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Neutral Moresnet (, , , ) was a small Belgian
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was '' de facto'' dissolved by an ...
n
condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...
in western Europe that existed from 1816 to 1920 and was administered jointly by the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden; french: Royaume uni des Pays-Bas) is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed between 1815 and 1839. The United Netherlands was cr ...
(
Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the ...
after its independence in 1830) and the
Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire'' ...
. It was wide and long, with an area of . After 1830, the territory's northernmost border point at
Vaalserberg The Vaalserberg (, Ripuarian: ) is a hill with a height of above NAP and is the highest point in the European part of the Netherlands, also known as "Dutch Mountains". The Vaalserberg is located in the province of Limburg, at the south-eas ...
connected it to a
quadripoint A quadripoint is a point on Earth where four distinct territories meet. The territories can be of different types, such as national and provincial. In North America, several such places are commonly known as Four Corners. Several examples exist ...
shared additionally with the Dutch Province of Limburg, the Prussian
Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. It ...
, and the Belgian
Liège Province Liège (; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is the easternmost province of the Wallonia region of Belgium. Liège Province is the only Belgian province that has borders with three countries. It borders (clockwise from the north) the ...
. Its former location is represented presently by the Three-Country Point, the meeting place of the borders of Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. During the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, Neutral Moresnet was annexed by Germany, although the allies did not recognise the annexation. The armistice between France and Germany in November 1918 forced Germany to withdraw from Belgium and Neutral Moresnet. A year later, the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
awarded Neutral Moresnet to Belgium, effective 10 January 1920, when the territory was annexed by Belgium to become the municipality of Kelmis. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, Kelmis and the area surrounding was again annexed by Germany and had its name reverted to Moresnet, but the territory was returned to Belgium during 1944.


History


Origins

After the demise of Napoleon's
Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
, the
Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon ...
of 1814–15 redrew the European map, intending to create a balance of power in Europe. One of the borders to be delineated was the one between the newly created
United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden; french: Royaume uni des Pays-Bas) is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed between 1815 and 1839. The United Netherlands was cr ...
and the
Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire'' ...
. Both parties could agree on the larger part of the territory, as borders mostly followed older lines, but the district of Moresnet proved problematic, mainly because of a valuable zinc spar mine named Altenberg ( German) or Vieille Montagne ( French) located there. The governments of both the Netherlands and Prussia desired to appropriate this resource, which was needed for the production of
zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodic t ...
and
brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wit ...
– at that time,
Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
in the United Kingdom was the only other place where zinc ore was processed. In December 1815, Dutch and Prussian representatives convened in nearby
Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th ...
, and on 26 June 1816 a compromise was obtained, dividing the district of Moresnet into three parts. The Dutch absorbed the village of Moresnet itself into
Liège Province Liège (; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is the easternmost province of the Wallonia region of Belgium. Liège Province is the only Belgian province that has borders with three countries. It borders (clockwise from the north) the ...
, while the Prussian village Moresnet (renamed Neu-Moresnet after ) became part of the Prussian
Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. It ...
and the mine and village adjacent became a neutral territory pending a future agreement. The two powers, whose armies were prohibited from occupying the area, established a joint administration. When Belgium gained its independence from the Netherlands in 1830, the Belgians assumed control of the Dutch role in Neutral Moresnet (though the Dutch never formally ceded their claim).


Borders

Formal installation of border demarcation markers for the territory occurred on 23 September 1818. The territory of Neutral Moresnet had a somewhat triangular shape with the base being the main road from Aachen to
Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far fr ...
. The village and mine lay just to the north of this road. To east and west, two straight lines converged on the
Vaalserberg The Vaalserberg (, Ripuarian: ) is a hill with a height of above NAP and is the highest point in the European part of the Netherlands, also known as "Dutch Mountains". The Vaalserberg is located in the province of Limburg, at the south-eas ...
. The roads from Germany and Belgium to the Three‑Country Point are named () and (‘Three Border Stones Road’) respectively; the road from the Netherlands is called (‘Four Borders Way’).


Flag

From 1883, Neutral Moresnet used a tricolour with horizontal bars in black, white and blue as its territorial flag. The origin is unknown and has been explained in two different ways: * It is argued by some that the colours were taken from the two conflicting powers' flags, with black and white representing Prussia and white and blue the Netherlands. * According to '' Flags of the World'', "it seems more likely that the colours have been taken from the emblem of the Vieille Montagne", a mining company.


