POPULATION 10,274,595
ROMAN CATHOLIC 85.6 percent
MUSLIM 3 percent
ANGLICAN AND OTHER PROTESTANT 1.7 percent
ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN 0.3 percent
JEWISH 0.1 percent
NONAFFILIATED AND OTHER 9.3 percent

Country Overview

Introduction

The Kingdom of Belgium is a small European state bordered on the northeast by the Netherlands, on the east by Germany and Luxembourg, on the south and west by France, and on the northwest by the North Sea. It has been predominantly Roman Catholic since the eighth century.

The country is divided into three regions: Flanders (5.9 million inhabitants), Wallonia (3.3 million inhabitants), and Brussels (960,000 inhabitants). It is also divided into three communities: Dutch-speaking Flanders, the French-speaking community in Wallonia and Brussels, and the German-speaking community in Wallonia near the German border.

During the sixteenth century, at the time of the Protestant Reformation, Luther and Calvin had a substantial following in some villages and particularly in the major cities, such as Ghent and Antwerp. The Spanish emperors...