Belgian refugees in Britain during the First World War

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"Britannia with Belgian Refugees" (1916) by Belgian painter Andre Cluysenaar Brittannia with Belgian Refugees by Andre Cluysenaar.jpg
"Britannia with Belgian Refugees" (1916) by Belgian painter André Cluysenaar

During the First World War between 1914 and 1918, many Belgian refugees fled to the United Kingdom.

Contents

Because archive material of the hundreds of local Belgian refugee committees is scant and incomplete and because systems of registration were not watertight (nor did they run from the very start of the conflict), it is very difficult to estimate the number of Belgians that sought refuge in Britain during World War I. Estimates vary between 225,000 and 265,000. The estimation does not include the roughly 150,000 Belgian soldiers that took leave in Britain at some point during the war, and an additional 25,000 wounded Belgian soldiers convalescing in Britain. The fullest account is given in Belgian Refugee Relief in England during the Great War by Peter Calahan (Garland Publishing, New York and London, 1982).

Locations

Notable people

Archive material

Commemorations

The Anglo-Belgian Memorial in London London, UK (August 2014) - 110.JPG
The Anglo-Belgian Memorial in London

On 12 October 1920, the Anglo-Belgian Memorial was unveiled at Victoria Embankment Gardens in London. The memorial was intended as proof of Belgian gratitude to the people of Britain who had accommodated the Belgians so well during the First World War. It features a central statue by the Belgian sculptor Victor Rousseau, himself a refugee. [26] [27] At the unveiling Belgium was represented by Princess Clementine, several members of the Royal Family, and the Prime Minister Léon Delacroix. [28] Representing the British nation was Lord Curzon, the then Foreign Secretary and friend of the Belgian King Albert. [28]

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