Leopold I of Belgium

"King Leopold I" and "Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld" redirect here. For the king of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia, see Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor. For the nephew of Leopold I, see Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

Leopold I of Belgium
Leopold I, c. 1860–65
King of the Belgians
Reign	21 July 1831 – 10 December 1865
Predecessor	Monarchy established Erasme Louis Surlet de Chokier (as Regent)
Successor	Leopold II
Born	Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (1790-12-16)16 December 1790 Ehrenburg Palace, Coburg, Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Holy Roman Empire
Died	10 December 1865(1865-12-10) (aged 74) Castle of Laeken, Brussels, Belgium
Burial	Church of Our Lady of Laeken
Spouses	Charlotte of Wales ​ ​ (m. 1816; died 1817)​ Louise of Orléans ​ ​ (m. 1832; died 1850)​
Issue	Louis Philippe, Crown Prince of Belgium Leopold II, King of the Belgians Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders Charlotte, Empress of Mexico Illegitimate: George von Eppinghoven Arthur von Eppinghoven
Names German: Leopold Georg Christian Friedrich French: Léopold Georges Christian Frédéric Dutch: Leopold Joris Christiaan Frederik Leopold George Christian Frederick
House	Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (until 1826) Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (from 1826)
Father	Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
Mother	Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf
Religion	Lutheran
Signature
Military career
Allegiance	Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Russian Empire United Kingdom Kingdom of Belgium

Leopold I (French: Léopold; born Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld; 16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first King of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865.

The youngest son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Leopold took a commission in the Imperial Russian Army and fought against Napoleon after French troops overran Saxe-Coburg during the Napoleonic Wars. After Napoleon's defeat, Leopold moved to the United Kingdom, where in 1816 he married Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of the British Prince Regent (later George IV). Leopold and Charlotte's marriage was happy, but it ended after a year and a half when Charlotte died after delivering a stillborn son. Leopold continued to enjoy considerable status in Britain.

After the Greek War of Independence (1821–1830), Leopold was offered the throne of Greece under the 1830 London Protocol that created an independent Greek state, but turned it down, believing it to be too precarious. Instead, he accepted the throne of Belgium in 1831 following the country's independence in 1830. The Belgian government offered the position to Leopold because of his diplomatic connections with royal houses across Europe, and because as the British-backed candidate, he was not affiliated with other powers, such as France, which were believed to have territorial ambitions in Belgium which might threaten the European balance of power created by the 1815 Congress of Vienna.

Leopold took his oath as King of the Belgians on 21 July 1831, an event commemorated annually as Belgian National Day. The following year, he married Princess Louise of Orléans, with whom he had four children: Louis Philippe, Leopold, Philippe, and Charlotte, all first cousins of both Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. The King had another two sons, George and Arthur, by his mistress Arcadie Meyer. Leopold's reign was marked by attempts by the Dutch to recapture Belgium and, later, by internal political division between liberals and Catholics. As a Protestant, Leopold was considered liberal and encouraged economic modernisation, playing an important role in encouraging the creation of Belgium's first railway in 1835 and subsequent industrialisation. As a result of the ambiguities in the Belgian Constitution, Leopold was able to slightly expand the monarch's powers during his reign. He also played an important role in stopping the spread of the Revolutions of 1848 into Belgium. He died in 1865 and was succeeded by his son Leopold II.

Early life

Ehrenburg Palace in Coburg, where Leopold was born in 1790, pictured c. 1900

Leopold was born at Ehrenburg Palace in Coburg in the small German duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld in modern-day Bavaria on 16 December 1790. He was the eighth child and youngest son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, and Countess Augusta Reuss of Ebersdorf. In 1826, Saxe-Coburg had acquired the city of Gotha from the neighbouring Duchy of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg and gave up Saalfeld to Saxe-Meiningen, becoming Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. The dynasty of this name was therefore founded by Leopold's eldest brother, Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, the father of Albert, Prince Consort of the United Kingdom. Leopold was baptised on 17 December 1790, with his baptismal name remaining the same as his birth name, in honour of Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor. Leopold's paternal grandmother, Princess Sophie Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, often assisted in parenting duties and signalled that he was her favourite grandson.

