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For other uses, see Belgium (disambiguation).
The Kingdom of Belgium is a country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters, as well as those of other major international organizations, including NATO.Footnote: Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many international organizations, including ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G-10, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC (observers), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNECE, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WADB (non-regional), WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC. Belgium covers an area of 30,528 square kilometers (11,787 square miles) and has a population of about 10.5 million.
Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Latin Europe, Belgium\'s two largest regions are the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders in the north, with 58% of the population, and the French-speaking southern region of Wallonia, inhabited by 32%. The Brussels-Capital Region, although officially bilingual, is a mostly French-speaking enclave within the Flemish and near the Walloon Region, and has 10% of the population.
Leclerc, Jacques , membre associé du TLFQ (2007-01-18). Belgique • België • Belgien — Région de Bruxelles-Capitale • Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest (French). L\'aménagement linguistique dans le monde. Host: Trésor de la langue française au Québec (TLFQ), Université Laval, Quebec. Retrieved on 2007-06-18. “C\'est une région officiellement bilingue formant au centre du pays une enclave dans la province du Brabant flamand (Vlaams Brabant)”
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About Belgium. Belgian Federal Public Service (ministry) / Embassy of Belgium in the Republic of Korea. Retrieved on 2007-06-21. “the Brussels-Capital Region is an enclave of 162 km2 within the Flemish region.”
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Flanders (administrative region). Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia. Microsoft (2007). Retrieved on 2007-06-21. “The capital of Belgium, Brussels, is an enclave within Flanders.”
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McMillan, Eric (October 1999). The FIT Invasions of Mons (pdf). Capital translator, Newsletter of the NCATA, Vol. 21, No. 7, p. 1. National Capital Area Chapter of the American Translators Association (NCATA). Retrieved on 2007-06-21. “The country is divided into three increasingly autonomous regions: Dutch-speaking Flanders in the north; mostly French-speaking Brussels in the center as an enclave within Flanders, and French-speaking Wallonia in the south (plus the German-speaking Cantons de l\'Est).”
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Van de Walle, Steven, lecturer at University of Birmingham Institute of Local Government Studies, School of Public Policy. Language Facilities in the Brussels Periphery (pdf). KULeuven — Leuvens Universitair Dienstencentrum voor Informatica en Telematica. Retrieved on 2007-06-21. “Brussels is a kind of enclave within Flanders — it has no direct link with Wallonia.” A small German-speaking Community exists in eastern Wallonia.
The German-speaking Community. The German-speaking Community. Retrieved on 2007-05-05. The (original) version in German language (already) mentions 73,000 instead of 71,500 inhabitants. Belgium\'s linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the political history and a complex system of government.
Morris, Chris (2005-05-13). Language dispute divides Belgium. BBC News. Retrieved on 2007-05-08.
Petermann, Simon, Professor at the University of Liège, Wallonia, Belgium — at colloquium IXe Sommet de la francophonie — Intitiatives 2001 — Ethique et nouvelles technologies, session 6 Cultures et langues, la place des minorités, Bayreuth (2001-09-25). Langues majoritaires, langues minoritaires, dialectes et NTIC (French). Retrieved on 2007-05-04.
The name \'Belgium\' is derived from Gallia Belgica, a Roman province in the northernmost part of Gaul that was inhabited by the Belgae, a mix of Celtic and Germanic peoples.
Bunson, Matthew (1994). Encyclopedia of the Roman Empire, Hardcover 352pp, Facts on File, New York, p. 169. ISBN 0 8160 2135 X [Paperback 512pp, ISBN 0-8160-3182-7; Revised edition (2002), Hardcover 636pp, ISBN 0-8160-4562-3]. Footnote: The Celtic and/or Germanic influences on and origin(s) of the Belgae remains disputed. Further reading e.g.
