Reporting the Fall of Liége to the King

Today in history the battle for Liége ended when the last of the fortresses was smashed by the German super-heavy howitzers and General Gérard Leman was knocked out and captured, being found half buried in the rubble by the Germans. General Leman is regarded by all as the first hero of the Great War for his determined defense of his country and the Meuse fortresses. He was an old veteran of great courage and a true sense of duty to his King and the country. Because of that, he wanted it known especially that he had been found unconscious in the rubble and had not surrendered of his own will. Because of his duty he also knew, as they were taking him away to Germany as a prisoner of war, that he had to report to the King about what had happened. This was allowed because the Germans were very impressed by his courage and military skill, considering General Leman a gallant and worthy enemy. This was the letter the general wrote:

General Leman to King Albert I
Sir:
After honourable engagements on August 4th, 5th, and 6th, I considered that the forts of Liege could only play the role of forts d'arret. I nevertheless maintained military government in order to coordinate the defence  as much as possible, and to exercise moral influence upon the garrison.
Your Majesty is not ignorant that I was at Fort Loncin on August 6th at noon. You will learn with grief that the fort was blown up yesterday at 5.20 p.m., the greater part of the garrison being buried under the ruins.
That I did not lose my life in that catastrophe is due to the fact that my escort, Commandant Collard, a sub-officer of infantry who unfortunately perished, the gendarme Thevenim and my two orderlies, Vanden Bossche and Jos Lecocq, drew me from a position of danger, where I was being asphyxiated by gas from the exploded powder.
I was carried into a trench, where a German captain named Guson gave me a drink, after which I was made a prisoner and taken to Liege in an ambulance. I am convinced that the honour of our arms has been sustained. I have not surrendered either the fortress or the forts.
Deign, Sire, to pardon my defects in this letter. I am physically shattered by the explosion of Loncin. In Germany, whither I am proceeding, my thoughts will be, as they have ever been, of Belgium and the King. I would willingly have given my life the better to serve them, but death was denied me.

That, my friends is the words of a true and great Belgian patriot and he should be an example to all of us. I am sure the King was very proud of his general and his old teacher when he was delivered this letter. This is the spirit of those old veterans of 1914 that I admire so much and makes me regard them as the greatest heroes our country ever has produced.

The King Decides Strategy

When the war leadership of King Albert I is talked about, the thought remains for many that his position of commander-in-chief was really only symbolic or ceremonial and that he did not really have anything to do with making decisions on fighting the war. This of course is completely the opposite of reality. The King was not a military man by nature, he did not have the militaristic character in him but he was a trained military leader and had been prepared for the possibility of taking this position, as required by the law, and he always took his duties to heart. When the war first started, or was about to start with Germany demanding surrender or invasion, the King even then had to make a crucial decision on what strategy the Belgian army would pursue. He was presented by two very opposite plans of action by two accomplished military men and it was the King who had to decide which action to take and what the army would do in the face of the German attack. This was a very big decisions and many lives, even the fate of the country, depended on it.

The first plan was put forward by Lieutenant General Antonin Selliers de Moranville, the Chief of Staff of the army. He looked at the still outdated condition of the Belgian army, the innocence of the reserve troops quickly being called up and feared a horrific waste of life. He advocated that the army retreat beyond Brussels and leaving the river forts to hold out as best they could with the forces they had on hand. This was obviously the most cautious plan, perhaps the most realistic but would certainly have been far from popular.

The other plan came from the Deputy Chief of Staff General Baron Louis de Ryckel which was a somewhat more audacious approach to say the least of it. He actually wanted to take the Belgian army into an invasion of Germany, a surprise attack, to spoil the German offensive and, as the general said, to, "Send them back where they belong!" This was certainly the most daring plan, surely no one would have expected that to happen, for the Belgians to invade Germany, and had the most audacity.

