After 400 years of domination by various European nations, Luxembourg was granted the status of Grand Duchy by the Congress of Vienna on 9. June 1815. Although Luxembourg considers 1835 (Treaty of London) to be its year of independence, it was not granted political autonomy until 1839 under King William I of the Netherlands, who also was the Grand Duke of Luxembourg. In 1867, Luxembourg was recognized as independent and guaranteed perpetual neutrality.
GDP (2006): $33,87 billion (purchasing power parity); $34,53 billion (official exchange rate).
Currency: euro (€). Exchange rate (8. August 2007): €1 = $1,3736.
Annual growth rate (2006): 6,2%.
Per capita income (2006): $71 400.
Inflation rate (2006): 2,6%.
Natural resources: Iron ore, timber.
Agriculture (2005: 0,4% of GDP): Dairy, wine, forestry, animal feed crops. Arable land - 24%; forested land - 21%.
Services (2005: 83,3% of GDP): Banking and financial services predominate.
Area: 2 586 sq. km.
Cities: Capital - Luxembourg City (pop. 83 800). Other cities - Esch-sur-Alzette (pop. 29 100), Differdange (pop. 20 100), Dudelange (pop. 18 000). (2007 figures from STATEC.)
Terrain: Continuation of Belgian Ardennes in the north, heavily forested and slightly mountainous; extension of French Lorraine plateau in the south, with open, rolling countryside.
Climate: Modified continental, rainy, with mild summers and moderate snowfall in winter.
Official Languages of Belgium are French, Dutch and German. French (Wallon) is used by 33% of population. Flemish, the local variant of Dutch, is used by more than 60% of the population, and is spoken in the northern part of the country. The languages learned at school are officially labeled French and Dutch.
Fleming Belgians will often prefer to answer visitors in English rather than French, even if the visitor’s French is good. It is customary to bring flowers or a small present for the hostess, especially if invited for a meal.
Belgian culture respects cultural specificities of the main cultural groups: the Flemings (Flemish people from Flanders) and the French speaking Valons (from Brussels and Wa
Government system of Belgium is Constitutional Monarchy. Head of State and also main representative is a King of Belgium. However, true power lies in the hands of Prime Minister appointed by the King, Prime Minister is also head of the main political party in the country. Government is formed by representatives Valons and Flemings. Parliament consist of two Houses : Senate (181 members) and the House of Representatives (212 members). Belgian law is based on Civil Code supplemented by specific laws.
800 000 BC. – the first pugs of people occured in the territory of today Belgium
500 BC – Celtic tribes settled here, from their name – lat. Belgae – comes contemporary name of the state and people
150 BC – the first coins were made
57 BC – Julius Caesar and his army occupied the land of Belgae – new Roma province Gallia Belgica.
