Introduction
This week we are off to Europe as Marie Cappart of "Histoires de Familles" explains how to get started tracing those elusive ancestors in Belgium.
Marie is an Anglo Belgian family historian based in Brussels. Her specialist areas of research are centred around Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands and North France as well as the UK and USA. Being multi-lingual she is a very handy person to know!
Marie is an Anglo Belgian family historian based in Brussels. Her specialist areas of research are centred around Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands and North France as well as the UK and USA. Being multi-lingual she is a very handy person to know!
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You’re staring at a certificate. The dancing letters are written in an unsure hand: “Belgium”.
Now, where do you go? where to search next? Don't worry! We're here to help! This article will guide you through all the major sources in Belgium and hopefully put you on the right track.
First, you have to know that Belgium is a very young country, created in 1830 in the aftermath of the battle of Waterloo so not even 200 hundred years old and as a consequence it was ruled before that by various countries such as France, The Netherlands, The Austrian Netherlands and The Spanish Netherlands. You'll have to take that into consideration when undertaking your research.
Now, where do you go? where to search next? Don't worry! We're here to help! This article will guide you through all the major sources in Belgium and hopefully put you on the right track.
First, you have to know that Belgium is a very young country, created in 1830 in the aftermath of the battle of Waterloo so not even 200 hundred years old and as a consequence it was ruled before that by various countries such as France, The Netherlands, The Austrian Netherlands and The Spanish Netherlands. You'll have to take that into consideration when undertaking your research.
Another thing to take into account is the use of languages. There are three official languages in Belgium: French, Dutch and German. German was added as an official language after some territory was given to Belgium by Germany as a compensation for what happened during the 1st world war. Records can either be in French (often in the south of the country and Brussels, but not always), in Dutch (often in the north of the country and Brussels). During the French period, all records (but then again, there might be exceptions) would be in French even if the location and people concerned would speak another language.
Complicated? It may seem so but the more you'll browse through records, the more it will become a habit to come across a record in one language and then perhaps the next in another; For more recent records, Google translate might do the trick but forums and other researchers may help you understand the content of the records. Yes, Belgium is one complex country, with it's different governments, regions, communities and boroughs but it is also a captivating and interesting land!
Complicated? It may seem so but the more you'll browse through records, the more it will become a habit to come across a record in one language and then perhaps the next in another; For more recent records, Google translate might do the trick but forums and other researchers may help you understand the content of the records. Yes, Belgium is one complex country, with it's different governments, regions, communities and boroughs but it is also a captivating and interesting land!
There are different levels of archive keeping in Belgium. It's important to know them beforehand so that you don't lose a lot of time and money!
The State is responsible for the keeping of institutional archives including BMD's. The main repository in Brussels-City only holds records from state institutions (and even then, not all of them) and the majority of ancient archives. All other archives, ancient and old will be in one of the 18 repositories all over the country so you have to know where you want to head to before pushing one of the reading rooms doors.
The State is responsible for the keeping of institutional archives including BMD's. The main repository in Brussels-City only holds records from state institutions (and even then, not all of them) and the majority of ancient archives. All other archives, ancient and old will be in one of the 18 repositories all over the country so you have to know where you want to head to before pushing one of the reading rooms doors.
The main repositories for genealogy are in Anderlecht where you can consult microfilms (civil reg., and parishes) for Brussels (whole region), French-speaking Brabant, the provinces of Liege, Namur and Hainaut and even more complete collections are to be found in the repositories of Liege, Namur and Mons or Tournai for Hainaut. So for instance, if you're looking for a birth record in Namur, it would be preferable to head for Namur State Archive unless you'd like to look at a whole range of different records.
The same is true with Flanders. If you want to check a wedding record in Leuven, university town but presume that your ancestors also visited other places in Flanders, you'd be wise to go to Beveren where Leuven records can be seen along with other Vlaamse-Brabant, Oost-Vlaanderen, West-Vlaanderen and Limburg archives instead of just going to Leuven (except if your search is Leuven specific or you require an archive record that's only stored there).
The same is true with Flanders. If you want to check a wedding record in Leuven, university town but presume that your ancestors also visited other places in Flanders, you'd be wise to go to Beveren where Leuven records can be seen along with other Vlaamse-Brabant, Oost-Vlaanderen, West-Vlaanderen and Limburg archives instead of just going to Leuven (except if your search is Leuven specific or you require an archive record that's only stored there).
More and more records are available online (see below) but unfortunately they aren't all there yet, so a visit to the archives must be done when necessary.
