great-nephew Charles
as their grand duke.
But just few years later Belgium
was taken over by French revolutionaries. It remained under French
control until 1815, when French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated
by British and Prussian forces at the Battle of Waterloo in Belgium.
A United Kingdom of the Netherlands was created, and Belgium, known
as the Southern Netherlands, was part of this kingdom. That didn't
last long, either.
Leopold I and Leopold
II
Dutch king William I was unpopular
in Belgium, and the people revolted. Belgian independence was declared,
and Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha -- a German prince who was the
uncle of Britain's Queen Victoria -- was elected to be Belgium's
first king. On July 21, 1831, now Belgium's Independence Day, he
took the throne as Leopold I. He was a good ruler and helped the
new nation prosper.
Leopold's first wife was Princess
Charlotte, daughter of Britain's King George IV. She had died in
childbirth. The year after he ascended the throne, Leopold married
Princess Louise, the daughter of France's King Louis Philippe. After
Leopold's death in 1865, their eldest son became King Leopold II.
His only son died in childhood, so upon his death in 1909 the throne
passed to his nephew, King Albert I.
The Heroism of King Albert I
Albert's wisdom as a constitutional
monarch was widely respected. He promoted modern reforms in Belgium
and its African colony. He also tried to modernize the Belgian army,
but the parliament wouldn't cooperate, which was unfortunate for
Belgium. In 1914 Germany demanded permission to send its army through
Belgium to attack France. Albert courageously refused, and Germany
immediately invaded and occupied Belgium. Throughout World War I,
Albert and his army fought for the Allied cause. King Albert is
recognized as one of the heroes of the war.
A patron of the arts, Albert was
also interested in mechanics, engineering and aviation. His wife
Elizabeth, a Bavarian duchess, shared many of his interests. They
had three children: Leopold, Charles, and Marie Jose. One of King
Albert's many hobbies, mountaineering, brought his life to an early
end on February 18, 1934, when he went rock climbing alone and fell
to his death.
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Interesting facts...
Spa is a city in Belgium where all other
spas get their name from. Luxury spas are located throughout
Belgium where you will surely get the royal Spa treatment.
The saxophone was invented in Belgium by
Adolph Sax in 1846. There are numerous jazz festivals throughout
the year celebrating our love for jazz music.
There are more castles per square mile in
Belgium than anywhere else in the world. Some of our castles
are moated and others have labyrinth garden mazes to get lost
in.
Brussels is headquarters to the European
Union (EU) & NATO. With this much international activity,
it's no wonder English is widely spoken.
Actor Audrey Hepburn, probably most famous
for her role in the film Breakfast at Tiffany's, was born
Edda van Heemstra Hepburn- Ruston in Brussels.
Belgian endive was accidentally discovered
by a Belgian farmer in 1830. All endives sold in the US are
imported from Belgium.
Belgian Rene Magritte was a surrealist painter.
He developed a style which used misleading realism to create
provocative fantasies around commonplace situations.
Belgium produces 172,000 tons of chocolate
per year in over 2,130 chocolate shops. Our chocolate has
pure cocoa flavor because we don't use vegetable shortening.
There are over 400 different types of beer
in Belgium running the gamut from white to raspberry beer.
Most beers have their own glass in which only that beer may
be served. |
Learn More About Belgium
Visit
Belgium - The only official site of the Belgian
Tourist offices in the Americas. Everything you want to know about
Belgium when planning a trip such as hotel information, climate,
visa and much more.
Brussels,
the capital region
Brussels
Life - Your key to the best of Brussels.
Brussels
Creativity - This website takes you on a virtual
tour through Brussels, to discover the "art of living"
through Brussels' monuments, restaurants, designers, and most importantly
- shopping.
The
Official Site of the Belgian Monarchy
Belgium Newspapers
De
Standaard
Le
Soir
La
Libre Belgique
Financieel
Economische Tijd
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Leopold III and King Baudouin
King Albert's eldest son became
King Leopold III. The very next year, tragedy struck the royal family
again when the new king's wife, a Swedish princess named Astrid,
died in a car accident.
When World War II erupted, Germany
invaded Belgium once again. Leopold tried to resist, but in the
end he surrendered to the Germans and became their prisoner, which
made him very unpopular in some circles. In 1941 he married a commoner,
Mary Liliane Baels, to whom he later gave the title of princess.
They had three children.
