Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. It is located in the Low Countries, bordered by the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, France, and the North Sea. Belgium has an area of 30,689 km² and a population of over 11.8 million, with a population density of 383 people per km². The capital and largest city is Brussels, with other major cities including Antwerp, Ghent, and Bruges.
Belgium is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy with a federal system divided into three regions: Flanders in the north, Wallonia in the south, and the Brussels-Capital Region in the middle. It has two main language communities: the Dutch-speaking Flemish Community (60% of the population) and the French-speaking French Community (40%), with a small German-speaking Community (1%). This linguistic diversity often results in political conflicts and a complex system of six governments. Belgium is a developed country and a founding member of the European Union, with Brussels serving as the EU’s de facto capital.
Belgium’s history includes being part of the Roman Empire and the Carolingian Empire. It gained the nickname “the Battlefield of Europe” due to being contested by various powers. Modern Belgium was established after the 1830 Belgian Revolution and was among the first to industrialize in continental Europe. In the 20th century, tensions between Dutch and French speakers led to important government reforms, transitioning to a federal system. Today, challenges include separatist sentiments and ongoing debates about language laws, as well as a complex political landscape marked by a lengthy government formation period after the 2010 federal election.
Image Credit | By Rob – Derived from:France (orthographic projection).svg, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31542937