Of course, it was also practically suicidal. King Albert I rejected the plan of his chief of staff, which seemed defeatist, giving up and retreating before the battle had started or the enemy was engaged. He also rejected the opposite extreme of the preemptive attack on Germany. Instead, he and his military staff worked out another option which was the strategy Belgium would adopt. To hold the force with supporting units between them while building up strength and if and when those forts fell to then fight a delaying action across the country to the "National Redoubt" of Antwerp where the big fight would be. It was he who decided to accept no Allied help until the Germans actually violated Belgian territory (to do otherwise would have played right into the hands of the Germans) and it was the King who ordered the destruction of the bridges over the Meuse and the destruction of the rail bridges at the Luxembourg border. It was the King who made all the big critical decisions of the conduct of the war, especially on those early days when Belgium was fighting totally alone. He never wanted to be battlefield commander or a soldier-king but when the crisis of the hour forced him into that position King Albert I proved to be the greatest.

Our Great Kings, Part III, Albert I

Thankfully, King Albert I is one of the most widely respected Belgian kings of history. He was greatly admired in his own time and became especially famous all over the world because of his courage and leadership in the Great War, the first most terrible crisis faced by the Kingdom of Belgium. But, like any great man, there were still lesser men who tried to tarnish his reputation with absurd and slander him with ridiculous accusations. Anyone should have known this was ridiculous if they knew anything about the life and character of Albert I. He was known always for his hard-working attitude, his religious moral character, his love for his family and his self-effacing humility. He cared deeply about his people and that included all of his people. He went to the Congo to review the condition of his African subjects and enacted policies to further improve development there. In Belgium itself he also took great care for the condition of urban workers as the manufacturing industry was growing rapidly and this led to inevitable social problems in some cases. Albert I took action from the start of his reign to ensure that workers were protected and well treated with proper working conditions and benefits.

Albert I was also a wise and far-sighted man who recognized the threat of Germany and, like Leopold II before him, tried to strengthen and modernize the Belgian military to be ready for any disaster. Often, unfortunately, the politicians were often not willing to recognize this threat and they had always been reluctant to spend money on defense and for what level of unpreparedness existed, responsibility rested with the government that controlled government funds rather than with the King. When war did come he stood up for the rights and independence of Belgium and spared himself no danger or discomfort in leading the army in defending the country. His courage was undoubted by all as he refused to leave Belgian soil and the crucial victory by the Belgian army on the Yser was crucial in saving the entire Allied line from being turned and rolled up by the Germans in the first months of the war. Maybe the most despicable criticism of Albert I is that he tried to “sell out” the Allies by trying to make peace with Germany and Austria during the war. This is the most ridiculous and outrageous criticism a person could make.

Some of this maybe was motivated by Queen Elisabeth being a German, but her patriotism was never in question, she cared for the Belgian soldiers injured in battle with her own hands and visited the front lines just like her husband. The King was naturally greatly disturbed in his heart by the suffering of his people living under German occupation and wanted to see the war end. The only fact behind this accusation was that Albert I was supportive of the effort by the Austrian Emperor Charles I to negotiate a peaceful end to the war, even if it meant giving up some of his own country. The French and British rejected this proposal and later made it public which severely endangered the Austrian Emperor because it made him suspect by the Germans. King Albert I only facilitated these talks, he never took part in them, in fact there were never formal talks at all really, he only helped to bring the Austrian case to Britain and France who immediately rejected it. Nothing he did or even considered doing would have cost the Allies anything, all they might have lost were some of the gains they made later, after the war, in carving up the German colonies and Ottoman Empire and dividing the territories between Britain and France. When the effort failed, Albert I remained just as committed to the war effort as ever and later led the Flanders Army Group to the final victory. Unlike some others however he was not vindictive toward his defeated enemies. In war and peace he was a true leader, courageous, moral, humble and compassionate. A great king.

