Charles Joseph Marie, 6th Duke d'Ursel (Brussels, July 3, 1848 – Strombeek-Bever, November 15, 1903), was a Belgian politician.

Family

Joseph, Count d'Ursel was the second son of Léon, 5th Duke d'Ursel (1805–1878) and his second wife, Henriette d'Harcourt. Joseph's elder brother died before inheriting the title, and Joseph became the 6th

Duke of Ursel The House of Ursel is the name of an important old Belgian noble family of German origin. The Head of the House is styled the Duke of Ursel, while other members are styled as Count/Countess d'Ursel. History The Ursel family roots are ...

on the death of his father.

Antonine de Mun, Duchess d'Ursel

In 1872, Joseph married his niece, Antonine de Mun (1849–1931), daughter of the Marquess de Mun. She was a sister of Count

Albert de Mun Adrien Albert Marie, Comte de Mun (, 28 February 18416 October 1914), was a French political figure and Social Reformer of the nineteenth century. Biography Early years Albert was born at Lumigny-Nesles-Ormeaux, Seine-et-Marne, son of the Marqu ...

and born in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. In Belgium, she became a respected artist in aristocratic circles. She studied in the atelier of Charles Joshua Chaplin and painted many portraits of family members and members of the

Belgian Royal Family Belgium is a constitutional, hereditary, and popular monarchy. The monarch is titled king or queen of the Belgians ( nl, Koning(in) der Belgen, french: Roi / Reine des Belges}, german: König(in) der Belgier) and serves as the country's ...

. A year before her death, she was honoured in her own right by the Belgian King: she was rewarded and became a Dame in the Order of Leopold. Recently, she was honoured with the production of an exclusive beer, the ''Cuvee Antonine'', and the artworks on the bottle are of the duchess.

Children

Robert, 7th Duke d'Ursel Robert-Marie-Léon 7th Duke d'Ursel (1873–1955) was a Belgian politician.État présent de la noblesse belge, Annuaire 2013, Bruxelles, 2013 p.5 Family He was the son of Marie Joseph Charles, 6th Duke d'Ursel. He married in 1898 to Sabine Fr ...

(1873-1955) * Henriette d´Ursel (1875-1934), married Count Henri de Boissieu * Pauline d´Ursel (1880-1915) * Wolfgang d´Ursel (1882-1914), Lieutenant of the

Guides A guide is a person who leads travelers, sportspeople, or tourists through unknown or unfamiliar locations. The term can also be applied to a person who leads others to more abstract goals such as knowledge or wisdom. Travel and recreation Exp ...

, died in battle, Budingen (18 August 1914).

Career

He was a provincial councilor, then governor of the province of Hainaut (1878) and mayor of Hingene (1878–1903). He was Governor of Hainaut during the strikes of 1886. Impressed by these events, he became, like his brother-in-law Albert de Mun, more aware of social issues. He wrote a pamphlet in 1895, basing his ideas on

Frederic Le Play Frederic may refer to: Places United States * Frederic, Wisconsin, a village in Polk County * Frederic Township, Michigan, a township in Crawford County ** Frederic, Michigan, an unincorporated community Other uses * Frederic (band), a Japanese r ...

. When he reached the required age, he entered the

Belgian Senate The Senate ( nl, Senaat, ; french: Sénat, ; german: Senat) is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parlia ...

. He was the president of the Senate when he died prematurely.

Styles and honours

Styles

* 1848 - 1878: Joseph, Count d´Ursel. * 1878 - 1903: ''

His Grace His Grace or Her Grace is an English Style (manner of address), style used for various high-ranking personages. It was the style used to address English monarchs until Henry VIII and the Scottish monarchs up to the Act of Union (1707), Act of Unio ...

'' the 6th Duke of Ursel and Hoboken,

Prince of Arches and Charleville Prince of Arches and Charleville is a noble title associated with Charleville-Mézières in France and now held by the Duke of Ursel in Belgium. The title originates with Charles Gonzaga (Gonzagues), Duke of Mantua, who was also Duke of Rethel, a ...

, Count of the Holy Roman Empire and of

Grobbendonk Grobbendonk () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp ( nl, Antwerpen). The municipality comprises the towns of Bouwel and Grobbendonk proper. In 2021, Grobbendonk had a total population of 11,249. The total area is 28.36&nbs ...

Honours

* Belgium: Grand Officer in the Order of Leopold. * Vatican: Knight Grand Cross in the

Order of Pope Pius IX , image = , caption = Knight's cross of the Order of Pius IX , awarded_by = , type = Papal order of knighthood , established = 1847 , motto = ''VIRTUTI ET MERITO''(Virtue and Merit) , day ...

. * Spain: Knight Grand Cross in the

Order of Charles III The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III ( es, Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III, originally es, Real y Muy Distinguida Orden de Carlos III) was establ ...

. * France: Commander in the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon, ...

. * Netherlands: Knight in the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands ( nl, De Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw, french: L'Ordre du Lion Néerlandais) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on ...