Witt, Constanze Maria (May 1997). Ethnic and Cultural Identity. Barbarians on the Greek Periphery? — Origins of Celtic Art. Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia. Retrieved on 2007-06-06. Historically, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg were known as the Low Countries, which used to cover a somewhat larger area than the current Benelux group of states. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 17th century, it was a prosperous centre of commerce and culture. From the 16th century until the Belgian revolution in 1830, many battles between European powers were fought in the area of Belgium, causing it to be dubbed "the battlefield of Europe"
Belgian economy. Belgium. Belgian Federal Public Service (ministry) of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. Retrieved on 2007-05-21. and "the cockpit of Europe"
Haß, Torsten, Head of the Fachhochschule (University of Applied Sciences) of Kehl Library, Kehl, Germany (2003-02-17). Rezention zu (Review of) Cook, Bernard: Belgium. A History ISBN 0-8204-5824-4 (German). FH-Zeitung (journal of the Fachhochschule). Retrieved on 2007-05-24. “die Bezeichnung Belgiens als „the cockpit of Europe” (James Howell, 1640), die damals noch auf eine kriegerische Hahnenkampf-Arena hindeutete” — The book reviewer, Haß, attributes the expression in English to James Howell in 1640. Howell\'s original phrase "the cockpit of Christendom" became modified afterwards, as shown by:
Carmont, John. The Hydra No.1 New Series (November 1917) — Arras And Captain Satan. War Poets Collection. Napier University’s Business School. Retrieved on 2007-05-24. — and as such coined for Belgium:
Wood, James (1907). Nuttall Encyclopaedia of General Knowledge — Cockpit of Europe. Retrieved on 2007-05-24. “Cockpit of Europe, Belgium, as the scene of so many battles between the Powers of Europe.” (See also The Nuttall Encyclopaedia) — a reputation strengthened by both World Wars. Upon its independence, Belgium eagerly participated in the Industrial Revolution,
Fitzmaurice, John, at the Secretariat-General of the European Commission, taught at the Université Libre de Bruxelles (1996). New Order? International models of peace and reconciliation — Diversity and civil society. Democratic Dialogue Northern Ireland\'s first think tank, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK. Retrieved on 2007-08-12.
Belgium country profile. EUbusiness, Richmond, UK (2006-08-27). Retrieved on 2007-08-12. generating wealth and also a demand for raw materials; the latter was a factor during the era of its African colonies.
Karl, Farah (text); Stoneking, James (course) (1999). Chapter 27. The Age of Imperialism (Section 2. The Partition of Africa) (pdf). World History II. Appomatox Regional Governor\'s School (History Department), Petersburg, VA, USA. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
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The Seventeen Provinces (orange, brown and yellow areas) and the Bishopric of Liège (green)
The area of present-day Belgium has seen significant demographic, political and cultural upheavals over the course of two millennia. In the first century, the Romans, after defeating the local tribes, created the province of Gallia Belgica. A gradual immigration by Germanic Frankish tribes during the 5th century, brought the area under the rule of the Merovingian kingdom, which evolved into the Carolingian Empire in the 8th century. During the Middle Ages small feudal states emerged, many of which rejoined as the Burgundian Netherlands in the 14th and 15th centuries. Emperor Charles V completed the union of the Seventeen Provinces in the 1540s, and unofficially also controlled the Prince-Bishopric of Liège. Edmundson, George (1922). Chapter II: Habsburg Rule in the Netherlands. History of Holland. The University Press, Cambridge. Republished: Authorama. Retrieved on 2007-06-09.
The Eighty Years\' War (1568–1648) divided the area into the northern United Provinces (\'federate\' Belgica Foederata in Latin) and the Southern Netherlands (\'royal\' Belgica Regia). The latter were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs and comprised most of modern Belgium. Until independence the area was sought after by numerous French conquerors and was the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries.Footnote: Further reading: France in the 17th and 18th centuries Following the campaigns of 1794 in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Low Countries — including territories that were never nominally under Habsburg rule, such as the Prince-Bishopric of Liège — were annexed by the French First Republic, ending Spanish-Austrian rule in the region. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the dissolution of the First French Empire in 1815.
The 1830 Belgian Revolution led to the establishment of an independent, Catholic, and neutral Belgium under a provisional government and a national congress. Since the installation of Leopold I as king in 1831, Belgium has been a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. Initially an oligarchy ruled mainly by the Catholic Party and the Liberals, the country had evolved towards universal suffrage by World War II with the rise of the Belgian Labour Party and trade unions playing a strong role. French, once the single official language and adopted by the nobility and the bourgeoisie, had by then lost its overall importance as Dutch had become recognized as well. However, it was not until 1967 that an official Dutch version of the Constitution was accepted. Kris Deschouwer (January 2004). Ethnic structure, inequality and governance of the public sector in Belgium (pdf). United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). Retrieved on 2007-05-22.
Episode of the Belgian Revolution of 1830 (1834)
by Egide Charles Gustave Wappers,
in the Ancient Art Museum, Brussels.