On the State Archives website, there are two ways to search:-
Via “archives” (general keyword research) where you can pick up a region, define a town or village (take good note of the fact that the boundaries changed in 1977 with the merging of smaller villages) and directly view the records (bmd's and a complete parishes set) or
Via “persons” (linked to an ever growing database fed by hard working volunteers) where you can just ask if your “Anne Marie Maes” (equivalent of John Smith) is there.
The database is far from complete but it's a good tool to indicate a list of names, linked to places. This research can be mixed with other online research such as the LDS website but the results will never be as close as Belgium and the State Archives website.
Via “archives” (general keyword research) where you can pick up a region, define a town or village (take good note of the fact that the boundaries changed in 1977 with the merging of smaller villages) and directly view the records (bmd's and a complete parishes set) or
Via “persons” (linked to an ever growing database fed by hard working volunteers) where you can just ask if your “Anne Marie Maes” (equivalent of John Smith) is there.
The database is far from complete but it's a good tool to indicate a list of names, linked to places. This research can be mixed with other online research such as the LDS website but the results will never be as close as Belgium and the State Archives website.
The most local level, “communes” or “gemeente” in Dutch keeps its local archives and organises its treasures out of good will so you'll have “communal” archives kept in a museum, documentation centres and other places where they are kept often in a very untidy state, much to the despair of the States Archivists whose role is to gather those archives and centralise them after analysis. If you find a record at the State Archives coming from a “commune”/”gemeente”, there could well be other archives linked to that file. Always check at various levels if there could be something of interest to you.
Civil Registrations
Civil registration was established in Belgium with the French ruling of 1792.
First you have to know where your ancestor is from, or even have some rough idea of the regions for the aforesaid reasons. Unknown places can be very common in British records (a lot of census records mention “Belgium” without any further explanation) but they won't be much help, unless the surname was quite rare and from one region only.
The biggest difference that will strike you, if you’re used to research in the UK, or most specifically in England is that you’ll find much more information in Belgian certificates than in British. For birth records, you’ll find the full names (including mother's maiden name) and ages of both parents as well as occupations and address, and sometimes information about the grandparents if they recorded the birth. Don't assume that the father is not the same because the occupation doesn't match or because the mother first names sound incomplete. It may be a change of career and the mother may have a familiar name to go by, different from her official first name.
First you have to know where your ancestor is from, or even have some rough idea of the regions for the aforesaid reasons. Unknown places can be very common in British records (a lot of census records mention “Belgium” without any further explanation) but they won't be much help, unless the surname was quite rare and from one region only.
The biggest difference that will strike you, if you’re used to research in the UK, or most specifically in England is that you’ll find much more information in Belgian certificates than in British. For birth records, you’ll find the full names (including mother's maiden name) and ages of both parents as well as occupations and address, and sometimes information about the grandparents if they recorded the birth. Don't assume that the father is not the same because the occupation doesn't match or because the mother first names sound incomplete. It may be a change of career and the mother may have a familiar name to go by, different from her official first name.
Marriage records are the longest, they can sometimes be two pages long and people from abroad are always struck by how lengthy the information can be.
Death records will be shorter and will tell you of the full name, age, place of birth of the deceased as well as information on the information but, unlike in the UK, you will not find the cause of death. However, if the informant is a policeman or an official and the deceased a bit too young to die, it can be a good idea to look into the police records of the place the person died.
To look for an online DR, you have two major choices and the best is to combine them. You can either go to the State Archives Website (http://www.arch.be) or to the LDS website. On both sites, you'll have to first select the location (Province for www.arch.be , Country and then Province for www.familysearch.org)
Death records will be shorter and will tell you of the full name, age, place of birth of the deceased as well as information on the information but, unlike in the UK, you will not find the cause of death. However, if the informant is a policeman or an official and the deceased a bit too young to die, it can be a good idea to look into the police records of the place the person died.
To look for an online DR, you have two major choices and the best is to combine them. You can either go to the State Archives Website (http://www.arch.be) or to the LDS website. On both sites, you'll have to first select the location (Province for www.arch.be , Country and then Province for www.familysearch.org)
 | In general, you’ll be able to find a decennial index (sometimes with the paternal links which can ease up the work) which will give you the reference number of the record and the page. Those indexes are to be found on microfilms, whether online or in a State Archive Reading room. They don't exist for all periods and all places but if they do, they'll help you organize your research (and find, for example, siblings) |
More recent records are more difficult to obtain than in the UK. There's a 100-yrs privacy law but next of kin can usually, according to the law, ask for a contemporary record at the “commune”
If you wish to find a contemporary cousin, then you'll have to ask for authorization at the Tribunal of 1st Instance (In Dutch : Eerste Rechtbank) to cover wider research. The law is changing fast and law-makers are now more or less aware of the needs of the genealogists and do try to balance it with the need for privacy. On a day-to-day basis, it may sometimes be easier, sometimes trickier to gain access. My rule for this procedure is “knock on every door, there might be one opening at some point”.