From 1797, Leopold was tutored by Charles-Theodore Hoflender, a graduate of the University of Jena and a professor in Coburg. Leopold, under Hoflender, studied Biblical history, Christianity, mathematics and languages, including Greek, Latin and Russian. In 1799, Leopold and his siblings also became tutored by Johann Philipp Hohnbaum, who specialised in teaching physical education and in teaching history of Great Britain, the Holy Roman Empire and Saxony. Hohnbaum cited that Leopold was fascinated by history and conflicts such as the Thirty Years War. Lutheran pastor Gottlieb Scheler also taught Leopold catechism. Historian Olivier Defrance wrote that Scheler's teaching of Pietism had a lasting influence on Leopold. From 1804, aged thirteen, Leopold kept a diary and learnt English, French and Italian. Leopold often heard stories of military experience from his great-uncle, Prince Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, and inherited his father's passion for pigeon racing and floriculture.

Military career

Russian Imperial army

In 1796, Leopold's older sister, Princess Juliane of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, married Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia, making the House of Romanov her house by marriage. The following year, at just six years old, Leopold receives a Russian military title. He achieves the rank of captain and subsequently is given an honorary commission of the rank of colonel in the Izmaylovsky Regiment, part of the Imperial Guard, in the Imperial Russian Army, on 7 May 1979 and 11 September 1798. Leopold also began to specialise in the Russian language. On 19 March 1801, he is transferred to the Imperial Guard Cavalry Regiment, when six years later, aged twelve, he received a promotion to the rank of Major General.

In 1805, at fourteen years old, Leopold accompanied his older brother, Ernest, Hereditary Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, to Moravia, where the headquarters of Alexander I, Emperor of Russia were located, however Leopold nor Ernest partook in combat. Following the Battle of Austerlitz, during the Napoleonic Wars, French troops occupied the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg in 1806. Leopold and his father, Francis, took refuge in Saalfeld, however Francis died on 9 December 1806, six days before the Treaty of Poznan signed the Duchy to the Confederation of the Rhine, thus abolishing the Duchy's sovereignty. When Napoleon learned that Ernest had previously fought against the French, he removed the Duchy from the Confederation, before seizing the properties of Leopold's family. Leopold and his mother were confined to a section of one of the confiscated castles and were not let out. During this time, Leopold wrote to his sister, Princess Sophie of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld: "The poor country of Cobourg is terribly penalized; It must pay 981,000 francs; it's huge. Our coffers and our estates, in short all our income, were confiscated by the Emperor Napoleon. No appanage can be paid." After intervention by the Russian Emperor, Napoleon declared the Duchy to be part of the Confederation of the Rhine once more by adding it to the Treaty of Tilsit. Ernest as the new reigning Duke was allowed to return to Coburg in July 1807.

Napoleon and Alexander I depicted at the Congress of Erfurt

Leopold soon went to Paris where he became part of the Imperial Court of Napoleon. Napoleon's wife, Joséphine de Beauharnais, took a protective attitude of Leopold, who met Napoleon in October 1808. According to historian Carlo Bronne, Napoloen was in awe of Leopold and briefly considered making him is aide-de-camp. In Spring 1808, Leopold contracted typhoid fever and when he recovered, he shortly became regent of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld when Ernest visited Russia. Napoleon later offered Leopold the position of adjutant, but he refused and instead went to Russia to take up a military career in the Imperial Russian cavalry, which then later went to war with France. Leopold accompanied Emperor Alexander I in September 1808 and represented his home Duchy at the Congress of Erfurt, where Napoleon failed to strengthen Franco-Russian relations while the Duchy's interests were ignored. He wrote to Alexander I for assitance, leading to Napoleon demanding that he resign from the Russian army.

Napoleonic battles

In Autumn 1810, Leopold was asked by Ernest to find financial aid for the Duchy, which was lacking soldiers and had been badly affected by war and its previous occupation. Leopold met with Napoleon, who refused to aid the Duchy, but offered that Leopold join the French army. Leopold strongly refused, as did Joséphine. In May 1811, Leopold went to Munich and although he was unsuccessful in securing funding, he managed to persuade Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria to return small territories that Bavaria had previously annexed from the Duchy. Leopold was hailed in the media for this achievement. Following his visit to Munich, Leopold travelled to Vienna, then to various Italian cities during the winter. He wrote: "The years of 1810 and 1811 were quite calm. I was disappointed to find myself forbidden from serving in Russia by Napoleon who held my brother responsible, because he knew that otherwise he would not have been able to prevent me." In March 1813, Leopold was finally allowed to rejoin the Russian Imperial army.

