History of Belgium. Belgium chronology

History of Belgium

Early History
Independence to World War I
Between the Two World Wars
World War II
Development after World War II
Chronology of Belgium
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Chronology of Belgium

Ancient Belgium
100 BC	Belgae Celtic tribes settle in Belgium
50 BC	The Belgae are defeated by Julius Caesar’s forces
AD 200-400	The Franks settle in the same region
496	King Clovis, of the Franks, establishes a kingdom which includes Belgium, and introduces Christianity
768	The Carolingian family begins rule over the Frankish kingdom
800	Charlemagne, the new king of the Frankish kingdom, makes Belgium its centre
843	The three grandsons of Charlemagne divide the kingdom between themselves after his death
900s	The Carolingians’ power fade, and feudal states become the most significant form of property
1000s	The families of Flanders, Hainaut, Namur, Brabant and Limburg emerge as the strongest to rule in their areas and provinces

Medieval Belgium
1302	The French Army attacks the Flanders in attempt to be taken under the control of France, but is defeated by the local people
1354	The Joyeuse Entrée, a document formed by the duchy of Brabant, gives the duke power to collect taxes from the Church, towns and nobles
1400s	One third of Belgium’s population live in towns and cities
1477	Belgium becomes part of Austria after the marriage of Austrian King Maximilian and Mary of Burgundy
1506	Charles of Austria inherits Belgium
1555	Phillip II, son of Charles, becomes ruler of Belgium
1566	Phillip persecutes Protestants in Belgium, resulting in rebellion. Phillip quells the rebels by sending the Spanish Army and Duke of Alba. William I, Prince of Orange, in Belgium, lead the locals against the Spanish forces
1648	The conflict between Belgium and Spain ends. Spain recognises the independence of the Netherlands’, of which Belgium was part of
Late 1600s	Neighbouring countries place restrictions on Belgium, reducing the economic strength of the region

18th and 19th Century Belgium
1713	Belgium submits to Austrian rule
1781-1787	After the attempt of the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II to change the legal, administrative, judicial and educational systems in the country, Henri Van der Noot and Jan Vonck lead local leaders to compose a Declaration of Independence
1789	Three months after the start of the Brabant Revolution, Belgium forces defeat the Austrian Army
1790 January	The independent state of Etats Belgiques Unis is formed
End of 1790	Austria regains its control over Belgium
Early 1790s	The Austrians are driven out from the region by the French
1795	Belgium becomes part of France
1815	After the defeat of Napoleon, Belgium, Luxemburg and Holland are united
1830	Belgium gains independence from the Netherlands
1831	After adoption of the new constitution, the monarch is made head of state
1830s	Belgium is one of the first countries to build a railroad, which develops into a national railroad
1834	Freemasons establish the University of Brussels
1865	A colony is established in Africa after King Leopold II sends explorers
1885	The Congo Free State is established as a private colony of Leopold II. The colony supplies ivory, rubber and other important goods to Belgium, while Africans are cruelly treated by the agents of the king

Twentieth Century Belgium
1908	The Congo becomes the Belgian Congo after the U.S. forces the king to relinquish control of his private colony to the Parliament of Belgium
1909	King Albert I becomes the new monarch
1914 August 4	Germany invades Belgium
November 1914	All of Belgium is under German rule
1914-1918	Belgium is the battlefield of many bloody fights during the First World War
November 1918	After Germany surrenders, Belgium receives parts of German territories and German properties in Africa, as well as monetary reparations from Germany
1930s	Both Dutch and French become official languages
1940-1945	Belgium suffers much from battles on its territories during the Second World War

Modern Belgium
1945	Belgium becomes co-founder of the United Nations (UN)
1949	Belgium joins the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
1960	Belgium gives up Congo
1992	Belgium joins the European Union (EU)
2002	The euro replaces the Belgian franc