On Thursday the 14th and Friday the 15th of March, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) had the pleasure to host the third edition of the EUTopia Peak Event in Legal History. This year’s CoLeCo (Connected Learning Community) focused on the topic of Connectedness, which allowed the attendees to interchange ideas relating to similar research topics and connect with each other to learn about mirrored legal developments throughout history in different jurisdictions across Europe and around the world.
We started the first day of the Peak Event in the bustling heart of Brussels: at the Mont des arts, next to the statue of King Albert I. Behind the statue the tall windows of the KBR (the Belgian Royal Library, KBR is an acronym for “Koninklijke Bibliotheek” and “Bibliothèque Royale” in Dutch and French respectively) stand high and tall, we spent the majority of the first day of the Peak Event at this beautiful location.
The KBR has an extremely rich history. Not only is it the official legal deposit of all the Belgian publishers and authors since 1966, but it has also played a prominent part in retaining old instruments and their contents. The library holds precious manuscripts, some of which date back to the 15th century when they were compiled by the dukes of Burgundy. Nowadays the collection of the KBR ranks it amongst the biggest ones in Europe.
In 2018, the newspaper hall of the KBR was renovated, as a part of a bigger project to facilitate accessibility of the library and its collections. The VUB (1969/1970) and its French-speaking mother university, the ULB (Université libre de Bruxelles, 1834) have made use of this renovation, for example by utilising the space for lectures.
Once we got settled, we listened to presentations from the Warwick and Ljubljana groups. After having lunch at the Château Moderne, right on the “Montagne de la Cour”, next to the KBR, we resumed the presentations with the French group and finally ourselves!
The session was kicked off by Cheyenne Larivière. She discussed the operation and powers of the Collateral Councils that existed in the Low Countries during the rule of the Habsburgs in the eighteenth century. They were founded by Emperor Charles V (1500-1558) in 1531. The role and organisation of the Collateral Councils and the governor provided an insight into how it was possible to govern Brussels from Vienna, separated by thousands of kilometres. In addition, the judicial institutions in the Austrian Low Countries, more specifically the Great Council of Malines and the Privy Council, were also mentioned.
Luckily for Cheyenne, there were two experts in the room within the theme of the Austrian Netherlands: Doctor Jonathan Singerton and Professor Katja Škrubej. It was very interesting to converse with them about this topic, not only because of the common love for the Habsburgs but especially to better understand the other perspectives on the Habsburg Empire. This has allowed Cheyenne to broaden her vision and therefore approach her work from different angles. The connectedness of the Peak Event resulted in an interesting and fascinating expansion of knowledge for Cheyenne.
Dribardh Rexha's presentation about the Constitution and multi-level governance in the Austrian Low Countries (1713-1790) was linked to Cheyenne's. Dribardh's piece portrayed how the Austrian low countries were ruled on a local level in the early modern period between the citizens of Brabant and the Habsburg rulers, notably how the fiscal revolt of Anneessens was crushed in 1719 by the Austrian miniter plenipotentiary Prié.
Dribardh found Mayukha Rodrigo’s presentation to be really impressive. Mayukha is a part of the Warwick delegation, his presentation was about the “Indian Indenture and its Effect on modern demographics and politics”. Dribardh was intrigued by what was formerly used to abuse labourers — a system of legal entanglement that is on the verge of turning into legal slavery. It gave him new insight into the turbulent changes required to establish a brave new world and enlightened him on the numerous dimensions of the old one.
Sultan Betelguiriev, the second delegate from the VUB gave an interactive presentation about the Ostend Company (1722-1731). Lost in the historical archives of European great powers, the topic has seen a revival or spike in interest lately. The legal debate regarding the Ostend Company gave the attendees a refreshing view from different perspectives on the political grip of the European powers on the ruler of the low countries, Charles VI (1685-1740), who also ruled the territories composing current-day Slovenia.
The presentation by Lovro Čeh Brežnik from the Ljubljana delegation gave a surprising insight into the impact of Slovenia's hop industry. The information provided a historical perspective on the influence of commercial companies. Sultan was able to find a common connection with his presentation about the Ostend Company. After the presentations, invitations were exchanged for a traditional beer tasting. Na Zdravje!