During 1813, Leopold was an active member of the Russian army and participated in the liberation of German states from Napoleonic France. On 28 February 1813, after the signing of the Treaty of Kalisz, Leopold said to Emperor Alexander, "I was the first German Prince who joined the liberating army". Leopold participated in multiple conflicts against French troops, including the Battle of Lützen, Battle of Bautzen and Battle of Leipzig. He worked closely with his brother-in-law, Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia, during this time. On 26 August 1813, Leopold helped Duke Eugen of Württemberg escape his occupiers. Three days later, Leopold was nearly captured by French forces. Later, on 29 and 30 August 1813, Leopold fought in the Battle of Kulm as the head of his cuirassier division. The battle was a French loss, and Leopold was decorated for his participation with the Cross of St. George, the Order of St. Andrew, the Order of Alexander Nevsky, the Order of Saint Anna and the Kulm Cross. Additionally, he was promoted to Major General in the Russian Army.

Leopold and Konstantin Pavlovich were unsuccessful in reuniting with Leopold's sister, Julianne, in Bern in January 1814. Leopold entered France with the Russian army on 30 January. On 1 February, he participated in the Battle of Brienne, which resulted in the occupation of Troyes. Additionally, during the Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube, Leopold commanded the right wing on the army, with France successfully defeated, before Paris was marched on four days later. On 31 March, Leopold too entered Paris, as Napoleon fell, to which Leopold commented: "This is the extent to which prudence has humiliated this tyrant, to the horror of all those who would want to follow his example." Leopold and Ernest represented the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld at the Congress of Vienna. The Kingdom of Prussia, which Leopold and the Russian Imperial army had fought alongside, was opposed to any gains made by the Duchy, which had been against the annexation of Saxony, an ally of France. During the Congress, Leopold held audience with Archduke John of Austria and Chancellor Klemens von Metternich. When Napoleon returned from exile in March 1815, Leopold commanded a Russian cavalry brigade as a lieutenant general, aged 25, on the outskirts of France, as Napoleon lost the Battle of Waterloo.

Marriage to Charlotte of Wales

Engraving of the wedding of Charlotte and Leopold in 1816

Naturalization of Prince Leopold Act 1816
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act far exhibiting a Bill in this present Parliament, for naturalizing His Serene Highness Leopold George Frederick Duke of Saxe, Margrave of Meissen, Landgrave of Thuringuen, Prince of Cobourg of Saalfeld.
Citation	56 Geo. 3. c. 12
Dates
Royal assent	28 March 1816
Commencement	28 March 1816
Repealed	5 August 1873
Other legislation
Repealed by	Statute Law Revision Act 1873
Relates to	Naturalization of Prince Leopold (No. 2) Act 1816
Status: Repealed

Naturalization of Prince Leopold (No. 2) Act 1816
Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act for the Naturalization of His Serene Highness Leopold George Frederick Duke of Saxe, Margrave of Meissen, Landgrave of Thuringuen, Prince of Cobourg of Saalfeld; and settling his Precedence.
Citation	56 Geo. 3. c. 13
Dates
Royal assent	29 March 1816
Commencement	29 March 1816
Repealed	5 August 1873
Other legislation
Repealed by	Statute Law Revision Act 1873
Relates to	Naturalization of Prince Leopold Act 1816
Status: Repealed

In Spring 1814, Leopold accompanied Emperor Alexander to England, where Princess Charlotte of Wales was seeking a spouse. Charlotte was the only legitimate child of Prince George, Prince Regent (later George IV), and therefore second in line to the British throne. George had hoped Charlotte would marry William, Prince of Orange, but Charlotte favoured Leopold. Emperor Alexander was also opposed to Charlotte marrying William as he believed a future personal union between Great Britain and the Netherlands would become a maritime superpower and dominate the seas. Leopold and Charlotte lost contact for months, and the latter often wrote to the former asking that he return to Britain to propose to her. Leopold received British citizenship in March 1816. Finally, the pair married at Carlton House in London on 2 May 1816. Although George was displeased, he found Leopold to be charming and possessing every quality to make his daughter happy, and so approved their marriage. The same year Leopold received an honorary commission to the rank of Field Marshal and Knight of the Order of the Garter. The Regent also considered making Leopold a royal duke, the Duke of Kendal, though the plan was abandoned due to government fears that it would draw Leopold into party politics and would be viewed as a demotion for Charlotte. The couple lived initially at Camelford House on Park Lane, and then at Marlborough House on Pall Mall.

