Austria And Belgium: A Historical Perspective On Their Relationship

Belgium was never part of Austria, but it was once part of the Austrian Empire. The Austrian Netherlands was the territory of the Burgundian Circle of the Holy Roman Empire between 1714 and 1797. The period began with the acquisition by the Austrian Habsburg monarchy of the former Spanish Netherlands under the Treaty of Rastatt in 1714. It lasted until Revolutionary France annexed the territory after the Battle of Sprimont in 1794 and the Peace of Basel in 1795.

The Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) later led to a division of the Low Countries between the Dutch Republic in the north and the Southern Netherlands, which later became Belgium and Luxembourg. The area had been held by the Habsburgs, but was briefly under Bourbon control in the War of the Spanish Succession. Under the Treaty of Rastatt (1714) which ended that war, the remainder of the Spanish Netherlands was ceded to Austria.

The Austrian Netherlands

The Austrian Habsburg monarchy acquired the former Spanish Netherlands under the Treaty of Rastatt in 1714, marking the beginning of the Austrian Netherlands. This period lasted until Revolutionary France annexed the territory after the Battle of Sprimont in 1794 and the Peace of Basel in 1795. Austria officially relinquished its claim on the province in 1797 through the Treaty of Campo Formio.

The Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) led to a division of the Low Countries between the Dutch Republic in the north and the Southern Netherlands in the south, which later became Belgium and Luxembourg. The Southern Netherlands were held by the Habsburgs but briefly came under Bourbon control during the War of the Spanish Succession.

Under the Treaty of Rastatt, which ended the War of the Spanish Succession, the remainder of the Spanish Netherlands was ceded to Austria. Administratively, the Austrian Netherlands was divided into four traditional duchies, three counties, and various lordships. The Duchy of Brabant and the County of Flanders were among the autonomous regions within the territory.

In the 1780s, opposition emerged to the liberal reforms of Emperor Joseph II, which were seen as an attack on the Catholic Church and the traditional institutions of the Austrian Netherlands. This resistance culminated in rioting and disruption in 1787, known as the Small Revolution. Many opponents of the reforms took refuge in the neighbouring Dutch Republic, where they formed a rebel army.

In 1789, the émigré army crossed into the Austrian Netherlands and defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Turnhout. The rebels, supported by uprisings across the territory, proclaimed independence and established the United Belgian States in January 1790. However, this short-lived independent state soon became divided along ideological lines and was ultimately unable to withstand the military might of Habsburg Austria.

By mid-1790, the Austrian forces had regained control of the Austrian Netherlands, but their rule was brief as the French overran the territory in 1794 during the War of the First Coalition. On October 1, 1795, the Austrian Netherlands was officially annexed to France, marking the end of Austrian rule in the region.

The Eighty Years' War

Causes of the War

Key Events and Battles

One of the early battles of the war was the Battle of Heiligerlee in 1568, where Dutch troops led by Louis and Adolf of Nassau, brothers of William the Silent, defeated Spanish forces. The Sea Beggars, independent privateers, played a significant role in the war by capturing several Dutch ports and establishing Protestant bases. They also defeated Spanish fleets throughout 1573 and into 1574, contributing to the war effort.

The war saw the rise of notable leaders on both sides, such as William the Silent, who organised the resistance against Spanish rule, and the Duke of Alba, who led Spanish forces and implemented repressive religious policies. The conflict also witnessed the involvement of other European powers, with Elizabeth I of England providing military aid to the Dutch and the Duke of Anjou, a French prince, being invited to become the monarch of the Low Countries in an attempt to reconcile the parties.

The war was not continuous, and there were periods of truce and negotiations. The Twelve Years' Truce, beginning in 1609, temporarily halted the fighting, but hostilities resumed in 1621 under Philip IV of Spain, who continued the policies of persecution and centralisation. The Dutch, led by Maurice of Orange, implemented new military strategies and were able to score significant victories.

The Holy Roman Empire

The term "Holy Roman Empire" was not used until the 13th century, before which the empire was referred to as "universum regnum" ("the whole kingdom"), "imperium christianum" ("Christian empire"), or "Romanum imperium" ("Roman empire"). The exact term "Holy Roman Empire" was first used in 1254. The legitimacy of the emperor always rested on the concept of "translatio imperii", meaning he held supreme power inherited from the ancient emperors of Rome.

In the late 15th and early 16th centuries, a process of Imperial Reform transformed the empire, creating institutions that endured until its final demise in the 19th century. On August 6, 1806, Emperor Francis II abdicated and formally dissolved the empire following the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine by French Emperor Napoleon.

The Habsburg Monarchy

Over time, the territories ruled by the Habsburg Monarchy changed, but the core always consisted of four blocs: the Hereditary Lands, the Lands of the Bohemian Crown, the Kingdom of Hungary, and various conquests made at the expense of the Ottoman Empire. The Hereditary Lands covered most of modern-day Austria and Slovenia, as well as territories in northeastern Italy and southwestern Germany. The Lands of the Bohemian Crown initially consisted of the Margraviate of Moravia, Silesia, and Lusatia, though Lusatia was ceded to Saxony in 1635. The Kingdom of Hungary encompassed two-thirds of the former medieval kingdom, with the remaining third under Ottoman control.

The Habsburg realms were unified in 1804 with the formation of the Austrian Empire, and later split into the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary in 1867. The monarchy began to fracture during the final years of World War I and ultimately disbanded with the proclamation of the Republic of German-Austria and the First Hungarian Republic in late 1918.

The Habsburgs produced many prominent rulers, including emperors, kings, queens, and dukes, and their dynasty was one of the most important in European history. They are known for their frequent use of consanguineous marriages, which resulted in a cumulative deleterious effect on their gene pool, leading to health impairments such as epilepsy, insanity, and early death. Despite this, the Habsburg Monarchy played a significant role in European history and contributed to the development of the modern nation-states that emerged from it.

The Belgian Revolution

The revolution was caused by a combination of factors, including religious differences, a lack of autonomy in the south, and under-representation in the General Assembly. The people of the south also had to bear the burden of the north's higher public debt, and there was dissatisfaction with King William I's interference in education and the curriculum of the training schools for priests.

On 25 August 1830, riots erupted in Brussels, with shops being looted and factories occupied. Theatergoers who had just watched the nationalistic opera "La Muette de Portici" joined the mob. Uprisings followed elsewhere in the country, and leadership was taken up by radicals, who started talking of secession. On 27 September, a newly formed Provisional Government in Brussels declared independence and called for the election of a National Congress.

On 20 December 1830, a diplomatic conference on the future of Belgium opened in London, bringing together the great powers of the time: Austria, the United Kingdom, France, Prussia, and Russia. Initially, the European powers were divided, but eventually, on 20 January 1831, Belgium was recognised as an independent, neutral state.

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