British-Belgian Friendship

King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth meet British Admiral Beatty

King George V and King Albert I meet early in the war

King Albert I and King George V review Belgian troops

British General Allenby and King Albert I at the front

King Albert and British General Haig

Allied Sovereigns

King Albert I at the Front Lines

The King greets and the Queen treats wounded soldiers back from the attack

The King gets information at the front on the withdrawal to the Yser

King Albert defending Antwerp (I think)

They shall not pass!

The King directing the troops against the enemy.

It is true, the role of the King was slightly glorified in order to inspire the army to resist and encourage the people not to lose hope in the most darkest hour of the national history. But also is true that no other monarch of the Great War was, from 1914 to 1918, so close so constantly to his army and none more shared their stress and discomfort. Albert I was the King who saved Belgium!

Address by King Albert to the Belgian Parliament, 4 August 1914

Gentlemen:

Never, since 1839, has a more solemn hour struck for Belgium: the integrity of our territory is threatened.

The very force of our righteous cause, the sympathy which Belgium, proud of her free institutions and her moral victories, has always received from other nations, and the necessity of our autonomous existence in respect of the equilibrium of Europe, make us still hopeful that the dreaded emergency will not be realized.

But if our hopes are betrayed, if we are forced to resist the invasion of our soil, and to defend our threatened homes, this duty, however hard it may be, will find us armed and resolved upon the greatest sacrifices.

Even now, in readiness for any eventuality, our valiant youth is up in arms, firmly resolved, with the traditional tenacity and composure of the Belgians, to defend our threatened country.

In the name of the nation, I give it a brotherly greeting. Everywhere in Flanders and Wallonia, in the towns and in the countryside, one single feeling binds all hearts together: the sense of patriotism.

One single vision fills all minds: that of our independence endangered. One single duty imposes itself upon our wills: the duty of stubborn resistance.

In these solemn circumstances two virtues are indispensable: a calm but unshaken courage, and the close union of all Belgians.

Both virtues have already asserted themselves, in a brilliant fashion, before the eyes of a nation full of enthusiasm.

The irreproachable mobilization of our army, the multitude of voluntary enlistments, the devotion of the civil population, the abnegation of our soldiers' families, have revealed in an unquestionable manner the reassuring courage which inspires the Belgian people.

It is the moment for action.

I have called you together, gentlemen, in order to enable the Legislative Chambers to associate themselves with the impulse of the people in one and the same sentiment of sacrifice.

You will understand, gentlemen, how to take all those immediate measures which the situation requires, in respect both of the war and of public order.

No one in this country will fail in his duty.

If the foreigner, in defiance of that neutrality whose demands we have always scrupulously observed, violates our territory, he will find all the Belgians gathered about their sovereign, who will never betray his constitutional oath, and their Government, invested with the absolute confidence of the entire nation.

I have faith in our destinies; a country which is defending itself conquers the respect of all; such a country does not perish!

King Albert I

My friend The Mad Monarchist has posted a look at the life of King Albert I. Of course I agree that he was a great man and he was also the only Allied head of state to lead his soldiers in the field to final victory. He was the steady leadership at the time when the future of our countrie was decided, when it was not certain if Belgium would even exist if the Germans had won. Even to the very end the Germans had wanted to keep Belgium or at least the Flanders coast (part of France as well) and even if Belgium had not resisted I cannot imagine the Germans just going back to the way things were once they already occupied the whole country. King Albert led the fight against the invaders and his courage and calm style inspired people to resist, to work harder for the liberation and to struggle on in continue to the final victory. He was, I think, the best monarch of his era. Leve de Koning! Vive l'Roi!

Tribute to King Albert I

On the occasion of the anniversary of the brave soldier-King Albert I, who saved his country from invasion in the Great War and led the resurgence of Belgium afterwards, there is this tribute from The Cross of Laeken.