Leopold and Charlotte moved into Claremont House in August 1816. When Charlotte later suffered a miscarriage, Leopold became concerned for her health. When Charlotte again fell pregnant, she was advised by her obstetrician, Sir Richard Croft, to drastically reduce her diet, however Leopold's physician, Christian Stockmar, heavily disagreed with this advice. Charlotte gave birth to a stillborn son on 5 November 1817. She suffered complications and, just after midnight on 6 November, also died. Leopold was said to have been heartbroken by Charlotte's death.

Deep down, I was made for a life of family intimacy [...]. I wanted to be quiet and happy with my mouse [Charlotte] and nothing more [...] Charlotte was a very pretty woman and she possessed to a very high degree of what the English call countenance.

— Leopold writing to his sister upon Charlotte's death.

Portrait of Leopold by George Dawe c. 1818–1825

Had Charlotte survived, she would have become queen of the United Kingdom on the death of her father and Leopold presumably would have assumed the role of prince consort, later taken by his nephew Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Stockmar, who became Leopold's private secretary, advised him to stay in Britain rather than returning to Coburg and despite Charlotte's death, George granted Leopold the British style of Royal Highness by Order in Council on 6 April 1818. However, the British public was opposed to the annuity of 50,000 pounds sterling paid by the British government to Leopold, who was no longer even a member of the British royal family. From 1828 to 1829, Leopold had an affair with the actress Caroline Bauer, who bore a striking resemblance to Charlotte. Caroline was a cousin of Stockmar. She came to England with her mother and took up residence at Longwood House, a few miles from Claremont House. But, by mid-1829, the liaison was over, and the actress and her mother returned to Berlin. Many years later, in memoirs published after her death, she declared that she and Leopold had engaged in a morganatic marriage and that he had bestowed upon her the title of Countess Montgomery. He would have broken this marriage when the possibility arose that he could become King of Greece. The son of Stockmar denied that these events ever happened, and indeed no records have been found of a civil or religious marriage with the actress.

Following Charlotte's death, Leopold assisted members of his family in acceding to various European thrones. He encouraged his sister, Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, to marry George's brother, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn, after her first husband, Emich Carl, 2nd Prince of Leiningen, had died. Victoria and Edward were the parents of the future Queen Victoria, who was born in 1819 and lost her father in 1820. Leopold allowed her and her mother to live with him in Claremont House and convinced George, who was now monarch, to give apartments in Kensington Palace to them. Leopold went on to support George's wife, Caroline of Brunswick, in marital disputes and even visited Caroline during George's crowning, leading to distain from George. Leopold nonetheless remained in Britain for another fourteen years after the death of Charlotte, however regularly travelled Europe.

In 1819, Leopold received Niederfüllbach Castle in Coburg and began preparing to make it his main residence. Leopold's brother, Ernest, had married Princess Louise of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg, who went on to inherit the Duchy of Saxe-Gotha, though Ernest insisted he reigned over it. From thereon, Ernest's Duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld and Louise's Duchy of Saxe-Gotha merged to form the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Before the couple divorced in 1826, Ernest and Louise had two sons, the future Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and Albert, who went on to marry Queen Victoria. Whilst in Paris, Leopold was encouraged to marry Marie-Caroline of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duchess of Berry, the widowed daughter-in-law of Charles X of France, however Leopold declined due to differing views and opinions on matters with the French royal house.

Refusal of the Greek throne

Following a Greek rebellion against the Ottoman Empire, Leopold was offered the throne of an independent Greece as part of the London Protocol of February 1830, which stipulated that the new monarch could not be of Great Britain, France or Russia.

Though Leopold resided in Britain, he was not considered a member of the British royal family as he was not of the House of Hanover. He was quite popular across Europe for his role in the Napoleonic wars and, according to Defrance, was often mentioned in Greek "anglophile circles". Despite popularity, he was often in dispute with George and the British government, who supported Leopold as a candidate for the Greek throne and subsequently demanded he give up his British possessions. Leopold eventually agreed and accepted this offer from Duke of Wellington, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and his Cabinet. However, Leopold was still anxious to accept the Greek throne and demanded certain conditions, including having the Greco-Ottoman border changed in Greece's favour by amending the border crossing the Achelous River and Valley, receiving financial and military aid while the state was being set up, and having protection of Greece by the Great Powers from foreign aggression. He argued this zone of protection should be extended all the way to Samos and Crete, whose populations had been active in the Greek War of Independence. Most of his demands were agreed to in a series of discussions, with particular priority in protecting the majority Christian inhabitants of the Greek islands. With the Great Powers mainly satisfied, they signed new international protocol, officially giving Leopold, "the son-in-law of George IV", the title of "Sovereign Prince of Greece". A few days later, on 28 February, Leopold officially accepted the Greek crown.

