v20_1540 - BELGIQUE - ROYAUME DE BELGIQUE - LÉOPOLD II 5 francs, type normal 1866 Bruxelles

BELGIUM - KINGDOM OF BELGIUM - LEOPOLD II

(10/12/1865-17/12/1909)

Leopold II (9/04/1835-17/12/1909) is the eldest son of Leopold I and Louise d'Orléans. He married Marie-Henriette, Archduchess of Austria, who bore him three daughters: Louise, Stéphanie, and Clémentine. He relied on England to repel the aims of Napoleon III in 1866-1869. His reign was marked by the economic and industrial development of Belgium, which also became a great colonial power thanks to the personal annexation of the Congo by the king at the Congress of Berlin in 1885. Without a male heir, his nephew Albert I succeeded him. in 1909. He bequeathed the Congo to Belgium in 1908.