Belgians on the Russian Front

In the First Great War my highest respect must goes to those monarchs who gave leadership to their soldiers on the battlefield. The best examples of this were our own King Albert I and Tsar Nicholas II of Russia. They both were sovereigns devoted to doing their duty by their country but with very different results. Because it was small, neutral Belgium which was liberated and the vast powerful, politically involved Russian Empire that collapsed. I have posted before on the history shared by Belgium and Russia, how Tsar Peter the Great visited Belgium and how Belgian King Leopold I fought in the Russian army against Napoleon. It is known because of the Great War that Belgium and Russia fought on the same side against the Germans but not so many people know that they actually fought side by side. It is a triviality not included in most history books but the Russian Tsar did send some troops over to France to fight on the Western Front. Not many people know that, and even less know that King Albert I also sent Belgian troops to fight on the Russian front.

Of course, clearly, it is obvious, Belgium did not have the resources to send over a large force or even as much as the other allied powers sent later, but there was a Belgian contribution and it came in the form of armored cars. Belgium had been an innovator in this area and before the other powers developed armored cars that made the very heavy and cumbersome machine guns of the period mobile. These were made by the Minerva Motor Car Company in Antwerp and they saw service during the German invasion of Belgium and the siege of Antwerp, racing down the roads, shooting their machine guns at the pickle heads and having a more glamorous part of a war becoming uglier every day. Of course, after Antwerp was abandoned and there was the battle of the Yser and a stalemate on the western front, clearly the Belgian army did not have much use for armored cars in the flooded box trenches of Flanders. It was suggested that these could instead be put to good use on the Russian front which was much more fluid and mobile than the west.
A Russian officer suggested it and of course King Albert I was always willing to help but the Tsar had to ask first because, since Belgium was a neutral country, the small kingdom and the massive empire were fighting on the same side but not exactly were allies in the strictest sense. Also, because of this, on paper at least, the Belgian troops were volunteers in the Russian Imperial Army rather than officially soldiers of the Belgian army for this special mission. In all there were over 300 men who went with the armored cars, motorcycles and bicycles to the Russian front, over time around 400 men were served as troops rotated out. They saw their biggest battles on the Galician front and their speed and firepower were proven to be very good at eliminating Austrian machine-guns positions. These brave men far from home fought even after the Germans had clearly gained the upper hand and they also kept on fighting and doing their duty even after the 1917 Revolution. It was not until the new Russian government made their own peace with the Germans that the Belgians decided it was time to go home.
That was difficult to do because of the revolutionary forces that viewed the Belgian forces as enemies and they blocked the way to all the major ports. The Belgian forces then because of this had to travel across the whole of Russia on the Trans-Siberian Railway to the Pacific where they took a ship to San Francisco, California and then went by train across the United States, being much celebrated along the way, reaching New York and from there sailed across the Atlantic to finally reach Paris two weeks later. In all, their losses were few, only 16 men during all of their fighting and travels were killed. The last Belgian veteran of service in Russia died in 1992.

War Letters of Two Kings

The letters between King Albert I and his son future King Leopold III during the Great War. Directed by The Cross of Laeken.

The Children of King Albert Ier

Leopold III was the first child of King Albert and Queen Elisabeth, born on 3 November 1901. As a youth he defended his country in the Great War as a common soldier. Educated in the UK and US he married Princess Astrid of Sweden in 1926. She died in 1935 to the great sadness of all. As king Leopold had to deal with rising radical factions in the country and increased regionalism. He was sympathetic to the complaints of the Flemish. He tried a policy of neutrality but this was not respected by the Germans. In World War II he led the army in defending the country, fighting for 18 days before being forced to surrender. Refusing to escape he remained with his people to help them endure the occupation. In 1941 he married Lilian Baels. Hitler tried to enlist his cooperation but Leopold refused. He also had trouble with his government who had fled to Britain. The Germans took him out of Belgium and at the end of the war he moved to Switzerland. Because the public was so divided over his return he abdicated in 1951 to spare his country.