If you wish to find a contemporary cousin, then you'll have to ask for authorization at the Tribunal of 1st Instance (In Dutch : Eerste Rechtbank) to cover wider research. The law is changing fast and law-makers are now more or less aware of the needs of the genealogists and do try to balance it with the need for privacy. On a day-to-day basis, it may sometimes be easier, sometimes trickier to gain access. My rule for this procedure is “knock on every door, there might be one opening at some point”.
Parish Records
Before statutory registration, it was the church who was registering births, marriages and deaths. Information given would pretty much depend on what the priest would write and based on what he understood, implying a lot of surnames variations. The records were mainly kept by the Catholic Church. There were some Protestants but they were a minority that often fled to protestant countries such as England or The Netherlands.
The older the record, the shorter the record! Parish records are rather short, giving immediate information only. Name of the child, name of the parents and the godparents (often grandparents or family members) in the case of a baptism, names of husband, wife and witnesses
in the case of a church wedding. Both parents will be mentioned towards the end of the 18th C, but even if they can be mentioned in some cases they are not, churches records having no general rules!
Publication of the Banns would be mentioned in the wedding record as well as sometimes the place of origin of the bride if different from the parish she marries in; The witnesses will be mentioned and could be members of the family or just friends or acquaintances if the couple is living far away from family or the marriage has met with disapproval.
in the case of a church wedding. Both parents will be mentioned towards the end of the 18th C, but even if they can be mentioned in some cases they are not, churches records having no general rules!
Publication of the Banns would be mentioned in the wedding record as well as sometimes the place of origin of the bride if different from the parish she marries in; The witnesses will be mentioned and could be members of the family or just friends or acquaintances if the couple is living far away from family or the marriage has met with disapproval.
You could also be in for a change of language. The older you get Latin will crop up and sometimes you’ll encounter ancient Dutch.
It can also be very useful to broaden the research to other places in the area and to use variations of names searched as there could have been “misspelling”. The handwriting will depend on the priest but when you get to the 17th century you'll notice a big change in the style and a palaeographic handbook might come handy.
When you have gone through the civil and parish records that you want, you might find interesting to browse through other kind of records that can give you great insight your ancestors lives.
It can also be very useful to broaden the research to other places in the area and to use variations of names searched as there could have been “misspelling”. The handwriting will depend on the priest but when you get to the 17th century you'll notice a big change in the style and a palaeographic handbook might come handy.
When you have gone through the civil and parish records that you want, you might find interesting to browse through other kind of records that can give you great insight your ancestors lives.
Other Sources
Now, civil registrations and parish records aren't the only sources one can use when researching our family history in Belgium. There are many others sources which can prove very useful especially if combined with other information. Those main alternative sources are population registers, military records, war and press records. Here are the basic things to know about them:-
Population Registers
Perhaps you want to find out more about your ancestors in Belgium, where they lived, what they did for a living etc. The kind of information you'd find in censuses in England
I, like many others, use the population registers as substitute for censuses. There are censuses but they aren't really used as a genealogical tool and because of politic-linguistical reasons (too difficult to explain here) aren't easily accessible. Population Registers are kept at the place of residence. Access can be more or less easily gained depending on the period and the goodwill of the “commune”/”gemeente”.
Population Registers
Perhaps you want to find out more about your ancestors in Belgium, where they lived, what they did for a living etc. The kind of information you'd find in censuses in England
I, like many others, use the population registers as substitute for censuses. There are censuses but they aren't really used as a genealogical tool and because of politic-linguistical reasons (too difficult to explain here) aren't easily accessible. Population Registers are kept at the place of residence. Access can be more or less easily gained depending on the period and the goodwill of the “commune”/”gemeente”.
Military Records
Military records of soldiers are kept at the Documentation Centre of the Army Museum at the Cinquantenaire in the heart of the European Institutions Quarters. There you'll find service records, information on medals etc. An 'Officers' database is in progress and available online but for privates and other soldiers, you can only rely on the paper indexes (not indexed from L to N). Once you have the record reference, you can submit a viewing request and the record will be brought to the assigned desk in about 30 minutes.
 | For military records of soldiers born after 1890, the records are still with the army and kept at a military base. To gain access, you must apply in writing and be very patient as the waiting time can be several months. Once you have a contact, you can go onsite by appointment or assign someone to go for you. |
Be aware, the military base is not easily accessible by public transport and an ID will be requested at the entrance.
