Charles de Brouckère

Jonkheer Charles Joseph Marie Ghislain de Brouckère (18 January 1796 – 20 April 1860) was a Belgian nobleman and liberal politician.

Born in Bruges, elder brother of future Prime Minister of Belgium Henri de Brouckère, Charles entered politics in the period when modern Belgium formed the southern part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. He worked as a banker in Maastricht and served as a representative for the province of Limburg in the Second Chamber of parliament.

During the Belgian Revolution of 1830, De Brouckère was among the francophile, francophone party which favoured annexation by France.

In the newly independent Belgium he served as Finance minister, Interior minister, and War minister, for short periods in 1831.

He taught as a professor at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, and in 1848 became mayor of Brussels, a post he held continuously until his death. He is interred at Brussels Cemetery, and was responsible for major urban renewal in the city, including the creation of water mains and the creation of the first boulevards in Brussels.

The Place de Brouckère, and De Brouckère station, in central Brussels are named after him.

Honours

•  Belgium: Iron Cross.
•  Belgium: Grand Officer in the Order of Leopold

See also

• List of mayors of the City of Brussels

Sources

• Du Bois, A., Les Bourgmestres de Bruxelles. Ch. de Brouckère, in : Revue de Belgique, mei 1896, p. 21-41.
• Juste, Théodore, Charles de Brouckère, Brussel, C. Muquardt, 1867, p. 131.

Belgian Revolution and the Independence of Belgium (1830–39)
Belgian Revolution	Belgian Revolution Rattachism Orangism La muette de Portici (August 1830) Brabançonne (August 1830) Provisional Government of Belgium (September 1830 - February 1831) National Congress of Belgium (November 1830) Constitution of Belgium (February 1831)
First Belgian monarchs	Érasme, Baron Surlet de Chokier (Regent; February 1831 - July 1831) Leopold I (King of the Belgians; July 1831 - December 1865)
Important figures	Charles Niellon Alexandre Dechet (Jenneval) Frédéric de Mérode Juan Van Halen (see also List of members of the National Congress)
Provisional Government	Alexandre Gendebien André Jolly Charles Rogier Louis de Potter Sylvain Van de Weyer Feuillien de Coppin Félix de Mérode Joseph Vanderlinden Emmanuel Van der Linden d'Hooghvorst
de Gerlache Government	Étienne Constantin de Gerlache Charles de Brouckère Alexandre Gendebien Albert Goblet d'Alviella Sylvain Van de Weyer
Lebeau I Government	Joseph Lebeau Étienne de Sauvage Charles de Brouckère Paul Devaux
United Kingdom of the Netherlands	King William I Prince William Ten Days' Campaign (August 1831) Siege of Antwerp (1832)
Treaties	London Conference of 1830 Treaty of the Eighteen Articles (1831) Treaty of London (1839) Treaty of Maastricht (1843) Iron Rhine Treaty (1873)
Monuments and honours	Martyrs' Square Congress Column Civic Guard Merit Medal 1830 Star of Honour Iron Cross 1830 Volunteers' Commemorative Cross

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