Prince Charles, Count of Flanders, second child of King Albert and Queen Elisabeth was born on 10 October 1903. His personality was very different from his older brother. He became Count of Flanders in 1910 and trained with the navy and the army of Great Britain before taking up his own position in the Belgian service. During World War II he defended the country as a colonel with the cavalry corps. After the surrender he retired to his home in Brussels. When the Allied invasion of Europe came he moved to a secret home in Wallonia. When the Allies entered Belgium he was named regent by the government while the King was in Switzerland. Many important changes took place during his regency. The US “Marshall Plan” was put into effect, women were given the vote, a social welfare system was set up, the Benelux union was formed and Belgium joined the United Nations and the NATO alliance. When the Royal Question was settled he retired to Ostend to devote himself to his love of art, drawing and painting.

Princess Marie-José was the only daughter of King Albert and Queen Elisabeth, born on 4 August 1906. On 8 January 1930 she married Crown Prince Umberto of Italy and became a very fashionable figure in Rome and Italian society. This marriage was arranged because the Italy was about the only royal Catholic monarchy left besides Belgium. However, the marriage was not exceptionally happy but the couple did have four children. During World War II Princess Marie-José set an example of sacrifice for the war effort and was made president of the Red Cross. However, she did not support the fascist regime and was able to act in a subtle way as a bridge between the fascist government and the Allies when Italy was moving toward discharging Mussolini and switching sides in the war. Her husband took charge of Italy and in 1946 her father-in-law abdicated and she became Queen of Italy alongside her husband King Umberto II. However, after only 35 days as nominal queen the Italian monarchy was abolished by a referendum. She parted from her husband and lived in exile forever after.

The Battle of the Yser

In many ways World War I was the “finest hour” of the Kingdom of Belgium. That is not to detract from the heroes of World War II, but the “Great War” was different because the enemy never totally conquered Belgium, the heroic resistance of the soldiers completely botched the German plan that called for speed and precision. The Belgian defense robbed them of this. The Germans were of course angry and wanted to destroy what was left of the Belgian army and to conquer every last foot of Belgian soil (they intended to annex the country to the German Empire) and the battle that deprived them of this prize was the epic battle of the Yser. The Germans intention with this battle was to conquer the very last patch of free Belgian soil not under their control and to completely destroy the last remnants of the Belgian army under the great King Albert I. It was a desperate situation. The King had only 4 divisions of regular soldiers and 2 divisions of reservists with only 1 French division to assist them. The Germans were attacking with twice that number. This was part of what history has called the “Race to the Sea”. If the Germans won that race and destroy the Belgian army they could possibly outflank the Allied line and roll up the entire western front which would certainly win the war for Germany.
The battered, beaten and bloodied army of Belgium, what was left of the small force to begin with, was all that stood in the path of this German offensive. For the last two months they had been pounded by the Germans and forced back again and again across the whole country. But, every man from the King to the lowest soldier knew that at the battle of the Yser there was nowhere else to fall back to. Belgium would be totally abandoned if they retreated. They had to stand and fight and resolved that the Germans had pushed them this far but would push them no further! In command of the German 4th Army was Duke Albrecht of Wurttemberg, one of the best generals in the German Imperial forces. On the Belgian side, of course, King Albert I was in command, never having been in a war or commanded troops in battle before in his life. However, he had the morale advantage of fighting on his own ground, for his country and his people, doing his duty to God.
The attacks began on October 16 when French marines and Belgian troops successfully defended Diksmuide. However, the next day the Germans sent in massive reinforcements. British ships shelled from the coast as the Germans built up and on October 18 they renewed their offensive, pushing back the French and Belgians from the front lines. The resistance was strong and it took the Germans four days, fighting every step of the way, to reach the Yser and it was not until the 21st that the Germans got across the river. By October 23 the last bridge was blown and yet the Belgian defenders of Diksmuide still held out in spite of repeated German attacks and heavy bombardment from the massive enemy guns. Still, the situation was extremely desperate for the Belgian army and even as they were fighting the French army command was preparing to abandon them, forcing them to choose between drowning and forsaking the last of free Belgian soil. King Albert would not allow that to happen. Instead, he would flood the countryside in his own area to stop the German advance while still keeping his army independent and together.
On October 25 the order was given and Karel Cogge and Hendrik Geeraerts took charge of the operation, opening the sluices at Nieuport at high tide on the nights of October 26 and 29. On the 29th the Germans finally captured Diksmuide but the water was already rising and soon everything north of that point would be flooded to the sea. The next day the Germans attacked again in great numbers, rushing to succeed before the ground was lost. But the Belgians fought with immense heroism and when the Germans broke through the first line of defense and then the second the Belgian troops made a daring counter-attack that hurled back the German forces. October 31 the German army command conceded defeat and called off their operation.
That is how the Belgian army stopped the Germans in the “Race to the Sea” and stabilized the northern end of the western front in Flanders. It was a sad day certainly, to see the countryside flooded, for the waters to come back over land that had taken so long to drain and cultivate and make productive. The losses also were terrible, some 40,000 Belgians died during those days of hard fighting. However, they had prevailed, the army had survived and the Germans were robbed of the last piece of Belgian soil. At least one corner of the country was unoccupied and it would remain that way, the Germans would never conquer all of Belgium. For the rest of the war most of the Belgian army remained deployed in this area, separated from the Germans by a big ‘No Man’s Land’ of water that quickly became polluted and stinking. But that water was the protection of the last part of free Belgium until finally came time for King Albert I to take command of the northern Allied armies for the grand counter-offensive that would see the country liberated and Belgian troops marching back into Brussels.

