Albert Bruno Amédée Lantonnois van Rode (19 June 1852 – 2 April 1934) was a

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

Lieutenant General descendant from an aristocratic family. He was Vice-Governor General of the Congo Free State and later commanded a division during

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 ...

Early years

Lantonnois van Rode was born in Mons on 19 June 1852, son of Lambert Lantonnois and Emilie Hubertine Ghislaine van Rode de Schellebrouck. He entered the Military Academy in April 1870, and was appointed second lieutenant on 8 April 1872. On 10 December 1877 he was appointed to the first regiment of guides. He was commander of the 8th Line Regiment (1903–1905) and of the 1st Regiment of Grenadiers (1905–1908). Lantonnois was commander of the West Flanders Province from 1908 to 1909.

Congo

In November 1905 Lantonnois was stationed as Vice-Governor General of the Congo at Boma, the main port and capital of the colony. In July 1906 he sent a troop of 20 soldier to Kingoye on the border with the

French Congo The French Congo (french: Congo français) or Middle Congo (french: Moyen-Congo) was a French colony which at one time comprised the present-day area of the Republic of the Congo and parts of Gabon, and the Central African Republic. In 1910, ...

to establish Belgian authority. The Baptist Missionary Society (BMS) mission at Yakusu, just below the Stanley Falls, was at first on good terms with the authorities. However, as their influence grew there were rumours that the British planned to take over the region. In January 1907 the Lantonnois ordered the district commissioner of the Orientale Province to take vigorous measures to counter the influence of the Protestants. In June 1908 Lantonnois received a request from Colonel Jan Oomen for permission to be allowed to build a mission at

Basankusu Basankusu is a town in Équateur Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the main town and administrative centre of the Basankusu Territory. In 2004, it had an estimated population of 23,764. It has a gravel airstrip, covered and open ma ...

. Lantonnois forwarded Oomen's request to the Colonial Ministry in Brussels, where there was a long delay before permission was obtained. In November 1909 Lantonnois had to deal with a crisis when a British force from

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The sou ...

moved into the Mfumbiro region to the north of

Lake Kivu Lake Kivu is one of the African Great Lakes. It lies on the border between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, and is in the Albertine Rift, the western branch of the East African Rift. Lake Kivu empties into the Ruzizi River, whic ...

. He moved troops into the region and asked permission to attack, which was refused by the Belgian authorities, who correctly considered that arbitration would be a more profitable approach.

Later career

Lantonnois was Inspector-General of the Infantry from 1913 to 1914. He was Commander of the 6th Army Division from 1914 until January 1915. He was appointed Lieutenant-General of the Infantry. Lantonnois van Rode married Marie Thérèse Joséphine Goethals, and they had three children. He died at

Ixelles (French, ) or ( Dutch, ), is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located to the south-east of Brussels' city centre, it is geographically bisected by the City of Brussels. It is also bordered by the munic ...

on 2 April 1934.

Honours

* : ** Grand Officer Order of Leopold ** Grand Officer Order of the Crown ** War Cross * : Knight of the

Order of the African Star The Order of the African Star ( nl, Orde van de Afrikaanse Ster; french: Ordre de l'Étoile africaine) was established by Leopold II of Belgium on 30 December 1888, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State, and was awarded for services t ...

References

Sources

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lantonnois Van Rode, Albert 1852 births 1934 deaths Belgian Army generals of World War I Congo Free State officials People from Mons Commandeurs of the Légion d'honneur Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) Grand Officers of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Royal Military Academy (Belgium) alumni