Belgian Monarch. (Roi des Belges, Koning der Belgen, König der Belgier) Born Albert Léopold Clément Marie Meinrad in Brussels, Belgium, the son of Philippe Eugène de Belgique, Comte de Flandre and Marie Luise Alexandrine Karoline Prinzessin von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. The 1869 death of his cousin and the 1891 death of his elder brother made him the heir to the Belgian throne. He married Elisabeth Gabriele Herzogin in Bayern in October 1900 in Munich, Bavaria. The couple had three children. At the onset of the First World War, Belgium declared its neutrality, Germany, however, demanded that Belgium allow German forces cross its territory so that they could gain access to French borders. Albert resisted the demand and took personal charge of his forces. Germany invaded Belgium in August 1914, overrunning the country's limited forces. The king moved the Belgian government to Le Havre, though he established himself in De Panne and then in Kasteel De Moeren. Attempts to negotiate a peace were unsuccessful and in fall 1918, he successfully commanded the Belgian army during the Courtrai offensive, and re-entered Brussels in November. He and his government spent the next ten years in national reconstruction. In 1925, he founded Africa's first national park, now known as Virunga National Park in what was then the Belgian Congo. A skilled mountineer, he died during a solo ascent on the Roche du Vieux Bon Dieu at Marche-les-Dames near Namur. He was succeeded by his son, Leopold III.

Belgian Monarch. (Roi des Belges, Koning der Belgen, König der Belgier) Born Albert Léopold Clément Marie Meinrad in Brussels, Belgium, the son of Philippe Eugène de Belgique, Comte de Flandre and Marie Luise Alexandrine Karoline Prinzessin von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. The 1869 death of his cousin and the 1891 death of his elder brother made him the heir to the Belgian throne. He married Elisabeth Gabriele Herzogin in Bayern in October 1900 in Munich, Bavaria. The couple had three children. At the onset of the First World War, Belgium declared its neutrality, Germany, however, demanded that Belgium allow German forces cross its territory so that they could gain access to French borders. Albert resisted the demand and took personal charge of his forces. Germany invaded Belgium in August 1914, overrunning the country's limited forces. The king moved the Belgian government to Le Havre, though he established himself in De Panne and then in Kasteel De Moeren. Attempts to negotiate a peace were unsuccessful and in fall 1918, he successfully commanded the Belgian army during the Courtrai offensive, and re-entered Brussels in November. He and his government spent the next ten years in national reconstruction. In 1925, he founded Africa's first national park, now known as Virunga National Park in what was then the Belgian Congo. A skilled mountineer, he died during a solo ascent on the Roche du Vieux Bon Dieu at Marche-les-Dames near Namur. He was succeeded by his son, Leopold III.

Bio by: Iola