Status

The territory was governed by two royal commissioners, one from each neighbour. Eventually, these commissioners were commonly civil servants from the Belgian
Verviers Verviers (; wa, Vervî) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also t ...
and the Prussian
Eupen Eupen (, ; ; formerly ) is the capital of German-speaking Community of Belgium and is a city and municipality in the Belgian province of Liège, from the German border (Aachen), from the Dutch border (Maastricht) and from the "High Fen ...
. The municipal administration was directed by a
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
appointed by the commissioners. The Napoleonic civil and penal codes, introduced during French rule, remained in force throughout the existence of Neutral Moresnet. However, since no law court existed in the neutral territory, Belgian and Prussian judges had to come in and decide cases based on the Napoleonic laws. Since there was no administrative court either, the mayor's decision could not be appealed. In 1859, Neutral Moresnet was granted a greater measure of self-administration by the installation of a municipal council of ten members. The council, as well as a welfare committee and a school committee, were appointed by the mayor and served an advisory function only. The people had no
voting rights Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to ...
. Life in Neutral Moresnet was dominated by the Vieille Montagne mining company, which not only was the major employer but also operated residences, shops, a hospital and a bank. The mine attracted many workers from the neighboring countries, increasing the population from 256 in 1815 to 2,275 in 1858 and 4,668 in 1914. Most services, such as the mail, were shared between Belgium and Prussia (in a fashion similar to
Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none ( Latin)"United virtue is str ...
). There were five schools in the territory, and Prussian subjects could attend the schools in Prussian Moresnet. Living in the territory had several benefits. Among these were the low taxes (the national budget being fixed at 2,735
Belgian franc The Belgian franc ( nl, Belgische frank, french: Franc belge, german: Belgischer Franken) was the currency of the Kingdom of Belgium from 1832 until 2002 when the Euro was introduced. It was subdivided into 100 subunits, each known as a in Dut ...
s throughout most of its history), the absence of import
tariff A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and ...
s from both neighbouring countries, and low prices compared to just across the border. A downside to their special status was the fact that people from Neutral Moresnet were considered to be stateless and were not allowed a military of their own. Many immigrants settled in Moresnet so they would be exempt from
military service Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job ( volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription). Some nations (e.g., Mexico) requir ...
, but in 1854 Belgium began to conscript its citizens who had relocated to Moresnet, and Prussia did likewise in 1874. From then on, the exemption applied only to descendants of the original inhabitants.


Currency

Neutral Moresnet did not have its own currency. The
French franc The franc (, ; sign: F or Fr), also commonly distinguished as the (FF), was a currency of France. Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money. It ...
was legal tender. The currencies of Prussia (and then Germany, after 1871), Belgium and the Netherlands were also in circulation. In 1848 local currency began circulating, though these coins were not considered the official medium.


Uncertain future

When the mine was exhausted in 1885, the continued survival of Neutral Moresnet was in doubt. Perhaps in response, the next year Dr. Wilhelm Molly (1838–1919), the mine's chief medical doctor and an avid philatelist, tried to organise a local postal service with its own stamps. This enterprise was quickly thwarted by Belgian intervention. About 1900, Germany began a more aggressive policy concerning the territory and was accused of sabotage and obstructing the administrative process in order to force the issue. A casino was established in August 1903 after the Belgians closed all such resorts in Belgium. The Moresnet casino operated with strict limitations, permitting no local resident to gamble, and no more than 20 persons to gather at a time. The venture was abandoned, however, when
Kaiser Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Empir ...
threatened to partition the territory or cede it to Belgium in order to end the gambling. Around this same time, Moresnet boasted three
distilleries Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heating ...
for the manufacture of
gin Gin () is a distilled alcoholic drink that derives its flavour from juniper berries (''Juniperus communis''). Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe, particularly in southern Italy, Flanders and the N ...
. During 1908, Dr. Molly proposed making Neutral Moresnet the world's first
Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international commun ...
‑speaking state, named ("friendship-place"). The proposed national anthem was an Esperanto
march March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Ma ...
of the same name, set to the tune of "
O Tannenbaum "" (; "O fir tree", English: O Christmas Tree) is a German Christmas song. Based on a traditional folk song which was unrelated to Christmas, it became associated with the traditional Christmas tree. History The modern lyrics were written in 1824 ...
". A number of residents learned Esperanto and a rally was held in Kelmis to endorse the idea of on 13 August 1908, and a coat of arms was publicized. The World Congress of Esperanto, meeting in
Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth l ...
, even declared Neutral Moresnet the world capital of the Esperanto community.


