Release of the Second Issue of 2026 of the Journal of Belgian History
The new issue of the Journal of Belgian History invites you to explore four original research studies that shed light on major issues in Belgian and international history.
The Belgian State’s Colonial Exploitation of the Congo: A More Humane Colonial Policy?
In an article written in English, Lucas Van Oost and Benoît Henriet (VUB) revisit a key moment in Belgian colonial history: Belgium’s takeover of the Congo Free State in 1908. Through several case studies, they challenge the notion of an immediate shift toward a more humane colonial policy and demonstrate that practices of colonial violence persisted well beyond the institutional change.
Forced Labor and International Law in the Belgian Congo
Colonial history remains at the heart of this issue with the study by Christian Via Balole (Catholic University of Bukavu / UCLouvain). His article analyzes how Belgium applied the “colonial clause” of the Forced Labor Convention from 1930 to 1960. This research highlights the mechanisms that allowed certain forms of forced labor to persist and offers a critical reflection on the application or circumvention of certain international convention rules in the colonial context.
Civil Resistance in Antwerp During World War II
In an article in Dutch, Anne Bekers (UAntwerpen) presents the findings of her master’s thesis on the organization of aid to people living in hiding in the occupied city of Antwerp. This pioneering study reveals the inner workings of a form of civil resistance that remains little known and helps enrich our understanding of daily life under the Occupation.
Commemoration of World War I at the Palace of the Nation
Finally, Sophie Wittemans (curator at the Palace of the Nation and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Liège) offers an original analysis of the cultures of remembrance surrounding the Great War. Her study examines the commemorative exhibition dedicated to World War I at the Palace of the Nation and shows how parliamentary art shaped a unique representation of the German occupation, centered on the experiences of Belgian citizens rather than on military heroism or the victims of the conflict.
This issue of the JBH sells for 15.00 euros (plus shipment) and can be ordered from CegeSoma, Aviation Square 29, 1070 Brussels, +32 2/556 92 11 - cegesoma@arch.be.
Issue 3–4 of 2026 will be the final printed issue. We would like to inform you that, starting with volume 2027, the Journal of Belgian History will be published exclusively in digital form on UGent’s Open Journals platform. All new issues, as well as the complete archive of the JBH and its predecessors, will be fully accessible through this platform in open access. This decision will ensure much broader and more efficient dissemination of the journal. The platform’s various new functionalities will also improve the accessibility and quality of its digital presentation. It will make our journal better equipped for the academic landscape of the 21st century.