List of massacres in Belgium
Appearance
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This is a list of massacres which have occurred in the territory now covered by the modern country of Belgium.
Massacres before 1914
[edit]Name | Date | Location | Deaths | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Genocide against the Eburones | 53 BC | Belgium | Unknown | Annihilation of the Eburones tribe by Roman forces led by Julius Caesar. According to the Gallic Wars, "He wanted...to annihilate the race of the Eburones and even the name itself." |
Bruges Matins | May 18, 1302 | Bruges, West Flanders | 2,000 | Massacre of the French garrison of Bruges by Flemish militia during the Franco-Flemish War |
Brussels Massacre | May 22, 1370 | City of Brussels, Brussels Capital Region | 6 | Massacre of the Jewish community in Brussels |
Spanish Fury of Mechelen | Oct 2, 1572 | Mechelen, Province of Antwerp | Unknown | Sack and massacre of citizens in the city of Mechelen by Spanish soldiers after the fall of the city during the Eighty Years' War. |
Spanish Fury of Antwerp | Nov 4, 1576 | Antwerp, Province of Antwerp | 7,000 | Massacre of citizens and militia of Antwerp by renegade Spanish soldiers after the fall of the city during the Eighty Years' War. |
Belgian general strike of 1893 | Apr 17, 1893 | Mons, Province of Hainaut | 7 | Garde Civique fired on strikers protesting for universal suffrage during the general strike of 1893. |
Massacres during World War I and II
[edit]Name | Date | Location | Deaths | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Aarschot massacre | August 19, 1914 | Aarschot, Flemish Brabant, | 156 | Massacre of Belgian civilians by invading German troops in collective punishment during the First World War |
Andenne massacre | August 1914 | Andenne, Province of Namur | 211 | Massacre of Belgian civilians by German troops in collective punishment during the First World War |
Massacre of Tamines | Aug 21, 1914 | Tamines, Province of Namur | 384 | Massacre of Belgian civilians by German soldiers in response for "Franc-tireur" attacks during the First World War |
Dinant massacre | Aug 23, 1914 | Dinant, Province of Namur | 674 | Massacre of Belgian civilians by German soldiers in response for "Franc-tireur" attacks during the First World War |
Sack of Louvain | Aug 25, 1914 | Leuven, Flemish Brabant | 248 | Massacre of Belgian civilians by rampaging German soldiers (the "Rape of Belgium") during the First World War |
Vinkt Massacre | May 25, 1940 | Vinkt, East Flanders | 86-140 | Massacre of Belgian civilians during the German invasion of Belgium. |
Courcelles Massacre | Aug 18, 1944 | Courcelles, Province of Hainaut | 20 | Massacre of Belgian civilians by Rexist collaborators in retaliation for the murder of a politician by the resistance. |
Malmedy massacres | December 1944 | Malmedy and surrounding region | 473 (83 in main incident) | Massacre of POWs and civilians by SS troops led by Joachim Peiper in a dozen incidents during the Battle of the Bulge |
Baugnez crossroads massacre | Dec 17, 1944 | Baugnez (near Malmedy), Province of Liège | 81 | Massacre of captured US soldiers by SS troops during the Battle of the Bulge |
Wereth massacre | Dec 17, 1944 | Wereth, Province of Liège | 11 | Torture and murder of African-American POWs by German troops during the Battle of the Bulge |
Bande Massacre | Dec 24, 1944 | Bande, Province of Luxembourg | 34 | Murder of 34 men between 20–31 years old by German soldiers during the Battle of the Bulge.[1][2] |
Chenogne massacre | Jan 1, 1945 | Chenogne, Province of Luxembourg | 80 | Massacre of German POWs by American soldiers in retaliation for the Malmedy massacre during the Battle of the Bulge.[3] |
Post-war period
[edit]Name | Date | Location | Deaths | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Grâce-Berleur shooting | Jul 30, 1950 | Grâce-Berleur, Province of Liège | 4 | Massacre when Gendarmerie fired on demonstrators during the Royal Question.[4] |
Bogaarden shooting | May 12, 1987 | Bogaarden | 8 (including himself) | |
Dendermonde nursery attack | Jan 23, 2009 | Sint-Gillis-bij-Dendermonde, East Flanders | 3 | Attack on a nursery by an individual. 12 people were also injured in the attack. |
Liège attack | Dec 13, 2011 | Liège, Province of Liège | 6 | Gun and grenade attack on civilians by an individual. 125 people were also injured. |
Brussels bombings | Mar 22, 2016 | Zaventem, Province of Flemish Brabant and City of Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region | 32 (+3 suicide bombers) | Three coordinated nail bombings by five suicide bombers: two at Brussels Airport, and one at Maalbeek metro station. Responsibility claimed by Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). 340 people were also injured in the attacks. |
References
[edit]- ^ "The massacre of Bande". www.liberationroute.com. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
- ^ Franchimont, Benoît (7 November 2020). "79 otages dans le village - Le Soir". Le Soir (in French). Retrieved 14 February 2024.
- ^ "Massacre at Malmedy during the Battle of the Bulge". Retrieved 18 January 2013.
- ^ Laporte, Christian (2 January 2012). "Drame de Grâce-Berleur : le chef des gendarmes brise le silence - La Libre". La Libre Belgique (in French). Retrieved 14 February 2024.