Belgium was neutral from its independence in 1830 until WW1. This neutrality was broken by the entry of the United Kingdom to the conflict when they subsequently went to Belgium’s aid when it was invaded in August 1914. The State Archives in Brussels hold various interesting archives concerning WWI in the “Archives de Guerre” series. For WWII, it might be better to contact the CEGESOMA, Study centre for Wars and Societies which boasts an impressive set of archives and will most probably answer your questions.
Here you will also find PoW files and information about the deportation camps. Talking about deportation camps, the fort of Breendonck which was used during the second world war to deport Jews, gypsies and political prisoners to Germany is a “must see”.
Wills
Wills can be a very interesting source of information as they give an insight into the social and economic lives of our ancestors but to consult a will, you'll have to know the name of the solicitor as well as the place and, roughly, the date the will was “officialised”. Apart from in very recent times, there's no central index such as PCC so the only solution will be to check solicitor by solicitor in a certain time frame to look out for wills - without of course any guarantee of finding something relevant to your family history. This is easy to do in a small village with only one solicitor, more difficult in big towns such as Antwerp, Brussels and Ghent. Solicitor’s archives will be kept at the State Archives repository of the region where they worked (Brussels-→Anderlecht, St Niklaas-→Beveren…) so be sure of the location you're looking for as there could be some places bearing very similar names.
An easier route will be to locate a wedding agreement between bride and bridegroom. This kind of information will be given in the wedding record with the name of the solicitor and date/place of contract.
An easier route will be to locate a wedding agreement between bride and bridegroom. This kind of information will be given in the wedding record with the name of the solicitor and date/place of contract.
Press
The newspapers and press archives are kept by the Royal Library. Most of them are on microfilms but the main titles have been digitalized very recently and you can make an appointment with the Royal Library to book time on one of the computers. Newspapers are also coming online at belgica.press
The Royal Library of Belgium is also a great tool as it holds all publications in Belgium and many books covering other locations, famous families, companies etc. Do not miss the cafeteria on the roof, it's a sight you don't want to miss and a nice break from a good work session.
The Royal Library of Belgium is also a great tool as it holds all publications in Belgium and many books covering other locations, famous families, companies etc. Do not miss the cafeteria on the roof, it's a sight you don't want to miss and a nice break from a good work session.
Aliens, Foreigners & Nationality
Starting in 1850, every foreigner had to be registered with the local police at the location of their residence, even if the stay in Belgium was short. Now, it doesn't mean that all files have been kept as some of them have been destroyed but there could be “the” file you are looking for and it often gives a lot of information on family members, addresses, occupations sometimes even political or religious. Sometimes a picture could be included so the possibility for emotional moments for the lucky ones! The records are kept at the general State Archive Repository, Ruysbroek street in Brussels and it's best to make contact with staff first if you want to check for a record.
House History
If you want to find out more about the history of a house, the best thing is to contact, or even better go to, the “commune” where the house is located and asks for the archives of the “cadastre”
Once you are familiar with the use and customs of Belgian archives, it will become much easier to work through it, I promise you! If it still remains unclear, I'll be more than happy to help you.
Once you are familiar with the use and customs of Belgian archives, it will become much easier to work through it, I promise you! If it still remains unclear, I'll be more than happy to help you.
Conclusion
Of course, this article could be full of lots more information as family history possibilities are endless. It's never over and we surely don't want it to be, don't we?, but with this overview of the major places to visit and records to search, I hope you'll be able to kick-start your research.
I wish you a pleasant time looking for those long searched-for Belgian ancestors and am available should you have any other questions or are in need of more help!
Marie
I wish you a pleasant time looking for those long searched-for Belgian ancestors and am available should you have any other questions or are in need of more help!
Marie
Links
Marie Cappart http://www.histoires-de-familles.org
Twitter https://twitter.com/histfamilles
Resources
http://www.arch.be
http://www.arch.be/index.php?l=en&m=about-the-institution&r=our-reading-rooms
http://www.kbr.be (Royal Library)
http://www.cegesoma.be
http://www.warvictims.fgov.be
Two Family History Societies
http://wwww.familiekunde.be (Dutch-speaking part)
http://www.geniwal.eu (French-Speaking part)
Twitter https://twitter.com/histfamilles
Resources
http://www.arch.be
http://www.arch.be/index.php?l=en&m=about-the-institution&r=our-reading-rooms
http://www.kbr.be (Royal Library)
http://www.cegesoma.be
http://www.warvictims.fgov.be
Two Family History Societies
http://wwww.familiekunde.be (Dutch-speaking part)
http://www.geniwal.eu (French-Speaking part)
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