Maxime Desmet, the third delegate from Brussels gave a presentation about the reforms which happened in the Austrian Netherlands in the 18th century. The Déclaration universelle des droits de l'homme et du citoyen and other parts of French law, applicable in Belgium from 1795, were consequences of a broader European movement, initiated under Maria Theresa (1717-1780) and accelerated under Joseph II (1741-1790). This would cause the Brabant Revolution, which is sometimes seen as the precursor of the Belgian Revolution (1830-1831), as similar interest groups and ideological strandswould be involved in both conflicts.
It was fascinating to see the work from the students of Ljubljana and in which ways it connected to this topic, especially the presentation from our fellow student Vida Babič on the subject of freedom of expression and political association in Carnolia. This work showed how a territory far from Belgium functioned under the same Austrian Empire and how they themselves lived under Austrian Rule. While we would be ruled by the same monarch(s), their approaches differed between the territories as they would keep a close watch on the different political situations and acted accordingly.
The second to last VUB delegate was Manon Hofströssler, a last-year law student, who presented about Legal Status in Congo Free State and the Belgian Congo (1885-1960). Her research focused on the elite status of “immatriculé” that could be attributed to certain people in Congo Free State (1885-1908) and Belgian Congo (1908-1960). The presentation tied into comparable statuses in the French colonial empire and the Portuguese colonies in Africa to link the research to the theme of “connectedness”, which also connects to the keynote of Professor Cristina Nogueira da Silva.
In the weeks leading up to the Peak Event Professor Cristina Nogueira da Silva (Nova Lisboa) had already emailed some interesting publications that she had previously written on the legal status of indigenous people in the Portuguese Empire. Between the lunch and the presentations of the VUB Delegation Manon had the opportunity to share some thoughts with Professor Cristina Nogueira da Silva and discuss the overlapping themes of their research. After all, the Belgian "immatriculés" and the Portuguese "assimilados" theories both frame within the imperial European "standard of civilisation" which connects the colonial pursuits of different (Western-)European countries in history. In this framework, one of the things discussed, was the existance of a similar elite status in the British colonies in India.
The last delegate from the VUB was Lentl Vanhouche. She is a final-year law student. Lentl spoke about Belgian feminism in the 19th century. She gave a general framing of the legal situation of women at the time and discussed a pamphlet by Emilie Claeys (1855-1943) and reports of the international congresses that were organised by international feminists. Lentl ended by linking her topic and our theme of "connectedness”. Namely that sharing ideas and coming together from all over the world is the source of progress, then and now!
Maeva Le Bot from the French delegation gave her presentation on Women and Union Organisation in France (nineteenth-twentieth century). Lentl and Maeva's presentations had a lot of similarities, in terms of the legal status of women in that time period. This is because our Code Civil at the time was a (near) copy of the French Code Napoléon. Lentl found out in later conversations that Maeve also wanted to focus on Marie Popelin (1846-1913), a protagonist in Lentl's research! They discussed each other's topic in the free moments during the Peak Event and also decided to get in touch later to explore it further to gather more inspiration for finalising their blog posts!
The presentations of our colleague attendees from the partner universities made us realise that we all have a lot in common. Not only our historical pasts are intertwined with one another but our personal interests coincide as well.
After the presentations we went on a walk in the heart of Brussels to explore some of the main attractions of the city. This city walk did not only give us the opportunity to share our Belgian culture and history with the attendees from the partner universities but also allowed us to connect with them on a more personal level. When we had ascended the stairs of the Mont des arts, we made our way to the Palace of Charles of Lorraine, a beautiful eighteenth century palace, constructed to house the Governor-General of the Habsburg Netherlands, Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine (1712-1780).
The site of this palace came to replace the old Palace of the Coudenberg, which burned down in 1731, about three hundred years after it was constructed by request of duke Philip the Good of Burgundy to rule the Low Countries.
The walk then took us past the incredible museums on the Mont des Arts, the Belgian Constitutional Court on the Place Royale and the Court of Audit. Passing the Sablon we reached the Palace of Justice, a symbol of late 19th century grandeur. This and other areas in the capital remind us of the financial benefits extracted from colonial exploitation under Leopold II of the Belgians (1835-1909).
