On This Day

Great Britain, France, Prussia, Austria and Russia recognize Belgium

Leopold I (Leopold George Christian Frederick; 16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first king of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865. The youngest son of...

Leopold I (Leopold George Christian Frederick; 16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first king of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865.

The youngest son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Leopold took a commission in the Imperial Russian Army and fought against Napoleon after French troops overran Saxe-Coburg during the Napoleonic Wars. After Napoleon's defeat, Leopold moved to the United Kingdom, where in 1816 he married Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of the British Prince Regent (later George IV). Leopold and Charlotte's marriage was happy, but it ended after a year and a half when Charlotte died after delivering a stillborn son.

Historical Significance

Leopold I (Leopold George Christian Frederick; 16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first king of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865.

Events Before

  1. Robert Peel introduces the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 into Parliament to establish a unified police force for London,

    Robert Peel introduces the Metropolitan Police Act 1829 into Parliament to establish a unified police force for London, the city's first modern police force

  2. William Austin Burt patents America's first typewriter, the typographer

    The typographer was an early typewriter invented by William Austin Burt. Intended to aid in office work, the machine worked by using a lever to press characters onto paper one at a time.

  3. First units of the London Metropolitan Police appear on the streets of the British capital, the city's first modern poli

    First units of the London Metropolitan Police appear on the streets of the British capital, the city's first modern police force

  4. German composer Fanny Mendelssohn (23) weds German artist Wilhelm Hensel (35), until her death in 1847 [1]

    German composer Fanny Mendelssohn (23) weds German artist Wilhelm Hensel (35), until her death in 1847 [1]

  5. Britain outlaws "suttee" in India, a Hindu practice where a widow burns herself to death on her husband's funeral pyre

    Sati or suttee is a chiefly historical Hindu practice in which a widow burns alive on her deceased husband's funeral pyre, either voluntarily, by coercion, or by a perception of the lack of...

Events After

  1. Slave plantation owner Charles Farquharson begins his diary at Prospect Hill Plantation, Watlings Island (San Salvador),

    Slave plantation owner Charles Farquharson begins his diary at Prospect Hill Plantation, Watlings Island (San Salvador), the only plantation diary to survive from the Bahamas (ends Dec 1832) [1]

  2. Soldier and future Confederate General Robert E. Lee (24) marries Mary Custis (22) at Arlington House, Arlington Virgini

    Soldier and future Confederate General Robert E. Lee (24) marries Mary Custis (22) at Arlington House, Arlington Virginia

  3. "America (My Country 'Tis of Thee)" with lyrics by Samuel Francis Smith has its first public performance at Park Street

    "America (My Country 'Tis of Thee)" with lyrics by Samuel Francis Smith has its first public performance at Park Street Church in Boston, Massachusetts

  4. Ioannis Kapodistrias, the first Head of State of modern Greece, is assassinated in Nafplion

    Count Ioannis Antoniou Kapodistrias, sometimes anglicized as John Capodistrias, was a Greek statesman who was one of the most distinguished politicians and diplomats of 19th-century...

  5. Michael Faraday demonstrates his dynamo invention, an electric generator

    Michael Faraday (22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English chemist and physicist who contributed to the study of electrochemistry and electromagnetism.

More from the 1830s

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened on December 20, 1830?
Leopold I (Leopold George Christian Frederick; 16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first king of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865. The youngest son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Leopold took a commission in the Imperial Russian Army and fought against Napoleon after French troops overran Saxe-Coburg during the Napoleonic Wars. After Napoleon's defeat, Leopold moved to the United Kingdom, where in 1816 he married Princess Charlotte of Wales, the only child of the British Prince Regent (later George IV).
Why is Great Britain, France, Prussia, Austria and Russia recognize Belgium significant?
Leopold I (Leopold George Christian Frederick; 16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first king of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865.

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