Places to visit
Flanders after Napoleon
...continued from the page on the Spanish Netherlands

1830 - modern borders established
Invasions by Germany

The story so far... In the 18th century, former Spanish Netherlands had been divided between Holland and France, with the remainder ruled by Austria. Napoleon conquered the whole of the Low Countries, and briefly made them part of France. How would the victors of the Napoleonic Wars carve up the area? Back to top
Modern frontiers in Flanders Dutch Republic French Republic / Napoleon's Empire  k.of Netherlands  Spanish Empire Austrian Netherlands   Belgium       France   France 1648-78 to 1713 1713 - 1793 1793-1815 1815-30 1830 - today DIAGRAM: Napoleon re-united France with Belgium and Holland
Modern Belgium and Luxembourg established as 'neutral' states When the crowned heads of Europe defeated Napoleon, their instinct was to try and restore the old regimes. The 1815 peace settlement returned France to its 1790 borders, and restored the Bourbon monarchy. Initially a kingdom of the Netherlands united Belgium and Holland. The Catholic Belgians rebelled against rule by the Protestant Dutch, and in 1830 their independence was recognised. Many influential French-speaking Belgians wanted to join France. The French "citizen-king" Louis-Philippe ignored them for fear of giving the rest of Europe the impression that France again had Napoleonic ambitions. The new kingdom of Belgium really started life as a collection of “left-over bits” - though it gradually acquired an identity. It was formally divided into separate language areas: for those Belgians who spoke French ("Walloons") and those who spoke Flemish. In 1867 the small Duchy of Luxembourg also became independent. Back to top
Wallonia - French speaking Flanders - Flemish speaking Brussels-Capital - bilingual France - blue/green area is where Flemish used to be the main everyday language Map: Regional boundaries in Belgium - former language areas in France
Belgium and Luxembourg were recognised by their powerful neighbours as small neutral buffer states which would side with neither France nor Germany. They hoped to avoid further ravages of war.
German invasions In the second half of the 19th century, the kingdom of Prussia succeeded in uniting the previously divided collection of small princedoms of Germany. German power then posed a new threat to France, especially to its fairly defenceless flat borderlands in Flanders. Three times German troops invaded and occupied the region: in the 1870 Franco-Prussian War. In the First and Second World Wars (1914-18 and 1939-45) German invaders also ignored Belgian neutrality. Each time, Nord/ Pas-de-Calais suffered devastation. Back to top	In 1914 German troops sweep across the flat fields of Flanders

A region at the heart of Europe Today, the European Union and the Single Market have virtually closed the customs posts between France and Belgium. Modern transport links Lille has become the hub of a high speed train network bringing much of Europe much closer in travel time. The golden triangle Nord-PasdeCalais and Flemish-Belgium lie in the most prosperous part of the European economic community.

Customs posts on the frontiers have become museum pieces

Places to visit: Customs Museum [Le Musée de la Douane] - Helstrud, nr. Maubeuge

Background information First World war Second World War

Medieval Flanders		Spanish Netherlands		Flemish Art		Food & drink		Flanders since Napoleon
				Language		"Giants"		Trad.games

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