The Belgian Kings

Leopold I, the first King of the Belgians, came to the throne on July 21, 1831. His reign was a crucial period and by his wisdom and close relations with the royal houses of Europe ensured that Belgium started out on a firm foundation of stability and with the support of the European community. A veteran of the Russian Imperial Army and the Napoleonic Wars he had been married to the heiress to the British throne (who died) and then married Louise-Marie de Bourbon, daughter of SM Louis-Philippe, King of the French. His astute leadership won the respect of the people and brought the diverse Belgian population together. When revolutions swept Europe in 1848 Belgium remained a safe haven of peace and stability and progress because of the appreciation the people had for his leadership. He established ties of marriage by his children with the Houses of Hapsburg and Hohenzollern and he was one of the most widely respected statesmen of his time, known as the "Nestor of Europe".


Leopold II, son of Leopold I, became King on December 17, 1865 and was determined to make Belgium a magnificent and respected country. He had a great interest in geography and philanthropy. He employed the explorer Henry Stanley to explore the Congo basin and this in time developed into the creation of the Congo Free State of which Leopold II was Sovereign King. He organized an expedition to eradicate the Arab slave trade in central Africa and another to aid in suppressing extremists in Egypt. He also allowed volunteers to go defend the Papal States from Italian nationalists. Belgium became a colonial empire thanks to Leopold II but he is best remembered for the great buildings and monuments he left behind, many of which he paid for himself. He was a man of big ideas and big aspirations. He had even bigger visions of ways to build up the country that he never got to see completed. Unfortunately all of his success aroused alot of jealousy and he was not very popular with the rest of Europe.


Albert I, nephew of Leopold II, became King of the Belgians on December 23, 1909. He was a very humble and religious man and a man with strong convictions. He was very down-to-earth but devoted to duty. In 1914 he refused to sacrifice the neutrality or sovereignty of his country and led the tiny Belgian army to war against the invading Germans. He showed great courage and leadership in the most difficult circumstances, staying with the army and leading them throughout the war, becoming a respected Allied commander and leader of an army group. He was honored all over the world because of his heroic defiance and bold leadership. He wanted to end the war peacefully but this was not possible. After the war he was merciful to his enemies, pushed for universal suffrage and for the further development of Flanders (much of which had been ruined by the war). He took a great interest in every part of his country and was also a man who loved the outdoors. This sadly led to his death in a mountain climbing accident.


