AntwerpAntwerp (ˈæntwɜrp; Antwerpen ˈɑntʋɛrpə(n); Anvers ɑ̃vɛʁs) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 536,079, it is the most populous municipality in Belgium, and with a metropolitan population of around 1,200,000 people, it is the second-largest metropolitan region in Belgium, second only to Brussels. Going through Antwerp, is the river Scheldt. Antwerp is linked to the North Sea by the river's Westerschelde estuary.
BrugesBruges (bruːʒ , bʁyʒ; Brugge ˈbrʏɣə; Brügge ˈbʁʏɡə) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country. It is the sixth most populous city in the country. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 14,099 hectares (140.99 km2; 54.44 sq miles), including 1,075 hectares off the coast, at Zeebrugge (from Brugge aan zee, meaning 'Bruges by the Sea'). The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO.
MechelenMechelen (ˈmɛxələ(n); Malines malin; traditional English name: Mechlin) is a city and municipality in the province of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. The municipality comprises the city of Mechelen proper, some quarters at its outskirts, the hamlets of Nekkerspoel (adjacent) and Battel (a few kilometers away), as well as the villages of Walem, Heffen, Leest, Hombeek, and Muizen. The Dyle (Dijle) flows through the city, hence it is often referred to as the Dijlestad ("City on the river Dijle").
LiègeLiège (liˈɛʒ,_liˈeɪʒ , ljɛʒ, li.eːʃ; Lîdje liːtʃ; Luik lœyk; Lüttich ˈlʏtɪç) 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 from borders with the Netherlands (Maastricht is about to the north) and with Germany (Aachen is about north-east). In Liège, the Meuse meets the river Ourthe. The city is part of the sillon industriel, the former industrial backbone of Wallonia.
Flemish RegionThe Flemish Region (Vlaams Gewest, ˌvlaːms xəˈʋɛst), usually simply referred to as Flanders (Vlaanderen ˈvlaːndərə(n)), is one of the three regions of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and the Brussels-Capital Region. Covering the northern portion of the country, the Flemish Region is primarily Dutch-speaking. With an area of , it accounts for only 45% of Belgium's territory, but 57% of its population. It is one of the most densely populated regions of Europe with around .
GhentGhent (Gent ɣ̞ɛn̪t̪; Gand ɡɑ̃; Medieval English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in size only by Brussels and Antwerp. It is a port and university city. The city originally started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Leie and in the Late Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of northern Europe, with some 50,000 people in 1300.
BrusselsBrussels (Bruxelles bʁysɛl or bʁyksɛl; Brussel ˈbrʏsəl), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital of Belgium. The Brussels-Capital Region is located in the central portion of the country and is a part of both the French Community of Belgium and the Flemish Community, but is separate from the Flemish Region (within which it forms an enclave) and the Walloon Region.
Duchy of BrabantThe Duchy of Brabant was a state of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1183. It developed from the Landgraviate of Brabant and formed the heart of the historic Low Countries, part of the Burgundian Netherlands from 1430 and of the Habsburg Netherlands from 1482, until it was partitioned after the Dutch revolt. Present-day North Brabant (Noord-Brabant) was ceded to the Generality Lands of the Dutch Republic according to the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, while the reduced duchy remained part of the Habsburg Netherlands until it was conquered by French Revolutionary forces in 1794, which was recognized by treaty in 1797.
World War IWorld War I or the First World War, often abbreviated as WWI or WW1, known contemporaneously as the Great War, was a major global conflict lasting from 1914 to 1918. It was fought between two coalitions, the Allies and the Central Powers. Fighting took place throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. The first decade of the 20th century saw increasing diplomatic tension between the European great powers.
Low CountriesThe European region known as the Low Countries (de Lage Landen, les Pays-Bas), historically once also known as the Netherlands (de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in Northwestern Europe forming the lower basin of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta and consisting today of the three modern "Benelux" countries: Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands – which English and French give the same name as the traditional regional name.
