The composition of the colonies of Belgium for almost eighty years included part of the territory of the African country of the Congo and a number of other African states. Also, a small zone in the Chinese city of Tianjin was considered a Belgian colony. The power of the king here was unsteady, so the reign did not last long: only from 1902 to 1931.
Background
Belgium itself was under the rule of foreign states for a long time: in the 16th - 17th centuries. it belonged to Spain, in the 18th century - to Austria, and from the 18th to the first half of the 19th - to the kingdom of the Netherlands. In 1830, a revolution took place in the country, and Belgium finally achieved the long-awaited freedom.
However, independence also brought many problems: the industry developed rapidly, and new markets were developed too slowly, many workers lost their jobs and, unable to immigrate to the neighboring Netherlands, began to pose a serious threat. Under such conditions, the state began an active search for acceptable methods of conquering its own colonies for Belgium.
First try
King Leopold I, who ruled the country in 1831 -1865, dreamed of the development of East and West Africa, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, Guatemala, the Philippines, Hawaii. Ambitious plans were not destined to come true. Belgian settlers sent to Guatemala, Belgium's first American colony, died of malaria and yellow fever. At the same time, preparations were underway for an expedition to Hawaii, but the ship never left the coast due to the bankruptcy of its private owner.
Another attempt to get a colony in Mexico was also unsuccessful: the settlers were sent to the Mexican state of Chihuahua to build a flax processing plant, but the land in this place turned out to be infertile. Between 1842 and 1875, several more attempts were made to settle and colonize Brazil and Argentina. In Brazil, they failed to hold on, but in Argentina, the Belgians were lucky: a colony in the province of Entre Rios existed from 1882 to 1940.
Second attempt
The list of Belgian colonies is small. The first Belgian kings made more than fifty attempts to acquire overseas colonies for their state in one way or another, from military seizure to purchase. Leopold I died in 1865, and his son Leopold II ascended the throne. He tried in vain to establish his power in Crete, the island of Borneo, New Guinea and other territories of Oceania. However, it was only in Africa that he finally managed to win.
Belgian colonies in Africa
Africa exploration held backmalaria and sleeping sickness, but with the discovery of quinine, colonization began with renewed vigor. Leopold II managed to gain a foothold in the Congo Basin on the rights of personal possession, although the territory continued to be considered a free state.
The territory of the Free State of the Congo was 77 times larger than the Belgian. The unique status granted by Leopold allowed him to dispose of the land as he wished, without the consent of Parliament and without worrying about compliance with Belgian laws. With the help of military mercenaries, the population of the Congo was practically turned into slaves, the natives mined rubber, ivory, and minerals for the king. The exploitation of the natives became the source of the king's great we alth and the basis for the development of the Belgian economy. However, as a result of cruel treatment and hard work in 30 years, from 1880 to 1920, the population halved - from 20 million to 10 million.
Leopold's cruelty in the Belgian colony caused condemnation in Europe. He was criticized by kings and ministers, Mark Twain and Conan Doyle spoke with contemptuous satire about him. As a result, Leopold II sold the rights to African lands to his own state, and the Congo Free State was renamed the Belgian Congo. The country declared independence in 1960.
Also, the Kingdom of Belgium for some time owned other territories adjacent to the Congo: Ubangi-Bomu, Katanga, the Lado Enclave. However, Leopold failed to keep power over them, the regions quicklybecame former colonies of Belgium.
Belgian colonies in China
In 1899 - 1901 Belgium took part in the suppression of the Boxer uprising in China and as a result gained control over a small area in the city of Tianjin, located on the banks of the Haihe River. In 1904 Belgian industrial companies built an electric lighting system in the region, and in 1904 the first electric tram set off. In 1931 Tianjin ceased to be a Belgian colony.