First World War

The First World War resulted in the end of neutrality. On 4 August 1914, Germany invaded Belgium, initially leaving Neutral Moresnet as "an oasis in a desert of destruction". A total of 147 Neutral Moresnet citizens were killed, though it is unclear whether they were killed inside the territory or in fighting outside its borders. On 27 June 1915, Neutral Moresnet was annexed by the Kingdom of Prussia, although the annexation never received international recognition. In 1918, the armistice between France and Germany, signed on 11 November at
Compiègne Compiègne (; pcd, Compiène) is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. It is located on the river Oise. Its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois''. Administration Compiègne is the seat of two cantons: * Compiègne-1 (with 1 ...
, forced Germany to withdraw from Belgium and also from Moresnet. It also resulted in the ousting of Mayor Wilhelm Kyll, a German national who had been appointed after the German invasion. On 28 June 1919, the
Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles (french: Traité de Versailles; german: Versailler Vertrag, ) was the most important of the peace treaties of World War I. It ended the state of war between Germany and the Allied Powers. It was signed on 28 June ...
settled the dispute that had created the neutral territory a century earlier by awarding Neutral Moresnet, along with Prussian Moresnet and the German cantons of Eupen and Malmedy, to Belgium. The treaty became effective 10 January 1920, ending the territory's existence and converting it into a municipality in Belgium. To distinguish it from the already existing town of Moresnet (in the neighboring municipality of Plombières), Neutral Moresnet was renamed Kelmis (in French: )after ''kelme'', the local dialect word for zinc spar. Despite the annexation, Neutral Moresnet Mayor Pierre Grignard effectively stayed in office and became the first mayor of Kelmis. The ten members of Neutral Moresnet's council were confirmed for the Kelmis municipal council after its Prussian members renounced their nationality. They remained in office until the election of a new municipal council on 7 February 1923.


Post-annexation history

After 1920, Moresnet shared the history of
Eupen-Malmedy Eupen-Malmedy is a small, predominantly German-speaking region in eastern Belgium. It consists of three administrative cantons around the towns of Eupen, Malmedy, and Sankt Vith which encompass some . Elsewhere in Belgium, the region is common ...
. Germany briefly re‑annexed the area during , but it returned to Belgium in 1944. Since 1973, Kelmis has formed a part of the German‑speaking community of Belgium. During 1977, Kelmis absorbed the neighbouring communes of Neu‑Moresnet and Hergenrath. A small museum in Kelmis, the ''Museum Vieille Montagne'', includes exhibits on Neutral Moresnet. Of the 60 border markers for the territory, more than 50 are still standing. As a company, Vieille Montagne survived Neutral Moresnet. It continues to exist as VMZINC, a part of Union Minière, the latter renamed in 2001 as Umicore, a global materials company. On 26 October 2016, Catharina Meessen became the last surviving citizen of the former territory after the death of Alwine Hackens-Paffen. In early 2020, Meessen died at the age of 105.


List of executive officers


List of mayors

* Arnold Timothée de Lasaulx, 1817 – 2 February 1859 * Adolf Hubert van Scherpenzeel-Thim, 2 February 1859 – 30 May 1859 * Joseph Kohl, 1 July 1859 – 7 February 1882 * Oskar Anton Bilharz, 7 February 1882 – 20 June 1885 * Jérôme Mohsen, 20 June 1885 – 20 June 1885 * Hubert Schmetz, 20 June 1885 – 15 March 1915 * Wilhelm Kyll, 29 March 1915 – 7 December 1918 * Pierre Grignard, 7 December 1918 – 10 January 1920


See also

* Interhelpo *
Couto Misto Couto Misto ( pt, Couto Misto ; gl, Couto Mixto; es, Coto Mixto) was an independent microstate on the border between Spain and Portugal. It was composed of the villages of Santiago de Rubiás, Rubiás (now in the Spanish municipality of C ...


References


Further reading

* * *


External links

* Pictures of the old mines * Official websit
Kelmis
(in German)
Göhltalmuseum
a local museum that shows the history of Neutral Moresnet and its zinc mining (in German)
''Anarchy in the Aachen'' (Mises.org)

Het vergeten land van Moresnet
documentary, 1990 (48', languages spoken: Dutch, German, French, Esperanto)
Elbruz interactive map of Neutral Moresnet
Elbruz interactive map of Neutral Moresnet {{Authority control Condominia (international law) Disputed territories in Europe Esperanto history German-speaking Community of Belgium Kelmis States and territories established in 1816 Territorial disputes of Germany States and territories disestablished in 1920 1816 establishments in Europe 1920 disestablishments in Europe