Acceptance of the Belgian throne

Leopold taking the constitutional oath during his enthronement. By the artist Gustaf Wappers

See also: Belgian Revolution and Constitution of Belgium

At the end of August 1830, rebels in the Southern provinces (modern-day Belgium) of the United Netherlands rose up against Dutch rule. The rising, which began in Brussels, pushed the Dutch army back, and the rebels defended themselves against a Dutch attack. International powers meeting in London agreed to support the independence of Belgium, even though the Dutch refused to recognize the new state.

In November 1830, a National Congress was established in Belgium to create a constitution for the new state. Fears of "mob rule" associated with republicanism after the French Revolution of 1789, as well as the example of the recent, liberal July Revolution in France, led the Congress to decide that Belgium would be a popular, constitutional monarchy.

Search for a monarch

Prince Leopold, by Samuel William Reynolds, c. 1820s

The choice of candidates for the position was one of the most controversial issues faced by the revolutionaries. The Congress refused to consider any candidate from the Dutch ruling house of Orange-Nassau. Some Orangists had hoped to offer the position to William I or his son, William, Prince of Orange, which would bring Belgium into personal union with the Netherlands like Luxembourg. The Great Powers also worried that a candidate from another state could risk destabilizing the international balance of power and lobbied for a neutral candidate.

Eventually the Congress was able to draw up a shortlist. The viable possibilities were felt to be Auguste of Leuchtenberg, son of Eugène de Beauharnais, and Louis, Duke of Nemours, son of the French King Louis-Philippe. All the candidates were French and the choice between them was principally between choosing the Bonapartism of Beauharnais or Leuchtenberg and supporting the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe. Louis-Philippe realized that the choice of either of the Bonapartists could be first stage of a coup against him, but that his son would also be unacceptable to other European powers suspicious of French intentions. Nemours refused the offer. With no definitive choice in sight, Catholics and Liberals united to elect Erasme Louis Surlet de Chokier, a minor Belgian nobleman, as regent to buy more time for a definitive decision in February 1831.

Leopold on a 40 franc coin (1835)

Leopold of Saxe-Coburg had been proposed at an early stage, but had been dropped because of French opposition. The problems caused by the French candidates and the increased international pressure for a solution led to his reconsideration. On 22 April, he was finally approached by a Belgian delegation at Marlborough House to officially offer him the throne. Leopold, however, was reluctant to accept.

Accession

On 17 July 1831, Leopold travelled from Calais to Belgium, entering the country at De Panne. Travelling to Brussels, he was greeted with patriotic enthusiasm along his route. The accession ceremony took place on 21 July on the Place Royale/Koningsplein in Brussels. A stand had been erected on the steps of the Church of St. James on Coudenberg, surrounded by the names of revolutionaries fallen during the fighting in 1830. After a ceremony of resignation by the regent, Leopold, dressed in the uniform of a Belgian lieutenant-general, swore loyalty to the constitution and became king.

The enthronement is generally used to mark the end of the revolution and the start of the Kingdom of Belgium and is celebrated each year as the Belgian national holiday.

Reign

Leopold I's personal monogram

Main article: Belgium in the long nineteenth century

Consolidation of independence

Less than two weeks after Leopold's accession, on 2 August, the Netherlands invaded Belgium, starting the Ten Days' Campaign. The small Belgian army was overwhelmed by the Dutch assault and was pushed back. Faced with a military crisis, Leopold appealed to the French for support. The French promised support, and the arrival of their Armée du Nord in Belgium forced the Dutch to accept a diplomatic mediation and retreat back to the pre-war border. Skirmishes continued for eight years, but in April 1839, the two countries signed the Treaty of London, whereby the Dutch recognised Belgium's independence.

Leopold was generally unsatisfied with the amount of power allocated to the monarch in the Constitution, and sought to extend it wherever the Constitution was ambiguous or unclear while generally avoiding involvement in routine politics.

