''Remplacement militaire'' ( French; ) was a system of

military conscription Conscription, also known as the draft in the United States and Israel, is the practice in which the compulsory enlistment in a national service, mainly a military service, is enforced by law. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it conti ...

which existed in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

in the 19th century under which citizens selected for military service by lot were entitled to pay a sum of money, originally enough to pay a substitute to volunteer to serve in their place, to exempt them from being required to serve in the military personally. Although considered an important civic liberty, the policy favoured the rich and was detrimental to military efficiency. It was abolished in Belgium in 1913 and replaced by a system of "personal military service" (''service militaire personnel''): a form of universal conscription.

History

Policy

The Belgian army relied on both voluntary enlistment and, from 1902, also on recruitment by lot in order to keep its numbers constant. Both the Liberals and

Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

advocated ''Remplacement'' as a way of privileging the aristocratic and bourgeois classes and were united in defending it against reformers.

Abolition

The Belgian response to the

Franco-Prussian War The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the War of 1870, was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the North German Confederation led by the Kingdom of Prussia. Lasting from 19 July 1870 to 28 Janua ...

of 1870-1 highlighted the inadequacies of the country's military to defend its borders. The system of ''remplacement'' was viewed as an anachronism, constituting an unfair privilege for the wealthy and reducing the quality of the army's recruits. King Leopold II was particularly keen that the system be abolished and used his political influence to try to persuade politicians to support reform. Major-General Guillaume, Minister of War and a former aide de camp to the king, pushed for the government to adopt a policy of personal military service, and resigned from the cabinet on 10 December 1872 when it would not.Albert Duchesne, "Guillaume (Gustave)", ''

Biographie Nationale de Belgique The ''Biographie nationale de Belgique'' (; ) is a biographical dictionary of Belgium. It was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in 44 volumes between 1866 and 1986. A continuation series, entitled the ''Nouvelle Biographie Nationale'' (, ...

''
vol. 38
(Brussels, 1973), 289-293. With both major political factions united in favour of ''Remplacement'', and only the Belgian Workers' Party in favour, reform was delayed. The system was finally abolished in 1909, to be replaced by system whereby one son per family would be eligible for conscription into the army. In 1913, Albert I finally managed to have a bill passed through parliament instituting compulsory conscription for all adult males over the age of 20.

References

{{Reflist Conscription in France Conscription in Belgium Military history of Belgium 19th century in Belgium 1909 disestablishments in Belgium Draft evasion

History

Policy

Abolition

See also

References