The Berlin Conference of 1885 gave the Congo Free State to King Leopold II as his private possession. In 1908, it was ceded to Belgium as a colony, henceforth called the Belgian Congo. Belgian control of the Congolese population, particularly under Leopold II, was savage, and the country was plundered of resources such as ivory and rubber. Meredith, Mark (2005-06-06). The State of Africa, Hardcover 608pp, Free Press, pp. 95–96(?). ISBN 0-7432-3221-6.
Germany invaded Belgium in 1914, as part of the Schlieffen Plan, and much of the Western Front fighting of World War I occurred in western parts of the country. Belgium took over the German colonies of Ruanda-Urundi (modern day Rwanda and Burundi) during the war, and they were mandated to Belgium in 1924 by the League of Nations, of which it was a founding member. The Treaty of Versailles had subjected several German border towns, most notably Eupen and Malmedy, to a plebiscite, which led to their annexation by Belgium in 1925, thereby causing the presence of a small German community. Belgium was again invaded by Germany in 1940 during the Blitzkrieg offensive, and occupied until its liberation by Allied troops in the winter of 1944–1945. The Belgian Congo gained independence in 1960 during the Congo Crisis; Ruanda-Urundi followed two years later.
After World War II, Belgium joined NATO as a founder member, headquartered at Brussels, and formed the Benelux group of nations with the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Belgium became one of the six founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951,and of the 1957 established European Atomic Energy Community and European Economic Community. The latter is now the European Union, for which Belgium hosts major administrations and institutions, including the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, and the extraordinary and committee sessions of the European Parliament.
Belgium is a constitutional, popular monarchy and a parliamentary democracy.
In the 19th century, the Francophile political and economic elite treated the Dutch-speaking population as second class citizens. At the end of the 19th century, and during much of the 20th century, the Flemish movement evolved to counter this situation. Following World War II, Belgian politics became increasingly dominated by the autonomy of its two main language communities. Intercommunal tensions rose and even the unity of the Belgian state became scrutinized. Through constitutional reforms in the 1970s and 1980s, regionalization of the unitary state led to a three-tiered federation: federal, regional, and community governments were created, a compromise designed to minimize linguistic, cultural, social and economic tensions.http://www.flanders.be/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=MVG_FL/Template/MVG_FL_Html_Detail&cid=1072097196838&enablelasturl=1&p=1053963211306
Guy Verhofstadt, Prime Minister of mainly Liberal - Social Democrat governments for two full terms. From federal elections of June 2007 till December 2007, he has been heading the caretaker government. Since December 21, 2007 until the expected departure date of March 23, 2008, he has been leading an interim government.
The federal bicameral parliament is composed of a Senate and a Chamber of Representatives. The former is made up of 40 directly elected politicians and 21 representatives appointed by the 3 community parliaments, 10 coopted senators and as senators by Right who in practice do not cast their vote, currently Prince Philippe, Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent, children of the King. The Chamber\'s 150 representatives are elected under a proportional voting system from 11 electoral districts. Belgium is one of the few countries that has compulsory voting, and thus holds one of the highest rates of voter turnout in the world. Franklin, Mark N., Trinity College, Connecticut (2001). The Dynamics of Electoral Participation — Table 10.1 Average turnout in free elections to the lower house in 40 countries, 1961–1999 (pdf) p. 32. Retrieved on 2007-05-29.
The King (currently Albert II) is the head of state, though with limited prerogatives. He appoints ministers, including a Prime Minister, that have the confidence of the Chamber of Representatives to form the federal government. The numbers of Dutch- and French-speaking ministers are equal as prescribed by the Constitution.
Belgium — Constitution — Title III Powers, Chapter II The Senate, Article 72 [King\'s Descendants] ; and Title III, Chapter III King and Federal Government, Section I The King ; and Section II The Federal Government, Article 99 [Composition of Government]. International Constitutional Law. Institut für öffentliches Recht, University of Berne, Switzerland (1994-02-17). Retrieved on 2007-05-20. Or both:
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Title III On Power, Chapter II On the Senate, Art. 72. The Constitution of Belgium. The Federal Parliament of Belgium (1997-01-21). Retrieved on 2007-05-20. And
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Title III On Power, Chapter III On the King and the Federal Government, Section I On the King ; and Section II On the Federal Government, Art. 99. The Constitution of Belgium. The Federal Parliament of Belgium (1997-01-21). Retrieved on 2007-05-20. The judicial system is based on civil law and originates from the Napoleonic code. The Court of Cassation is the court of last resort, with the Court of Appeal one level below.
