Harold René Charles Marie, comte d'Aspremont Lynden (17 January 1914 - 1 April 1967) was a Belgian cabinet minister, politician of the PSC-CVP and Cavalry Lieutenant-Colonel. He is also notable as Belgium's last Minister of African Affairs (1960-1961), serving as such in

Gaston Eyskens Gaston François Marie, Viscount Eyskens (1 April 1905 – 3 January 1988) was a Christian democracy, Christian democratic politician and prime minister of Belgium. He was also an economist and member of the Belgian Christian Social Party (Belg ...

' third cabinet. He was one of the Belgian authorities involved in the kidnap and assassination of Congolese Prime Minister

Patrice Lumumba Patrice Émery Lumumba ( ; born Isaïe Tasumbu Tawosa; 2 July 192517 January 1961) was a Congolese politician and independence leader who served as the first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as the Republic o ...

Life

He was born in 1914 to Count Charles d'Aspremont Lynden (a parliamentarian and cabinet minister) and Edith de Favereau (daughter of

Paul de Favereau Paul-Louis-Marie-Célestin, baron de Favereau (15 January 1856 – 26 September 1922) was a Belgian politician and member of the Catholic Party. Life Born in Liège, he became a doctor of law before serving as member of the Belgian Parliament fo ...

, another cabinet minister). His daughter Catherine married

Jean-Pierre Berghmans Baron Jean-Pierre Berghmans, born 23 January 1949 in Namêche, is a Belgian economist and industrialist. He heads the Belgian Lhoist group, world leader in the lime, dolomite and mineral solutions. Biography Jean-Pierre Léon Louis Joseph ...

, an industrialist who was the head of the Lhoist group. After studying classics at the abbey school at Maredsous from 1926 to 1931, he graduated from the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (; ) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) * Katholieke Universiteit Leuven or KU Leuven (1968 ...

as a doctor of law. He completed his military service as a reserve officer in the 13th Line Regiment at

Namur Namur (; ; ) is a city and municipality in Wallonia, Belgium. It is the capital both of the province of Namur and of Wallonia, hosting the Parliament of Wallonia, the Government of Wallonia and its administration. Namur stands at the confl ...

(1936–37) before returning to Leuven to study social and political economics. VANDERSTRAETEN L.-F., d'Aspremont Lynden, Harold, in ''Nouvelle Biographie Nationale'', t. VIII, Bruxelles, 2005, p. 77-80. His studies were interrupted by the outbreak of

World War Two World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilisi ...

and the general mobilisation of Belgium in September 1939. After the fall of Belgium he joined the resistance, commanding Sector V in Zone V of the Secret Army. After the war he became a member of the town council and mayor of Natoye (1947-1967) and senator for the

province of Namur Namur (; ; ) is a province of Wallonia, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders (clockwise from the West) on the Walloon provinces of Hainaut, Walloon Brabant, Liège and Luxembourg in Belgium, and the French department of Ardennes. Its ...

(1949–54 and 1961–67). He died in Natoye in 1967.

Involvement in the assassination of Patrice Lumumba

In the early 21st century, writer Ludo De Witte found documents revealing that Belgian authorities were directly involved in the murder of

Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo The prime minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (, , ) is the head of government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Constitution of the Third Republic grants the prime minister a significant amount of power. The post i ...

. Count d'Aspremont Lynden, who had been tasked with organising Katanga's secession, on 6 October 1960, sent a cable to Katanga saying that policy from now on would be the "definitive elimination of Patrice Lumumba". Lynden had also insisted on 15 January 1961, that an imprisoned Lumumba should be sent to Katanga, which essentially would have been a death sentence. 00.36.57.

Honours

* Commander of the Ordre de Léopold, * Knight of the Ordre de Léopold with palms *

Croix de Guerre The (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awarded during World ...

1940 with palms *

Médaille de la Résistance The Resistance Medal (, ) was a decoration bestowed by the French Committee of National Liberation, based in the United Kingdom, during World War II. It was established by a decree of General Charles de Gaulle on 9 February 1943 "to recognize the ...

1940-1945, * Médaille commémorative de la guerre 1940-1945 with crossed sabres * Commander of the Ordre d'Orange-Nassau of the Netherlands *

King's Medal for Courage in the Cause of Freedom The King's Medal for Courage in the Cause of Freedom is a British medal for award to foreign nationals who aided the Allied effort during the Second World War. Eligibility Instituted on 23 August 1945, the medal was a reward to foreign nationals ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aspremont Lynden, Harold Charles d' 1914 births 1967 deaths Politicians from Brussels Members of the Senate (Belgium) Mayors of places in Belgium Belgian resistance members Lynden family Commanders of the Order of Orange-Nassau Recipients of the Resistance Medal Recipients of the King's Medal for Courage in the Cause of Freedom Counts of Belgium