BELGIUM

Belgium is a small, crowded country in Western Europe. Its population is about 11 million and covers an area of about 11,799 square miles.  It is bounded on the west by the North Sea, on the north by The Netherlands, on the east by Germany and

Luxembourg and on the south by France. The historic Belgian City of Ghent is located at the junction of the Scheldt and Lys rivers and has over 200 bridges. The city was also the center of Flemish cloth trade.

About two-third of the country is a low-lying, fertile plain, through which the River Scheldt (Schelde) and its tributaries flow to the sea at Antwerp, the chief port, Brussels, the capital, lies in this plain.

In the south-east lies a highland area, the Ardennes. It is covered with forest or grassy areas where sheep graze. The climate of Belgium is mild.

The people of northern Belgium speak Flemish, a language like Dutch. In southern Belgium the people speak French and Walloon, a language rather like French.

Farms cover nearly two-thirds of Belgium. They produce cereals, sugar-beet, potatoes and flax. Farmers also rear cattle, pigs, and horses. Manufacturing is Belgium’s main source of wealth. Factories turn flax into linen, and wool from the sheep into cloth. Other industries include manufacture of chemicals, and mining of coal and metal ores.

Belgium is a constitutional monarchy, it has a king, and the people elect the Senate and House of Representatives.

Until the 1800’s, Belgium formed part of the Low Countries, an area that included what is now called The Netherlands, Spaniards, Austrians, French and Dutch in turn ruled Belgium, but in 1830, Belgium finally won its independence.

In 1914, during World War 1, the Germans invaded Belgium in order to attack France. Belgium was again occupied by the Germans in 1940, during the World War 2. It was liberated in 1944.

In 1957, Belgium joined with five other European countries to form the European Common Market, an economic alliance to make trading easier.

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