What Is The Capital Of Belgium?
Belgium, also called the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Western Europe. It borders Germany, Luxembourg, France and the Netherlands and has a coastline on the North Sea. This country covers an area of 11,787 square miles and has a population of 11.25 million. This article will take a closer look at the capital of Belgium.
What is the capital of Belgium?
The capital of Belgium is the city of Brussels, the largest of the 19 municipalities in the Brussels-Capital Region. This city also serves as the administrative center of the European Union. It has a total area of 12.59 square miles and has a population size of 178,552. The metropolitan area, including the Brussels-Capital Region, has 1.8 million inhabitants.
As the national capital, this city is home to a number of important national buildings and offices, including: the royal palace, used by the king to carry out responsibilities as head of state; the prime minister’s office, where the Council of ministers meets; and the Palace of the nation, which houses the Federal Parliament. In addition, the National Bank of Belgium, the Court of Cassation and the Council of State are also located here.
The city of Brussels is not only the capital of Belgium, but also the capital of the French and the Flemish community and home to the government and Parliament of each community.
Demographics of the capital of Belgium
The Brussels – capital region is home to a large percentage of immigrants. Immigration to this part of the country began in the late 18th century and has steadily increased in recent years. In 1991, the last census of the Brussels-Capital Region, about 63.7% of the inhabitants here reported that they were born in Belgium. The largest group of foreigners in this region is French (a population of around 62,507). This is followed by Romanians (38,690), Moroccans (38,274) and Italians (32,322).
When the Kingdom of Belgium was founded, it was largely a Dutch-speaking country. Today, the Brussels – capital region is considered a multilingual city with French as the lingua franca. About 38% of residents report French at home, 17% speak Dutch and French, and 5% speak Dutch.
History of the capital of Belgium
During the war of the Austrian Succession of 1746, French troops took control of the city for 3 years. After that, it was returned to Austria until 1795, when it was reconquered by the French and was referred to as the capital of the Dyle Department. Brussels became part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815. Fifteen years later, the Belgian Revolution took place, which brought independence to Belgium. At this time, Brussels was established as the capital.
Originally, the second walls of Brussels, built between 1356 and 1383, formed the boundaries of the city of Brussels. Today, some roads in the historic city center follow the curves that these walls make. As the population grew here, the town eventually expanded into the surrounding villages, resulting in one larger town. In 1921, the municipalities of Laeken, Haren and Neder-Over-heembeek were merged to form the city of Belgium.