The Palace of Justice towers over the Marolles, a neighbourhood, mostly consisting of less wealthy layers of Brussels’ population and was consciously constructed on the Place Poelaert to send a message to the citizens to walk in line and not to risk punishment. We made our way back towards the city centre through the Porte de Namur and cut through to the Egmont Palace, which used to be a residence for the Arenberg house but is currently used by the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs. The palace holds a symbolic value due to the “Egmontpact”, a plan for reform of the Belgian state that brought down a government in the late 1970s. Our walk then took us to the Place du Trône, where we saw an equestrian statue of King Leopold II. Next to the previously mentioned statue of Leopold II, one can find the Palace of the Academies (Aedes Academiarum). Constructed between 1823 and 1828 for the son of King William I of the Netherlands, the neoclassical building houses five of Belgium's seven royal academies. This building also hosted Belgian feminist activist and first female law graduate Marie Popelin (1846-1913)'s last international women's congress!
We then walked to the "Warandepark". The park is symmetrically designed and is located between Rue Royale, Rue de la Loi, Rue Ducale and Place des Palais. The Park of Brussels is located right between the Royal Palace and the Palace of the Nation, where the Federal Parliament of Belgium can be found. The area is decorated with a large fountain, several statues, classicist entrance gates and a music kiosk. During the summer, various cultural activities take place such as musical performances, picnics and even dance classes! This is also where we took the group photo below!
On the way to the restaurant, of course we couldn't stay away from the absolute highlight of our city: the Grand-Place! The Grand-Place is the central square of Brussels. Widely known for its aesthetic and historical richness, the square is surrounded by the City Hall, the Bread House and many guild houses.
The Grand-Place (Grote Markt) is considered one of the most beautiful squares in the world (even according to French writer Victor Hugo). It has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1998! After a beautiful walk through the city centre, it was time for dinner: we went to the beautiful restaurant “Le Conteur” and enjoyed there the remainder of our evening. The restaurant was lively and cosy. After an entire day of sharing ideas, we now got to share our food! We were taken on a culinary journey through various Mediterranean delicacies that we all got to share. The staff provided entertainment and the atmosphere was great while we talked about everything we had done throughout the day. A perfect end to an instructive and beautiful day!
The second day started off early with a visit to the House of European History. Luckily for us, this museum is located in the beautifully renovated Eastman Building in leafy Parc Léopold. This beautiful 25-acre park, that was opened to the public in 1880, is situated on the site of the former Royal Zoological Garden. It features a beautiful lake with a host of wildlife (beautiful swans, for example) as well as an outdoor picnic and seating area. From myths and discoveries to the chaos and cohesion of the twentieth century, we were taken on a journey along the path of European history and were challenged to contemplate its future.
When visiting our capital, a walk through the European district is essential. We showed our guests the impressive European institutions responsible for "the decisions of Brussels" that connect us all. Our colleagues from Ljublijana found a piece of their homeland in the middle of it all, a monument dedicated to the Constitution of Slovenia. Before we went to the VUB Campus, we briefly enjoyed some gems in the heart of Europe, with the Cinquantenaire as the highlight.
We spent the rest of the day on our beautiful, green campus. First of all, we enjoyed a nice lunch in the restaurant of our university. We then reflected on the previous day and the future EUTopia highlights in the modern hall of the U-residence. We ended the Peak Event beautifully with a reception where we toasted to the success of the past two days and also said goodbye to some of our fellow participants with whom we had the opportunity to experience this wonderful event.
After completing the reception, the students decided among themselves that this could not be the end of the day! It was discussed among themselves to end the evening in the heart of our beloved Brussels. After a nice dinner, we agreed to have some Belgian delicacies: we all ate a delicious waffle! Finally, we nestled down on a terrace and our guests enjoyed the Belgian Beer Culture. There, until the early hours, we had a lot of fun together and got to know each other even better. This is the beauty of the ColeCo initiative: not only have we gained a lot of knowledge, but we have also made some great new friendships and memories! True "connectedness"!
Are you readers curious about the fruits of this peak event? Are you stimulated by the topics our delegation researched and discussed? The students are taking all the newly gathered knowledge to deliver a final product that will soon be available to read on this blog as well. Stay tuned for more!
Manon Hofströssler
Lentl Vanhouche
Cheyenne Larivière
Sultan Betelguiriev
Maxime Desmet
Dribardh Rexha
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