Binet, Maurice Emmanuel Hippolyte, 1877-

Revolutionary letterhead

During the revolutionary era of 1789-1848, Belgium was ensnared in power politics on a continental scale, with all the drama and turbulence entailed. As part of the Austrian Netherlands, the province of Brabant rose up in revolution in 1789 over political reforms instituted by Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II and for a year, the revolutionaries were successful at expelling their occupiers. Although the Austrians reasserted dominion over the Brabant in 1790, their phase of Belgian history was to be short-lived. In 1794, the region was conquered by French forces under Napoleon Bonaparte, becoming the first territory added to the expansionist Republic.

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