Leopold II of Belgium

Leopold II married Marie Henriette of Austria in 1853. Marie was very beautiful, lively and extremely popular among the Belgian citizens. She was also a highly talented woman. This marriage produced three daughters and one son. The marriage became strained following the death of their only son and the couple separated.

Leopold II had several mistresses, the most prominent one being Caroline Lacroix who the King had met in 1899 when he was 64 and she, 16. He lavished vast amounts of wealth on her and remained close to her until his death. Caroline gave birth to two illegitimate sons. The King left her a massive amount of wealth upon his death.

He died on 17 December 1909 and was succeeded by his nephew, Albert. His reign of 44 years is the longest in Belgian history.

Leopold II was born as the second child of the reigning Belgian monarch, Leopold I, and his second wife, Louise in Brussels on 9 April 1835. His elder brother, Louis Philippe, had died before Leopold’s birth. His mother died in 1850.

He was made the Duke of Brabant when he was nine and was appointed a sub-lieutenant in the army.

He attained the age of majority in 1855 and started playing an active role in the Belgian Senate. He harbored ambitious plans for the development of his country and urged his father to acquire colonies. As the crown prince he travelled extensively and visited India, China, Egypt, and the countries on the Mediterranean coast of Africa.

King Leopold I died on 10 December, 1865, and Leopold II ascended to the throne at the age of 30. From the very beginning he had major plans for the development of Belgium, and started embarking on a series of reforms.

Several laws were enacted during his reign which included laws against child labor and laws regarding the employment of young women in certain hazardous occupations. Workers were also given the right to be compensated for workplace accidents.

At that time Belgium did not possess numerous overseas colonies like her neighboring countries Holland, France, and Great Britain did. Thus, Leopold was motivated to acquire Asian and African colonies of his own. Over the next few years he made several attempts to acquire colonies but was unsuccessful.

In 1876, he organized the International African Association which ostensibly aimed to implement humanitarian projects in the areas of Central Africa.

In 1878, he enlisted the help of the famous explorer Henry Stanley to explore and establish a colony in the Congo region under the auspices of this association.