The small and densely populated nation of Belgium has played an important role in the history of Europe and other continents, especially Africa. It was a pioneering force in industry, trade, and finance during the Middle Ages, through early modern times and into the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. It introduced innovative political regimes and played a leading role in the creative arts. Yet this rich past is not widely known. This introductory history offers an accessible and rigorous overview of this small but important West-European country, synthesizing Belgium's main economic, social, political, and cultural developments from pre-Roman times until today. Today, this nation-state, born in 1830, is well-known for the rivalries between its two main language communities, and as a result is often considered a fragile or even an artificial political construct. This systematic chronological analysis of both present-day Belgium and the polities that preceded it throws fresh light on this controversial issue and demonstrates Belgium's enduring importance and influence.

Guy Vanthemsche is Professor Emeritus at the Free University Brussels, where he taught contemporary history for over three decades. He is the secretary of the Belgian Royal Historical Commission and a member of the Belgian Royal Academy of Overseas Sciences. He is the author of several books on nineteenth- and twentieth-century social, economic and political Belgian history, including Belgium and the Congo, 1885–1980 (Cambridge University Press, 2012). Roger De Peuter was a lecturer in economic and social history at Utrecht University and taught late medieval and early modern history of the Low Countries at the Free University Brussels until his retirement in 2011. His publications include articles and a book on early modern Belgian history.