Belgium\'s political institutions are complex; most political power is organized around the need to represent the main cultural communities. Since around 1970, the significant national Belgian political parties have split into distinct components that mainly represent the political and linguistic interests of these communities. The major parties in each community, though close to the political centre, belong to three main groups: the right-wing Liberals, the socially conservative Christian Democrats, and the Socialists forming the left-wing. Further notable parties came into being well after the middle of last century, mainly around linguistic, nationalist, or environmental themes, and recently smaller ones of some specific liberal nature.
A string of Christian Democrat coalition governments from 1958 was broken in 1999 after the first dioxin crisis, a major food contamination scandal that led to the establishment of the Belgian Food Agency. Tyler, Richard (1999-06-08). Dioxin contamination scandal hits Belgium: Effects spread through European Union and beyond. World Socialist Web Site (WSWS). International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI). Retrieved on 2007-05-25. — Follow-up on occasion of 2nd dioxin crisis: α School of Food Biosciences, University of Reading, UK (1999-06-16). "Food Law News — EU : CONTAMINANTS — Commission Press Release (IP/99/399) Preliminary results of EU-inspection to Belgium". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-05-29. A \'rainbow coalition\' emerged from six parties: the Flemish and the French-speaking Liberals, Social Democrats, Greens. "Belgium\'s "rainbow" coalition sworn in", BBC News, 1999-07-12. Retrieved on 2007-05-20. Later, a \'purple coalition\' of Liberals and Social Democrats formed after the Greens lost most of their seats in the 2003 election. La Chambre des représentants — Composition (Composition of the Chamber of Representatives) (pdf) (French). The Chamber of Representatives of Belgium (2006-03-09). Retrieved on 2007-05-25. The government led by Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt from 1999 to 2007 achieved a balanced budget, some tax-reforms, a labour-market reform, scheduled nuclear phase-out, and instigated legislation allowing more stringent war crime and more lenient soft drug usage prosecution. Restrictions on withholding euthanasia were reduced and same-sex marriage legalized. The government promoted active diplomacy in Africa Rwanda. tiscali.reference. Tiscali UK. Retrieved on 2007-05-27. The article shows an example of Belgium\'s recent African policies. and opposed the invasion of Iraq."Belgian demand halts NATO progress", CNN News, 2003-02-16. Retrieved on 2007-06-16. Verhofstadt\'s coalition fared badly in the June 2007 elections. Since then the country has been experiencing a long-lasting political crisis."The Belgian crisis in detail", Majorityrights, 2007-11-20. Retrieved on 2007-11-22. This crisis is such that many observers have speculated on a possible partition of Belgium. Since December 21, 2007 the Verhofstadt III Government has been in office. This coalition of the Flemish and Francophone Christian Democrats, the Flemish and Francophone Liberals together with the Francophone Social Democrats is an interim government that is expected to last until 23 March 2008 and should be followed by a new government lead by Flemish Christian Democrat Yves Leterme, the actual winner of the federal elections of June 2007.
In its 2007 Worldwide Press Freedom Index, Reporters Without Borders ranked Belgium (along with Finland and Sweden) 6th out of 169 countries.
 Flemish Community (Dutch-speaking) |  French Community (French-speaking) |  German-speaking Community |
 Flemish Region | .png/58px-Wallonia (Belgium).png) Walloon Region |  Brussels-Capital Region |
Based on the four language areas defined in 1962–63, consecutive revisions of the country\'s constitution in 1970, 1980, 1988 and 1993 established a unique federal state with segregated political power into three levels:
Willemyns, Roland, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Germanic Languages (2002). "The Dutch-French Language Border in Belgium". Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development Vol. 23 (Nos. 1&2): pp. 36–49. Retrieved on 2007-06-22. Footnote: Each municipality of the Kingdom is part of one of the four language areas (taalgebieden in Dutch, Sprachgebiete in German), occasionally called linguistic regions (régions linguistiques in French). See the three legal versions of the Constitution:
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Titel I: Het federale België, zijn samenstelling en zijn grondgebied (Dutch). De Belgische Grondwet. Belgian Senate (2007-05-15 last update of web page). Retrieved on 2007-05-31. “Art. 4 België omvat vier taalgebieden”
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Titel I: Das föderale Belgien, seine Zusammensetzung und sein Staatsgebiet (German). Die Verfassung Belgiens. Belgian Senate (2007-05-15 last update of web page). Retrieved on 2007-05-31. “Art. 4 Belgien umfaßt vier Sprachgebiete”
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Titre Ier: De la Belgique fédérale, de ses composantes et de son territoire (French). La Constitution Belge. Belgian Senate (2007-05-15 last update of web page). Retrieved on 2007-05-31. “Art. 4 La Belgique comprend quatre régions linguistiques”
English translation, not recently updated and without legal value:
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Title I: On Federal Belgium, its components and its territory. the Constitution. Belgian Senate (1997-01-21 last update of main \'the Constitution\' page on web site). Retrieved on 2007-05-31. “Art. 4 Belgium has four linguistic regions”
The constitutional language areas determine the official languages in their municipalities, as well as the geographical limits of the empowered institutions for specific matters:
| Public services rendered in the language of individuals expressing themselves… | the Communities | the Regions (and their provinces) | the Federal State | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flemish Footnote: The Constitution set out seven institutions each of which can have a parliament, government and administration. In fact there are only six such bodies because the Flemish Region merged into the Flemish Community. This single Flemish body thus exercises powers about Community matters in the bilingual area of Brussels-Capital and in the Dutch language area, and about Regional matters only in the latter. | French | German- speaking | Flemish | Walloon | Brussels- Capital | ||||||
| …in Dutch | …in French | …in German | |||||||||
| Dutch language area |  | in 12 municipalities (limited to \'facilities\') | - | | - | - | | - | - |
| |
| French language area | in 4 municipalities (limited to \'facilities\') | | in 2 municipalities (limited to \'facilities\') | - | | - | - | | - |
| |
| Bilingual area Brussels-Capital | | | - | | | - | - | - | |
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| German language area | - | in all 9 municipalities (limited to \'facilities\') | | - | - | | - | | - |
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| By Law, inhabitants of 27Footnote: Apart from the municipalities with language facilities for individuals, the French language area has three more municipalities in which the second language in education legally has to be either Dutch or German, whereas in its municipalities without special status this would also allow for English. Lebrun, Sophie (2003-01-07). Langues à l\'école: imposées ou au choix, un peu ou beaucoup (French). La Libre Belgique\'s web site. Retrieved on 2007-08-17. municipalities can ask limited services to be rendered in a neighbour language, forming \'facilities\' for them. \'Facilities\' exist only in specific municipalities near the borders of the Flemish with the Walloon and with the Brussels-Capital Regions, and in Wallonia also in 2 municipalities bordering its German language area as well as for French-speakers throughout the latter area. | |||||||||||
Regions and provinces of Belgium (blue: Dutch language, yellow: French language)
Although this would allow for seven parliaments and governments, when the Communities and Regions were created in 1980, Flemish politicians decided to merge both; thus in the Flemish Region a single institutional body of parliament and government is empowered for all except federal and specific municipal matters.
The overlapping boundaries of the Regions and Communities have created two notable peculiarities: the territory of the Brussels-Capital Region (which came into existence nearly a decade after the other regions) is included in both the Flemish and French Communities, and the territory of the German-speaking Community lies wholly within the Walloon Region.
Conflicts between the bodies are resolved by the Constitutional Court of Belgium. The structure is intended as a compromise to allow different cultures to live together peacefully.
The Federal State retains a considerable "common heritage". This includes justice, defence, federal police, social security, nuclear energy, monetary policy and public debt, and other aspects of public finances. State-owned companies include the Post Office and Belgian Railways. The Federal Government is responsible for the obligations of Belgium and its federalized institutions towards the European Union and NATO. It controls substantial parts of public health, home affairs and foreign affairs. The Federal Government\'s Powers. .be Portal. Belgian Federal Government. Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
Communities exercise their authority only within linguistically determined geographical boundaries, originally oriented towards the individuals of a Community\'s language: culture (including audiovisual media), education, and the use of the relevant language. Extensions to personal matters less directly connected with language comprise health policy (curative and preventive medicine) and assistance to individuals (protection of youth, social welfare, aid to families, immigrant assistance services, etc.). The Communities. .be Portal. Belgian Federal Government. Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
Regions have authority in fields that can be broadly associated with their territory. These include economy, employment, agriculture, water policy, housing, public works, energy, transport, the environment, town and country planning, nature conservation, credit, and foreign trade. They supervise the provinces, municipalities, and intercommunal utility companies. The Regions. .be Portal. Belgian Federal Government. Retrieved on 2007-05-23.
In several fields, the different levels each have their own say on specifics. With education, for instance, the autonomy of the Communities neither includes decisions about the compulsory aspect nor allows for setting minimum requirements for awarding qualifications, which remain federal matters. Each level of government can be involved in scientific research and international relations associated with its powers.