After the defeat of the Nazis,
King Leopold went into exile in Switzerland. His brother Charles
served as regent. In 1950, more than half of the Belgian people
voted to let Leopold resume his role as king, but his opponents
continued to protest, and in 1951 he formally abdicated in favor
of his eldest son, Prince Baudouin. Leopold III died in 1983.
On June 30, 1960 King Baudouin
proclaimed the Belgian Congo's independence. On December 15, 1960
he married Fabiola-Fernanda-Maria de las Victorias-Antonia-Adelada
de Mora y Aragon, a Spanish aristocrat who had worked as a nurse.
Queen Fabiola, who is still alive, speaks Spanish, French, Dutch,
English, German, and Italian. She is the author of children's stories
and some of her royalties go to a children's charity. She works
for many causes, including improving the plight of poor women worldwide.
She and Baudouin had no children.
King Baudouin briefly abdicated
in the 1990s rather than sign a law he disliked. This angered many
Belgians, who felt that the king should keep his beliefs to himself.
Some people hoped that he would abdicate permanently. Still, he
resumed his throne, and there was great public sadness when he died
of heart failure on July 31, 1993 during a vacation in Spain.
Today's Royal Family
Badouin was succeeded by his brother
Albert II. Albert and his wife, Queen Paola, have been married since
1959. She is from a princely Italian family, the Ruffo di Calabrias.
She enjoys crafts and does humanitarian work. Albert and Paola have
three children: Philippe, Astrid, and Laurent. Philippe was born
in 1960, Astrid in 1962, and Laurent in 1963.
King Albert was the head of the
Belgian Red Cross for a number of years. He works to promote the
economy and is interested in environmental issues. He's also interested
in sports and is honorary president of the Belgian Olympic Committee.
He created a great stir in the 1990s by speaking out about scandals
rocking Belgium and calling for reform of the justice system to
make it more humane and effective.
Prince Philippe, Duke of Brabant,
is the heir to the throne. He speaks both French and Dutch. He was
a pilot in the Belgian air force, trained as a paratrooper, and
became a colonel in 1989. He studied constitutional history at Trinity
College, Oxford in the United Kingdom and graduated from Stanford
in California as a Master of Arts in political science. Since 1992
he has received an allowance from the government of Belgium. He
is the honorary president of the Belgian Foreign Trade Office.
In 1999, at the age of 39, Philippe
married Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, a 26-year old speech therapist
from an aristocratic family. When Philippe inherits the throne,
Mathilde will become the country's first Belgian-born queen. Their
first child, Elisabeth, was born in 2001. She was joined by two
brothers, Gabriel and Emmanuel, born in 2003 and 2005.
Princess Astrid studied art history
in the Netherlands, and also attended school in Switzerland and
Michigan. She is president of the Belgian Red Cross. In 1984 she
married Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este, who is now a prince of
Belgium. They have five children: Amedeo, Maria Laura, Joachim,
Luisa Maria, and Laetitia Maria. Prince Amadeo was born in 1986,
Maria Laura in 1988, Joachim in 1991, Luisa Maria in 1995, and Laetitia
Maria in 2003.
Prince Laurent is a captain in
the Belgian Navy. He promotes environmental causes and animal welfare,
and encourages young musicians. He married British land surveyor
Claire Coombs in April 2003. They have three children: a daughter,
Princess Louise, born in February 2004, and twin sons, Aymeric and
Nicolas, born in December 2005.
Brussels
Brussels
is the ultimate European city. As the headquarters to the EU (European
Union) and NATO it is often referred to as The Capital of Europe.
It is an international metropolis – a mosaic of languages,
cultures, and traditions. Aside from the splendid and varied architectural
styles of the city, Brussels also hosts over 80 museums, numerous
tourist attractions, a vibrant nightlife, and more restaurants than
you could count.
The starting point for any visit
to Brussels is the Grand Place. The Grand Place, with its ornate
baroque and gothic guild houses, is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage
site, and one of the most beautiful squares in Europe. Built as
a merchants market in the 13th century, it serves as the city center
and a great place to enjoy Belgian hospitality at one of the many
terrace cafes. It is also a venue for many concerts & events
throughout the year and during the warmer months has a vibrant,
daily flower market.
Shopping in the distinctive fashion
boutiques, lingering over a delicious lunch in a bistro or a top
restaurant, people watching from a street cafe, or picking up a
unique antique on the Sablon - Brussels is a city you can call your
own.
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The Society of Friends of Belgium
in America operates under the auspices of
the Ambassador of Belgium to the United States and the Consul General
of Belgium in New York. |
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