Belgian Armed Forces
The Belgian Armed Forces (Dutch: Defensie; French: La Défense)[4] is the national military of Belgium. The King of the Belgians is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The Belgian Armed Forces was established after Belgium became independent in October 1830. Since then, the Belgian armed forces have fought in World War I, World War II, the Cold War (Korean War and the Belgian occupation of the Federal Republic of Germany), Kosovo, Rwanda, Somalia and Afghanistan. The Armed Forces comprise five branches: the Land Component, the Air Component, the Naval Component, the Medical Component and the Cyber Component.
This article is about the whole of the Belgian military forces. For the ground force branch, see Belgian Land Component.
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History[edit]
Establishment[edit]
When Belgium broke away from the Netherlands in 1830 it was initially expected that a neutral buffer state, with its borders guaranteed by France, Britain and Prussia, could avoid the need for an expensive permanent military force, relying instead on the part-time militia of the existing Garde Civique (Civil Guard). The need for a regular army was however soon acknowledged. The basis for recruitment was one of selective conscription under which exemptions could be purchased by obtaining substitutes.[5] In practice this meant that only about a quarter of each year's eligible intake actually served, with the burden falling on the poorer classes.
References[edit]
This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook (2024 ed.). CIA. (Archived 2005 edition.)