Belgium shares borders with France (620 km), Germany (167 km), Luxembourg (148 km) and the Netherlands (450 km). Its total area, including surface water area, is 33,990 square kilometres; land area alone is 30,528 km². Belgium has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west and the central plateau both belong to the Anglo-Belgian Basin; the Ardennes uplands in the south-east are part of the Hercynian orogenic belt. The Paris Basin reaches a small fourth area at Belgium\'s southernmost tip, Belgian Lorraine. Belgium — The land — Relief. Encyclopædia Britannica online. Encyclopædia Britannica, Chicago, IL, USA (© 2007). Retrieved on 2007-07-03.
High Fens (Hautes Fagnes)
The coastal plain consists mainly of sand dunes and polders. Further inland lies a smooth, slowly rising landscape irrigated by numerous waterways, with fertile valleys and the northeastern sandy plain of the Campine (Kempen). The thickly forested hills and plateaus of the Ardennes are more rugged and rocky with caves and small gorges, and offer much of Belgium\'s wildlife but little agricultural capability. Extending westward into France, this area is eastwardly connected to the Eifel in Germany by the High Fens plateau, on which the Signal de Botrange forms the country\'s highest point at 694 metres (2,277 ft). Geography of Belgium. 123independenceday.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-10. Life — Nature (pdf 3.8 MB). Office for Official Publications of the European Communities (2005). Retrieved on 2007-08-10.
The climate is maritime temperate, with significant precipitation in all seasons (Köppen climate classification: Cfb). The average temperature is lowest in January at 3 °C (37 °F), and highest in July at 18 °C (64 °F). The average precipitation per month varies between 54 millimetres (2.1 in) in February or April, to 78 millimetres (3.1 in) in July. Climate averages — Brussels. EuroWEATHER/EuroMETEO, Nautica Editrice Srl, Rome, Italy. Retrieved on 2007-05-27. Averages for the years 2000 to 2006 show daily temperature minimums of 7 °C (45 °F) and maximums of 14 °C (57 °F), and monthly rainfall of 74 millimetres (2.9 in); these are about 1 degree Celsius and nearly 10 millimetres above last century\'s normal values, respectively. Kerncijfers 2006 — Statistisch overzicht van België (pdf 1.8 MB) (Dutch) pp. 9–10. Belgian Federal Government Service (ministry) of Economy — Directorate-general Statistics Belgium. Retrieved on 2007-05-08.
Because of its high population density, location in the centre of Western Europe, and inadequate political effort, Belgium faces serious environmental problems. A 2003 report suggested Belgian rivers to have the lowest water quality of the 122 countries studied. Pearce, Fred (2003-03-05). Sewage-laden Belgian water worst in world. New Scientist. Retrieved on 2006-05-09.
Belgium\'s economy and its transportation infrastructure are integrated with the rest of Europe. Its location at the heart of a highly industrialized region helps make it one of the world\'s ten largest trading nations. The economy is characterized by a highly productive work force, high GNP, and high exports per capita. Belgium\'s main imports are food products, machinery, rough diamonds, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, clothing and accessories, and textiles. Its main exports are automobiles, food products, iron and steel, finished diamonds, textiles, plastics, petroleum products, and nonferrous metals. The Belgian economy is heavily service-oriented and shows a dual nature: a dynamic Flemish economy, with Brussels as its main multilingual and multi-ethnic centre, and a Walloon economy that lags behind. Wallonia in \'decline\' thanks to politicians. Expatica Communications BV (2005-03-9). Retrieved on 2007-06-16. One of the founding members of the European Union, Belgium strongly supports an open economy and the extension of the powers of EU institutions to integrate member economies. In 1999, Belgium adopted the Euro, the single European currency, which fully replaced the Belgian franc in 2002. Since 1922, Belgium and Luxembourg have been a single trade market within a customs and currency union: the Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union.
Steelmaking along the Meuse River at Ougrée, near Liège
Belgium was the first continental European country to undergo the Industrial Revolution, in the early 1800s. Industrial History Belgium. European Route of Industrial Heritage. Retrieved on 2007-05-08. Liège and Charleroi rapidly developed mining and steelmaking, which flourished until the mid-20th century. However, by the 1840s the textile industry of Flanders was in severe crisis and the region experienced famine from 1846–50.
After World War II, Ghent and Antwerp experienced a rapid expansion of the chemical and petroleum industries. The 1973 and
