Jonkheer (female equivalent: ; french: Écuyer; en, Squire) is an honorific in the Low Countries denoting the lowest rank within the nobility. In the Netherlands, this in general concerns a prefix used by the untitled nobility. In Belgium, this is the ...

Charles Joseph Marie Ghislain de Brouckère (18 January 1796 – 20 April 1860) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteris ...

and liberal politician. Born in

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the country by population. The area of the whole city a ...

, elder brother of future Prime Minister of Belgium

Henri de Brouckère Jonkheer Henri Ghislain Joseph Marie Hyacinthe de Brouckère (25 January 1801 – 25 January 1891) was a Belgian nobleman and liberal politician. Born in Bruges, he was a magistrate, and a professor at the Université Libre de Bruxelles. His b ...

, Charles entered politics in the period when modern Belgium formed the southern part of 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 ...

. He worked as a banker in

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...

and served as a representative for the province of

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

in the

Second Chamber Bicameralism is a type of legislature, one divided into two separate assemblies, chambers, or houses, known as a bicameral legislature. Bicameralism is distinguished from unicameralism, in which all members deliberate and vote as a single grou ...

of parliament. During the Belgian Revolution of 1830, De Brouckère was among the

francophile A Francophile, also known as Gallophile, is a person who has a strong affinity towards any or all of the French language, French history, French culture and/or French people. That affinity may include France itself or its history, language, cuisin ...

, francophone party which favoured annexation by France. In the newly independent Belgium, he served as

Finance minister A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...

, 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 the City of Brussels This is a list of mayors or burgomasters of the City of Brussels. Burgundian Netherlands (1384–1482) *1380: Geert Pipenpoy *1381: Geert Pipenpoy and Jacques Stovaert *1421: J. Swaeff, J. Cooman *1422: Walter Vanden Heetvelde, Petrus van Bole ...

, a post he held continuously until his death. He is interred at

Brussels Cemetery Brussels Cemetery (french: Cimetière de Bruxelles, nl, Begraafplaats van Brussel) is a cemetery belonging to the City of Brussels in Brussels, Belgium. Located in the neighbouring municipality of Evere, rather than in the City of Brussels p ...

. De Brouckère was responsible for major urban renewal in Brussels, including the creation of water mains, as well as the first boulevards in the city. Today, the Place de Brouckère/De Brouckèreplein, and De Brouckère station, in central Brussels, are named after him.

Honours

* :

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

. * : Grand Officer in the Order of Leopold

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. {{DEFAULTSORT:De Brouckere, Charles 1796 births 1860 deaths Politicians from Bruges Mayors of the City of Brussels Members of the National Congress of Belgium Belgian nobility 19th-century Belgian politicians Burials at Brussels Cemetery Belgian Ministers of Defence Finance ministers of Belgium

Honours

See also

Sources