The setting is splendid, with the Army Museum forming one wing of the pair that fan out from the triumphal arch in the Pare de Cinquantenaire which was built to celebrate the first fifty years (1830-1880) of Belgian Independence. The museum is approached from the city centre via the Rue de la Loi, a busy thoroughfare leading through a commercial quarter and past the European Communities Berlaimont building - "Schuman" is the nearest metro station from which it is a short walk through the park to the museum. The army of today is everywhere in evidence as the Ecole Militaire is next to the park and the cadets use its sports facilities.
The museum's collection is an extensive one but, like others of its kind, suffers from insufficient attention to presentation; the visitor needs to have a firm grasp of military history and of Belgium's involvement in wars at home and abroad to enjoy the exhibits to the full. A comparatively modest outlay in maps, chronologies and explanatory material would make such an improvement to onets enjoyment of the individual exhibitis.
And what a range of exhibits there are! The wargamer and figure modeller will get particular pleasure from the rooms devoted to the Austrian and French Revolution era, the Revolution of 1830, and period from 1831 to 1914. Here are numerous uniforms, portraits, decorations and weapons. These rooms are complemented by a large collection illustrating technical changes in land warfare from the 18th century to the present.
The First World War, in which the Belgium Army commanded by King Albert held out along the Yser river in Flanders for four long years whilst the Germans occupied the rest of the country, naturally occupies a major part of the museum. One room, very crowded and particularly lacking in descriptive material, contains German relics, especially artillery pieces, whilst another has show-cases for each of Belgium's allies. Another world is evoked by the uniforms of the armies of Estonia, Latvia and the Ukraine, as it is by the posters which called Europeans, Americans and Asians to their nations' service. There are two tanks in this section, one the British vehicle 4093. But the Salle Roi Albert, with its equestrian statue of the soldier-king, makes the most pleasing impact. Here the items are arranged more spaciously in illustrating Belgium's part in the Great War.
One large hall is given over to the Second World War. In this struggle Belgium was, of course, quickly defeated and occupied but one showcase movingly recalls the Belgian Resistance Movement which performed so gallantly despite the summary executions of its captured members. We are reminded, too, of the forts which made up Belgium's equivalent of the Maginot Line. There is a model of the fort de Breendonk and photos of fort de Boncelles whose commander, Numa Charlier, defied the Germans in May 1940 with the words "Me rendre? Jamais!"
There is one further surprise for the visitor. Beyond the small door marked "Panorama de L'Yser" there is a huge glass and steel hall which does indeed house the fast-deteriorating painting of that river action but also, and more excitingly, some forty aircraft of the war and peacetime years. These are being restored by volunteers and are, at present, only on show on Saturdays. I glimpsed numerous Great War biplanes but also a Spitfire of 1942, a Meteor, Hunter and Thunderjet.
An extensive library and archives section complete this fascinating museum which is open daily, except Fridays and public holidays, throughout the year. Admission is free, postcards are available and there is an illustrated booklet "Quand les canons se taisent" (25 Belgian francs).
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© Copyright 1976 by Donald Featherstone.
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