Leopold III, son of Albert I, became King unexpectedly on February 23, 1934. Like his father, Leopold III was very religious and very heroic. Even as a boy he had volunteered to fight in the trenches with the army as a regular soldier. He was a devoted father and a great patriot who wanted to keep his country united and neutral. When Nazi Germany invaded Belgium, like his father, he led the army in a heroic fight, holding off the Germans longer than any other of the Low Countries. Finally he was forced to surrender or see his men massacred but he did not abandon them and stayed in Belgium to endure the occupation with his people and to ease their suffering as much as possible. He hoped after such a disaster a new begining could be made with a stronger, more united Belgium with a more efficient and dutiful government. However, he was betrayed by the self-serving politicians he most opposed and he had to go to Switzerland. The people wanted him back but he would not risk conflict and abdicated the throne.


Baudouin, son of Leopold III, was thrust onto the Belgian throne on July 17, 1951 at a time of great turmoil and instability. In such a position it is no wonder King Baudouin would have rather been a priest. However, he was a dutiful king and soon won the respect of everyone by his calm and kind manner and his simple but deep religious faith. However, Belgium had changed and more changes came. King Baudouin went to Africa to give the Congo its independence, though he had misgivings about how prepared they were for total separation. The country also divided officially into Flanders and Wallonia with their own governments for each in addition to the national one. Society was also going through many changes that King Baudouin opposed and he had problems of conscience at times when doing his duty clashes with his traditional moral code. However, King Baudouin was very popular and widely respected around the world though he and his wife Queen Fabiola were sad that they could never have children.


Albert II, brother of King Baudouin, became King on August 9, 1993 and is probably the most active monarch in Europe today. As divisions in the country grew deeper the King has had to work harder and harder to hold the ship of state together. So frustrating has this become that many have said everyone is Flemish or Walloon and only the King is Belgian. Probably no other Belgian king has had to deal with what Albert II has had to deal with; social changes, growing demographic changes, the "War on Terrorism", constantly bickering parties that refuse to cooperate, the economic crisis and the growing position of the European Union. Probably no other King and Royal Family have been so heavily scrutinized in Belgian history as Albert II and his family or been so often asked to justify their position. However, through it all he has kept his good humor and continues to labor on to keep his dysfunctional family of subjects together as one country as he first swore to do.

The 'Christian' Soldier-King

S. M. King Albert I is remembered best as the "Soldier King" but the Cross of Laeken weblog shows The Piety of King Albert I, he was a sincere Christian. I was baptized and I go to church on occasion, I admit then I am not an extremely religious person. I believe in God and all, I think my church is the right one and all but I am just not the very religious type I suppose. I have to say also that I think religion is a good thing, I admire those people who excel at it and King Albert I seems all the more admirable to me for that. Religion used to be one of the things that united all Belgians. Regardless of region or language, everyone was a Catholic and always had been. That was very important I think to the national identity. Now that is not much the case anymore and I will confess that my generation and people like me are probably in part to blame for being more casual about it. I may not be very zealous but I would hate to see the religious identity of the country disappear and reading that posting about King Albert I, this makes me question, what would the great Soldier-King think about the state of religion in Belgium today and more pointedly what would such a strong Catholic man think about the number of Muslims in Belgium today? The more I read the more I think he would not be very happy in fact for a man who was such a strong Catholic and wanted and fought for a strong, Christian, united and independent Belgium I think he would be heartbroken to see what the country he passed on has come to. My apologizes for seeming so negative today, I really try to look for good views but sometimes...

