The Loppem Coup (french: Coup de Lophem, nl, Coup van Loppem) refers to a series of private meetings held by

King Albert I Albert I (8 April 1875 – 17 February 1934) was King of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 until his death in 1934. Born in Brussels as the fifth child and second son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders and Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-S ...

at the Castle of Loppem in

Loppem Zedelgem (; vls, Zillegem) is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality located in the Belgium, Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the villages of Aartrijke, Loppem, Veldegem and Zedelgem proper. On January 1, 2019, Zed ...

(Lophem),

West Flanders ) , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of West Flanders.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van West-Vlaanderen.svg , shield_size = , image_map ...

on 11 to 14 November 1918 about the future political order in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

after the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Convened in the aftermath of the

Armistice of 11 November 1918 The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...

in the days before the King's triumphant return to

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

which had been occupied since 1914, the Loppem meetings consisted of a series of private audiences with prominent

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the e ...

and

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politicians and notables such as

Edward Anseele Edward Anseele (26 July 1856 – 18 February 1938) was a Belgian socialist politician. Edward Anseele became active in the early Belgian socialist movement. Anseele attended the Royal Athenaeum in Ghent until the age of 17. Career Edward Anseele ...

Paul-Émile Janson Paul-Émile (Paul Emil) Janson (30 May 1872 – 3 March 1944) was a francophone Belgian liberal politician and the prime minister from 1937 to 1938. During the German occupation, he was arrested as a political prisoner and died in a German concen ...

, and

Émile Francqui Émile Francqui (; 25 June 1863 in Brussels – 1 November 1935 in Brussels) was a Belgian soldier, diplomat, business man and philanthropist. Career As an orphan, Émile Francqui was sent to a military school when he was just 15 years old. ...

who had become prominent in German-occupied Belgium. A number of sensitive political topics were discussed, including

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political stanc ...

labour rights Labor rights or workers' rights are both legal rights and human rights relating to labor relations between workers and employers. These rights are codified in national and international labor and employment law. In general, these rights influen ...

, and the status of Dutch speakers, notably in higher education. The meetings preceded the creation of a

national unity government A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other nati ...

under

Léon Delacroix Léon Frédéric Gustave Delacroix (27 December 1867 – 15 October 1929) was a Belgian statesman. Before entering politics, he was a renowned lawyer, and served as president of the Belgian Court of Cassation from 1917 to 1918. In the context of ...

on 21 November which included liberals and socialists and marked the end of nearly four decades of exclusive

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

political dominance in Belgian politics. The following day, 22 November, the King returned to Brussels and publicly announced a new legislative programme to include the introduction of universal suffrage and the creation of a Dutch-language university. The new measures appalled conservative Catholics who had been absent from the discussion at Loppem and who succeeded in delaying some of the new reforms. On learning of the consultations, some denounced it as a "

coup d'état A coup d'état (; French for 'stroke of state'), also known as a coup or overthrow, is a seizure and removal of a government and its powers. Typically, it is an illegal seizure of power by a political faction, politician, cult, rebel group, m ...

" in which the King, either at his own initiative or under socialist pressure amid the November Revolution in Germany, had overstepped his constitutional powers to favour the political left. The King was forced to issue a public letter on 10 February 1930 clarifying his account of the discussions.

See also

References

Further reading