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• History
of Christianization of Europe
• Soviet
Union, Communist influence
• Map
of European ethnic groups
• Map of Fascism
in Europe (1922-75)
• History
of Islamic conquest in Europe
• Religions
& ethnic groups in Russia
• Detailed
map of French colonization
• Detailed
map of British colonization
• Napoleon's
conquests & legacy
--MORE &
NON-ENGLISH--

• Muhammad cartoon crisis in pictures
• Stalin's private summer home
• Ravenna: capital of Gothic empire
• Czar Nicholas II's Ukrainian palace
• European traditional costumes/dress
• Inside the Vatican, house of all wealth
--MORE
& NON-ENGLISH--

• Islamic Mujahidin
vs. Spain & El Cid
• Poland-Lithuania vs. Teutonic Order
• Nevskiy's Russia vs. German Crusaders
• Mussolini vs. Libyan Islamic fighters
• Qadafi: Europe will soon be Islamic
• Ivan the Terrible vs. Muslim Tatars
--MORE
& NON-ENGLISH--

• The Gypsies in history and today,
Europe's public enemy
• History of Jihad in Chechnya & Caucasus vs. Russians
• History of the Muslim Tatars in Russia
• Ethnic & religious history of Serbs, Croats, & Bosnians
• Breakaway
states and independence movements in Europe
• The ancient Germanic Runic alphabet and
Runestones
• Inside Bulgaria, 1st Slavic nation, land of Thracian masters of gold
• Visual history of Yugoslavia
• 4,000-year-old white mummies of China,
bringers of Buddhism
--MORE
& NON-ENGLISH-- |
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Map of Belgian colonization
history
by James Mayfield (Chairman, European Heritage Library)
Print
this Article • About
the Author • Bibliography/Sources
Below is an exclusive map
the ELA has published charting the historic power and influence
of the Belgian nation and history in the last 200 years. Detailed
dates and information are noted aside visual aids to trace
Belgium's difficult colonial history in its African colonies.
It does not show the power extent of the the Belgian Empire
at a specific time, but rather all throughout its colonial
history. If you have any questions, notify us.
Mapping Information &
Extra Notes:
Belgium is one of the youngest
countries in Europe. Its ethnic situation and unique history
makes its political evolution very unusual. The region of
Belgium has always been known for its ancient and wealthy
cities (including Vlanderen, Antwerpen, etc.) that brought
great wealth to the German Empire for most of the last 1,200
years dating back to the empire of the German emperor Karl
the Great (Charlemagne). As the German empire deteriorated,
and power over the Germans transferred from central Germany
to German Austria, Belgium passed gradually to Austrian authority
as part of Habsburg Burgundy. This shift of authority has
incited gradual independence efforts by the Belgians throughout
history. Due to dynastic agreements, the Austrian Burgundy
(including Netherlands, today's Belgium, and nominally Switzerland)
passed to Spanish rule. The 80 Years' War of the 16th century
for Dutch Protestant independence from Spanish Catholic hegemony
finally succeeded in the gradual establishment of an independent
Dutch nation, which included all of modern-day Belgium. Because
of its geography and historic inclusion into Germanic nations,
the vast majority of Belgium today is ethnically Germanic
(Dutch), with the French being a minority; the Dutch are called
Flemish, whilst the French are called Walloons with slight
dialectical differences among both culture's mother languages.
French influence in the region following the Napoleonic wars
gradually caused the French minority to assume authority in
western Netherlands, and in 1830, Belgium broke from the Netherlands,
still with a Germanic majority but with disproportionate French
influence in the new nation. This French characteristic is
the reason that French was used as a colonial language in
their African colonies as opposed to Dutch or German.
Belgium, with Italy and Germany,
was among the last colonial powers in Africa. Like the Italians
and Germans, Belgians sought to expand their coffers and influence
by seizing the few tribal regions of Africa that superior
powers (the British and French) had not already annexed. As
the backwater tribal jungles of the Congo were free from European
hands, the Belgians quickly marched into central Africa, ultimately
annexing the central Congo by 1885. Today, the Congo is divided
thricefold: the Central African Republic, the Republic of
Congo, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with the
Belgian Congo only referring to the last (the previous three
were French). The Belgian Congo has a history noted for the
brutality of Emperor Leopold, who blindly sacrificed the native
population in an effort to harvest the vast resources of the
Congo to Belgium. Liberal estimates cite as many as one million
or even three million dead, though only some of this can be
confirmed as being performed due to Belgian activity. After
World War I, when the Allies forced the German empire to abolish
its colonial empire, the German colonies of Rwanda and Burundi
were given to Belgium due to their proximity. Belgium is also
blamed for inciting tribal conflict in Rwanda and Burundi
between the Hutus and the Tutsis, though the hardship existed
beforehand to a less degree of intensity. All three of these
colonies were given freedom by 1962 as new and independent
nations. They are among the poorest on earth.
Today, the ethnic situation
of Belgium remains difficult to the point that many are concerned
Belgium may partition itself into two nations in the near
future. The Germanic majority population despises French minority
influence in the eastern region of Flanders, and vice versa
in Wallonia.
Regions marked in red
denote full colonial conquest by Belgium. Regions marked in
orange refer to territories that
Belgium acquired after World War I from Germany following
the Versailles Treaty at the command of the Allies.
Click the below map
for the full-size version! Click on the map again to zoom.

If an error has been made,
please notify the EHL Staff.
________________________________________
ABOUT
THE AUTHOR:
James Mayfield is the owner
and Chairman of the European Heritage Library. I am working
for a doctorate in history, with a specific emphasis on Islamic
and European histories. I am well versed in all world cultures,
ethnicities, religions, languages, politics, and historical
evolution in relation to and against each other.
BIBLIOGRAPHY/SOURCES
USED:
The image used as the basis
for the map is widely distributed and not protected.
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