The Sixtus Affair

Above is a picture of Prince Xavier of Bourbon-Parma, Queen Elisabeth of the Belgians and Prince Sixtus of Bourbon-Parma. These two Bourbon princes naturally wished to rush to defend France when World War I started but because the French republic is prejudiced against royalty they were not allowed to join up. Instead, they joined the Belgian army and served with distinction. The two Bourbon-Parma princes were brothers to the Empress Zita of Austria and so when her husband, Charles I, became Emperor of Austria and wanted to end the Great War peacefully it was only natural that they try to do so via Prince Sixtus and Prince Xavier who were officers in the Belgian army, led by King Albert I, who also wanted peace in Europe rather than fighting on to destroy the continent until one side had total victory and the other side total ruin. This is significant since King Albert had greater cause for anger and resentment than any other Allied leader, his country being the only truly innocent party involved. However, King Albert was very religious and Pope Benedict XV wanted a peace without victors and the only leaders who paid attention to him were King Albert and Emperor Charles of Austria.

It was the Austrian emperor who made the first move and later, very secretly, Princes Sixtus and Xavier arrived with the primary French demands for peace, namely the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France, the restoration of Belgium and Serbia and the hand-over of Constantinople to the Russians. Emperor Charles agreed to all of these demands and tried to get the Germans to do the same (though being careful not to let them know what he had done). However, the Germans refused to give up Alsace-Lorraine even when Charles offered to give up some of his own territory to compensate them. They saw victory within sight against Russia and thought that once that was done they could mass all their forces on the western front and crush the Allies in a massive offensive. The French also backed out as they and the British had made secret promises to other powers for Austrian and Hungarian territory. When the Austrians denounced the French for opposing peace they made the letters of Emperor Charles delivered to Paris by Prince Sixtus public. This effectively made Austria the hostage of Germany and ensured the war would continue until the Europe that existed before the war was destroyed forever.

Heroes of Antwerp

In the first Great War, after the stubborn defense of the fortress network, the next major Belgian resistance was the defense of Antwerp. This was the third biggest port in the world then and a major attraction for the Germans. They had to take Antwerp to close this vital port to the British and control it themselves. King Louis III of Bavaria even wanted to make Antwerp part of his kingdom so there would be Bavarian access to the North Sea (Queen of Belgians Elisabeth was a Bavarian so this was painful to the royal family certainly). The heroic "Soldier King" Albert was in command of the Belgian forces and many patriotic drawings depicted him fighting in the trenches to defend his country from the Germans:
Maybe King Albert Ier did not really do that, but they show the right spirit that was accurate in that he was commanding the defense of his country. In fact, the real commander defending Antwerp himself was General Victor Deguise who the King put in command and ordered him to defend Antwerp as solidly as possible for as long as possible. General Deguise was a trained expert in military engineering and fortifications so he was a good man for the job and he carried out his mission exactly and with great skill.

You know from history that the Germans offensive began in August 1914 for the western front and all of Belgium was expected by the Prussian command to be conquered in as little as a day. They expected to march through with no serious opposition. Considering that, you know the accomplishment it was that Antwerp held out against greatly superior German forces for more than 2 months! It was not until early October that Germany captured Antwerp and then only by superior firepower. General Deguise did his duty obediently as his King commanded him. He and the brave soldiers who lined the trenches were the great Belgian heroes of Antwerp:
These men put up a ferocious fight, keeping the Germans away from the city for week after week which was giving critical time for Belgian civilians, soldiers and a great many British troops to evacuate through the port to escape to fight on elsewhere on the western front. If Antwerp had not been so well defended a great portion of the British army would have been captured by the Germans right at the very start of the war. But, by the skill of the Belgian soldiers that did not happen. General Deguise surrendered Antwerp finally on October 10 after the Germans, who had been unable to attack the city, finally were given their gigantic "Big Bertha" heavy artillery that could destroy the fortifications from a distance. So, Deguise gave up the city but not himself as he and a small band of Belgian soldiers fought their way out of the city, crossed the Schelde and escaped into the Netherlands where they stayed for the rest of the war (since Netherland was a neutral country, all combatants had to stay if they entered). All of these, the King, General Deguise and the brave soldiers were heroes of their country and never to be forgotten.