BELGIUM. Statistics.

 

The French monarch having declined the dignity in behalf of his
son, Leopold of Saxe-Coburg was next selected by the congress, and
that prince accordingly ascended the throne on 24st July, 1831.
The treaty of the intervening po igned at London on 45th
Noy., 1831, by the representativ the five great powers and of
Belgium, although not finally recognised by the exasperated King
of Holland till 1839, constituted the Kingdom of Belgiwm one of
the independent European stat and determined the boundaries
and the relations between the two disunited kingdoms.
ing Leopold II., born in 1835, son of Leopold I. (b. 1790,
d. 1865) and of Loui econd consort, daughter of Louis Phi-
lippe (d. 1850), ascended the throne on 10th Dec., His
Queen is Marie Henriette, daughter of the late Archduke Joseph.
The royal family consists of the Princesses Louise (b. 1858; mar-
ried in 1875 to Prince Philip of Saxe-Coburg), Stephanie (b. 18
arried in 1881 to Rudolph, Crown Prince of Austria), and C
tine (b. 1872). Leopold, the only son (b. 1859), died at the
yunt of Flanders (b. 1845), who is married to 2 German
s the King’s brother. Charlotte, the widow of Maximilian,
f Mexico (d. 1867), is a sister of Leopold I.
Extent. The extreme length of the kingdom, from N.W.toS.E.,
is 179 Engl. M., dth from N. to§8. 110 M., area 11,373 sq. M.
PoruLation (in 1838) 6,030,043 (in 1831, 3,785,864 only), of
whom about 21/5 millions are Flemings, and about 2 millions Wal-
loons. The Roman Catholic religi s greatly predominant, about
15,000 only of the population being Protestants, and 3000 Jews;
and of ects more than half are resident in the provinces
of Antwerp and Brabant.

 

   

 

 

  

   
       

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Provincss. The country is divided into nine provinces, viz.
Antwerp, Brabant, W. Flanders, E. Flanders, Hainault, Liege,
Limburg, Lucembourg, and Namur. The density of population
amounts to about ) persq. M., and varies from 873 per sq. M.
in Brabant to 128 per sq. M. in Luxembourg. Brabant, EH. Flan-
ders, and Hainault, are, with the exception of some of the manu-
facturing districts of England, among the most densely peopled
districts in the world.

Army. The Belgian army is destined on principle only for the
defence of the country and of the neutrality assured to it by the
Treaty of London (p. xviii). It consists of 103,860 men, of whom
ARAT are officers, and in time of peace, of 43,400 men. The army
is composed of the following regiments: 4 Oarabir , 3 Riflemen,
14 Infantry of the line, 1 Grenadie s-a-cheval, 4 Lan-
cers, 2 Guides, whose celebrated band is one of the best in Europe ;
A Wield Artillery (40 batteries of 6 guns each, 14 mounted), 4 Fortress
Artillery; 1 Engineers; 1 Telegraph, and 4 Railway company.
There are also several companies of the military train and pontoniers.
The country is divided into four military districts, each containing
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