Subsequent reign

Leopold depicted on the first Belgian postage stamp, issued in 1849

Leopold I's reign was also marked by an economic crisis which lasted until the late 1850s. In the aftermath of the revolution, the Dutch had closed the Scheldt to Belgian shipping, meaning that the port of Antwerp was effectively useless. The Netherlands and the Dutch colonies in particular, which had been profitable markets for Belgian manufacturers before 1830, were totally closed to Belgian goods. The period between 1845 and 1849 was particularly hard in Flanders, where harvests failed and a third of the population became dependent on poor relief, and have been described as the "worst years of Flemish history". The economic situation in Flanders also increased the internal migration to Brussels and the industrial areas of Wallonia, which continued throughout the period.

Portrait of Leopold I of Belgium by Franz Xaver Winterhalter, c. 1840

Politics in Belgium under Leopold I were polarized between liberal and Catholic political factions, though before 1847 they collaborated in "Unionist" governments. The liberals were opposed to the Church's influence in politics and society, while supporting free trade, personal liberties and secularization. The Catholics wanted religious teachings to be a fundamental basis for the state and society and opposed all attempts by the liberals to attack the Church's official privileges. Initially, these factions existed only as informal groups with which prominent politicians were generally identified. The liberals held power through much of Leopold I's reign. An official Liberal Party was formed in 1846, although a formal Catholic Party was only established in 1869. Leopold, who was himself a Protestant, tended to favor liberals and shared their desire for reform, even though he was not partisan. On his own initiative, in 1842, Leopold proposed a law which would have stopped women and children from working in some industries, but the bill was defeated. Leopold was an early supporter of railways, and Belgium's first stretch of railway, between northern Brussels and Mechelen, was completed in 1835. When completed, it was one of the first passenger railways in continental Europe.

Revolution of 1848

Engraving of Leopold's theatrical offer in 1848 to abdicate if it was the will of the Belgian people

The success of economic reforms partially mitigated the effects of the economic downturn and meant that Belgium was not as badly affected as its neighbours by the Revolutions of 1848. Nevertheless, in early 1848, a large number of radical publications appeared. The most serious threat of the 1848 revolutions in Belgium was posed by Belgian émigré groups. Shortly after the revolution in France, Belgian migrant workers living in Paris were encouraged to return to Belgium to overthrow the monarchy and establish a republic. Around 6,000 armed émigrés of the "Belgian Legion" attempted to cross the Belgian frontier. The first group, travelling by train, was stopped and quickly disarmed at Quiévrain on 26 March 1848. The second group crossed the border on 29 March and headed for Brussels. They were confronted by Belgian troops at the hamlet of Risquons-Tout and, during fighting, seven émigrés were killed and most of the rest were captured. To defuse tension, Leopold theatrically offered his abdication, if this was the wish of the majority of his people.

The defeat at Risquons-Tout effectively ended the revolutionary threat to Belgium, as the situation in Belgium began to recover that summer after a good harvest, and fresh elections returned a strong Liberal majority.

Role in international relations

Leopold (right), with Queen Victoria, the Duke of Oporto (future Luís I of Portugal) (center) and rest of the family in an early photograph of 1859

Because of his family connections and position at the head of a neutral and unthreatening power, Leopold was able to act as an important intermediary in European politics during his reign. As a result of this, he earned the nickname the "Nestor of Europe", after the wise mediator in Homer's Iliad. Leopold played a particularly important role in moderating relations between the hostile Great Powers. In the later part of his reign, his role in managing relations between the United Kingdom and the French Empire of Napoleon III was particularly important.

In 1835–1836, he promoted the marriage between his nephew Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and the Queen of Portugal, Maria II. He promoted the marriage of his niece, Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, to his nephew, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

In foreign policy, Leopold's principal object was the maintenance of Belgian neutrality imposed by Article VII of the Treaty of London (1839). Despite pressure from the Great Powers, especially over the Crimean War (1853–56), Belgium remained officially neutral throughout the reigns of Leopold I and II, although Belgian historian Jan Anckaer has interpreted Leopold's diplomatic efforts in the Second Egyptian-Ottoman War in 1840 and Belgium's manufacture of arms for Russia during the Crimean War as breaches of neutrality.

