Flemish Queen of England

The Mad Monarchist profiles Queen Mathildis van Vlaanderen, wife of William the Conqueror who took over England for the Normans in 1066.

Philippe et Marie, comte et comtesse de Flandre

Troisième fils du roi Léopold Ier et de la reine Louise-Marie (après Louis-Philippe mort à l'âge d'un an et le futur roi Léopold II), le prince Philippe naît au château de Laeken le 24 mars 1837. En 1840, son père le titre comte de Flandre. A l'âge de 13 ans, il perd sa maman. Sa formation est assurée par des précepteurs privés et complétée par un passage au sein du régiment des Guides. Passionné par les arts et les lettres, ce prince discret ne s'intéresse pas à la politique : il refuse les trônes de Grèce en 1862 et de Roumanie en 1866, ainsi qu'un mariage avec la princesse héritière du Brésil. [Plus]

Is Willem I Statue a Sign?

A committee in the city of Ghent has asked to put up a statue of King Willem I of the Netherlands, saying that he was very good for their city. This caused some disquieted feelings when I saw the news but not only because of this alone. It is not so bad for Ghent to want a statue of King Willem I (though I am unsure of other countries with statues of foreign kings put up in today's times). He was, after all, a figure of Belgian history and he was our monarch as part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands from the defeat of Waterloo to the 1830 Revolution. That conflict and the independence probably would not have been able to happen if Willem I had been not so heavy-handed but regardless, it is true he was a significant figure. Taken together though with the risen popularity of the Flemish radical nationalists, the inability to form a government and the recent suggestion by the NV-A that the Benelux countries combine their militaries to save costs all makes me worry that Belgium (and possibly even Luxembourg) could be lost in such a union so much dominated by the greater numbers of the Dutch. I like the Netherlands, I like their Family Royal and admire their history, all they accomplished around the world and I want to be good neighbors but I do not want anything that endangers the continued life and independence of the Belgian kingdom.

Loyal Flemish Defend King

Flemish nationalist leader Bart De Wever has accused the King of being responsible for holding his party back in the formation of a government and giving them no "opportunities" -the royal policy to ignore again. However, loyal Flemish parties like the Christian democrats and liberals have defended the King and even the socialist party said the nationalists should just ignore the King if he ignores them and take the initiative themselves rather than trying to blame the King for their troubles. Story at Flanders News.

Vlaams Belang Danger

The Cross of Laeken has a post with a paper showing the true nature of Vlaams Belang. Every concerned citizen should read this! The truth has not been much told about this political party which has the desire to see the Kingdom of Belgium disappear from Europe. Everyone has also heard that the N-VA leader Bart de Wever, who is known for his insults against the country, recently called Belgium the "sick man of Europe". I read my history of the Great War and this was getting my attention. In those days the Turkish empire was known as the "sick man of Europe". It did not much survive the war but perhaps Bart de Wever should recall that the division of the Turkish empire into Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Palestine, Jordan, Saudi Arabia has been followed by constant and cruel conflict in that part of the world. Is this what he is wanting for Belgium? There really is not any political party that I can totally support but I have not been able to vote really anyway, not long after being capable of voting I have been mostly out of the country and have not voted. The first time I did so I voted B.U.B. and that is considered wasted anyway. For myself, I have strong personal attachment to Flanders but I also have just the same personal attachment to Wallonie. How do you choose to favor one parent over the other? Some people see where I am from and think I am Flemish, some hear me to think I am Wallonne and I say I am Belgian. What else can I be? Which part would I choose to favor? There are some issues Vlaams Belang addresses no one else does that I agree with but how can I support them who would divide the country, dissolve the kingdom and show themselves to be treasonous against the King? Anyone who is putting themselves and their own community first, before the rest of the country, is doing a betrayal of the kingdom. To say I support one region over another is to betray half my family in either case. Everyone else should, I think, feel the same because we are all in one national family. Also if people read the truth of the motives and background of the Vlaams Belang I think they will see that they are being dishonest, not just to the country but to their own followers.

The VNV: The Phantom Appears

The Vlaams Nationaal Verbond (VNV) (Flemish National Alliance) was a Flemish pro-Nazi party founded in 1933 by 'den leider' Staf de Clercq as a radical version of the Frontpartij (Front Party). Their program was based on radical Flemish nationalism, uniting all Flemish parties and, originally, independence. However, their program soon dropped real independence as a meaninful goal as they embraced the vision of the "Greater Netherlands" (Dietsland) which was an advocated union of Belgian and French Flanders with the Netherlands. Although the party had support from some Flemish Catholics the Church leadership opposed it because of this vision which was anti-Belgium as (back then at least) the clergy was very much monarchist and loyal to the Catholic Royal Family and did not want Flemish Catholics put under the Protestant Dutch monarchy. Of course, in the end, the Nazi invasion would mean there was no Dutch monarchy anyway as the Netherlands became an occupied state with a Nazi government.


Most of the support for the VNV came from the middle class, lower middle class and the agricultural community, because of all of this groups had suffered the most in the economic crisis and were the most likely to fall victim to their utopian propaganda. The VNV grew the most during the 1930's because of this reason. At first they were not totally un-democratic (trusting they could win a democratic majority of the Flemish population) but later they adopted more of the styles of the Nazis and the NSB the Dutch Nazis and became more authoritarian. Staf de Clercq said that if the Germans invaded Belgium he would not collaborate with them but when the event came he immiediately collaborated. However, de Clercq was disappointed in his hope of becoming a little dictator when Hitler did not work with any civilian government but simply put Belgium under the military rule of General Alexander von Falkenhausen. Further, Hitler chose different leaders to oversee the formation of the Flemish-SS which undercut support for the VNV.

Flemish volunteers for the SS were organized into combat units and de Clercq died in 1942. His successor, Hendrik Elias, tried to deal with the Nazis to accomplish the goals of the VNV but he had no more success. The Nazis would have no "Greater Netherlands" considering the Dutch and Flemish to be their Germanic cousins who should be included in their own "Greater Germany" Third Reich. Annexation was finally ordered in 1944 but only 7 weeks later, thankfully, the Allies ended the Nazi occupation of Belgium. Elias fled to Germany, was arrested by the Allies, sent back to Belgium, sentanced to death as a traitor but then downgraded to life in prison but even then managed to convince the court to reduce his sentance and he was later released to write his autobiography. He died in 1973. What is most disturbing about the VNV (as for example compared to the Rexists) is that there are still some who support their views, even by use of violent means, to attack non-Flemish and cling to the "Greater Netherlands" vision.

Crown Princess Mathilde's Uncle Henri

Een oom van prinses Mathilde wil lid worden van de Vlaams-Nationalistische N-VA. Die partij streeft niet alleen naar een onafhankelijk Vlaanderen, maar is bovendien republikeins. Maar graaf Henri d'Udekem d'Acoz ziet daarin geen bezwaar.

Hij is weliswaar tegen de splitsing van België en vóór het koningshuis, maar ook ,,rechts-conservatief en zeer Vlaamsgezind'', zo heeft hij vrijdag Het Laatste Nieuws laten weten. Hij vindt het een goede zaak als Vlaanderen zoveel mogelijk zelf kan beslissen ,,wat het beste is voor Vlaamse mensen''.

N-VA-leider Bart De Wever heet 'nonkel Henri', zoals de graaf in België genoemd wordt, van harte welkom in zijn partij. Dat het nieuwe lid vasthoudt aan zijn koningsgezindheid is geen probleem. ,,Van de 1,2 miljoen N-VA-stemmers zal hij wel niet de enige zijn met sympathie voor het koningshuis.'' © GPD; Bron: ANP