Second marriage and family

Leopold's funeral cortege in Brussels on 16 December 1865

Leopold married Louise-Marie of Orléans (daughter of Louis Philippe I) on 9 August 1832. They had four children:

• Louis Philippe, Crown Prince of Belgium (24 July 1833 – 16 May 1834) who died in infancy.
• Prince Leopold, Duke of Brabant (9 April 1835 – 17 December 1909), the future King Leopold II. He married Archduchess Marie Henriette of Austria on 22 August 1853. They had three daughters and one son who died young. He religiously but not civilly remarried Caroline Lacroix, which made the marriage unrecognized by law, on 12 December 1909 on his deathbed. They already had two illegitimate sons.
• Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders (24 March 1837 – 17 November 1905) who married Princess Marie of Hohenzollern on 25 April 1867. They had five children, including King Albert I of Belgium
• Princess Charlotte of Belgium (7 June 1840 – 19 January 1927). She married Maximilian I of Mexico on 27 July 1857 and became Empress of Mexico. They had no issue. She adopted two sons, the grandsons of the first Emperor of Mexico.

Queen Louise-Marie died of tuberculosis on 11 October 1850, aged 38.

Other descendants

Leopold had two sons, George and Arthur, by his mistress Arcadie Meyer (née Claret). George von Eppinghoven was born in 1849, and Arthur von Eppinghoven in 1852. At Leopold's request, in 1862 his two sons were created Freiherr von Eppinghoven by his nephew, Ernest II, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha; in 1863 Arcadie was also created Baronin von Eppinghoven.

Death and succession

Coat of arms

Leopold died in Laeken near Brussels on 10 December 1865. His funeral was held on 16 December, on what would have been his 75th birthday. He is interred in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, next to Louise-Marie.

Leopold was succeeded by his son, Leopold II, aged 30, who would rule until 1909.

Commemoration

A monument in his memory was erected in Brussels at the initiative of Leopold II.

Belgian naval vessels named in his honour include the Leopold I, a frigate acquired by Belgium in 2007. His monogram features on the flag of the Flemish town of Leopoldsburg. His likeness has also appeared on postage stamps and commemorative coins issued since his death.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Leopold I of Belgium

8. Francis Josias, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld 4. Ernest Frederick, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld 9. Princess Anna Sophie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt 2. Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld 10. Ferdinand Albert II, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 5. Princess Sophie Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 11. Princess Antoinette of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel 1. Leopold I of Belgium 12. Heinrich XXIX, Count Reuss-Ebersdorf 6. Heinrich XXIV, Count Reuss-Ebersdorf 13. Countess Sophie Theodora of Castell-Remlingen 3. Countess Augusta Reuss-Ebersdorf 14. George August, Count of Erbach-Schönberg 7. Countess Karoline Ernestine of Erbach-Schönberg 15. Countess Ferdinande Henriette of Stolberg-Gedern

Notes

Bibliography

• Ascherson, Neal (1999). The King Incorporated: Leopold the Second and the Congo (New ed.). London: Granta. ISBN 1862072906.
• Carson, Patricia (1974). The Fair Face of Flanders (Rev. ed.). Ghent: E.Story-Scientia. OCLC 463182600.
• Chastain, James. "Leopold I". Encyclopedia of 1848. Ohio University.
• Chastain, James. "Belgium in 1848". Encyclopedia of 1848 Revolutions. Ohio University. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
• Christopoulos, Georgios A. & Bastias, Ioannis K., eds. (1975). Ιστορία του Ελληνικού Έθνους, Τόμος ΙΒ΄: Η Ελληνική Επανάσταση (1821 - 1832) [History of the Greek Nation, Volume XII: The Greek Revolution (1821 - 1832)] (in Greek). Athens: Ekdotiki Athinon. ISBN 978-960-213-108-4.
• "Léopold Ier". La Monarchie Belge. Monarchie.be. Archived from the original on 23 October 2013. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
• Pirenne, Henri (1948). Histoire de Belgique (in French). Vol. VII: De la Révolution de 1830 à la Guerre de 1914 (2nd ed.). Brussels: Maurice Lamertin.
• Richardson, Joanna (1961). My Dearest Uncle: A Life of Leopold First King of the Belgians. London: Jonathan Cape.
• Wolmar, Christian (2010). Blood, Iron & Gold: How the Railways transformed the World. London: Grove Atlantic. ISBN 9781848871717.
• Polasky, Janet L. (2004). "Leopold I (1790–1865)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/41227. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)

External links

• Media related to Leopold I of Belgium at Wikimedia Commons
• Leopold I: Un Roi Protestant at the Chapelle royale
• Portraits of Leopold I, King of the Belgians at the National Portrait Gallery, London