Figure 1.--This photograph shows a children's hospitl in Dutch refugee camp located at Gouda, a city in the southern Netherlands. Notice the basic faciities. Source: Bain News Service. Library of Congress.

As a result of Belgium's geography, those Belgians who decided to flee the Germans had three basic choices. They could flee north or south. They could move north to the Netherlands or south to France. Or a smaller but not inconsequential number could move west--board ships to Britain. None of this was planned. Large numbers of Belgians fled north to the Netherlands. Others fled south to France. The Dutch were neutral and there was hope that the Germans would not invade them as well. France was the real German target, but as they unlike Belgium had a large army, there was hope the French could stop the Germans. The decision was primary based in which frontier was the closest. About 1 million Belgians sough refuge in the Netherlands. Getting relief supples to France for the refugees there was fairly simple. The neutral Netherlands was much more complicated. Most of the civilians in the Netherlands gradually returned to Belgium even though it was occupied by the Germans. About 100,000 Belgians remained in The Netherlands throughout the War. Some had the resources to support themselves. The Dutch Government opened refuge camps for those who could not support themselves. They were mostly set up in the south close to the border. Large numbers of Belgians sought refugee in France. There were a variety of facilities established. We nore a religious group which set up schools and other faciluties in various French towns such as a colony at Campeaux . Other Belgians were cared for in the small southwestern corner of the country where the Belgian Army and the British BEF stopped the Germans. A smller group of Belgians reached Britain by ship, some 250,000 refugees. This was the largest single influx of pople in Britain's history. The British were totly unprepared. Suddenly Belgians began arriving immeiately after the German invasion. They landed in ports all along the Kentish coast (southeast England). And for several months they kept coming, landing almost daily at Dover, Folkestone, Grimsby, Harwich, Hull, Margate, and Tilbury. Folkestone was a bustling port, but no one there was prepared when 16,000 Belgian refugees arived in one single day (October 14, 1914. One very special group of refugees was the children of Belgian immigrants in America. They came over expecting to bring their wives and/or their children over after becoming established. The outbreak of the war left children and wives separated. A Detroit priest of Belgian origins who was actively working with Belgian relief returned to Belgium to bring the children to America and reunite the families.

The Netherlands

Large numbers of Belgians fled north to the Netherlands. Others fled south to France. The Dutch were neutral and there was hope that the Germans would not invade them as well. France was the real German target, but as they unlike Belgium had a large army, there was hope the French could stop the Germans. The decision was primary based in which frontier was the closest. About 1 million Belgians sought refuge in the Netherlands. Getting relief supples to France for the refugees there was fairly simple. The neutral Netherlands was much more complicated. Most of the civilians in the Netherlands gradually returned to Belgium even though it was occupied by the Germans. About 100,000 Belgians remained in The Netherlands throughout the War. Some had the resources to support themselves. The Dutch Government opened refuge camps for those who could not support themselves. They were mostly set up in the south close to the border. And eventually arrangements were made to get American relief supplies into the Netherlands.

France

Large numbers of Belgians sought refugee in France. The German Army was not mechanized. The Germans invaded Belgium on their feet. Units while still in Germany were moved to staging areas near the Belgian border by rail. Once the invasion began, the troops moved mostly on their feet. Calvalry uniys soon proved too vulnerable to modern weaponry. supllies and artillery were moved by horsepower. The American Army would introduce trucks, but the Germans had few trucks. As a result, the German advance was largely limited to the speed of marching troops under fire. This mean that Belgians unless they lived near the German border had time to escape. Unlike the Germans they had access to the rail system to an extent. Farmers hcould use horse drawn carts. Or of they were healthy enough they could move on their feet. The long border with France meant that large numbers of Belgian civilians streamed south to France ahead of the German Army. One young refugee wrote, "On Friday morning, we're leaving for Laon. This is some trip that we're taking! It seems to me that it's at the far end of France, and it's best to get on with it: no way of turning back now. The weather is good. The roads are very crowded, and it's difficult to advance. It's a never-ending stream; so far, that all you can see are uninterrupted masses of people fleeing." [Norga] The Belgian Government was transferred to Sainte-Adresse near the port of Le Havre. Here they set up charitable organisations to id the refugees in France. The Belgian Government kept their citizens informed through notices disseminated through consulates, local authorities, and charitable organisations. The refugees cwere able to obtain funds for their savings at the Caisse d'�pargne by requests through the consul or the mayor where they were living. The French agreed to accept Belgian currency at all French banks. Otherwise the paper cirrency of an occupied contry may have been worthless. The Belgian refugees in France were some of the luckier refugees of the War. America although not yet in the war provided relief supplies and France was ine of the few places that these supplies could easily reach the refugees. There were a variety of facilities established. We nore a religious group which set up schools and other faciluties in various French towns such as a colony at Campeaux . American authoress Edith Wharton was in France during the War. She wrote about the French. [Wharton] Like most American acadenic and literary figures, she was sympthetic to the Allies. Because of her fame and influential connections. the French Government, primarily through Walter Berry (president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Paris), she was given qccess to the front. Throughout the War she worked in a range og charitable efforts to aid refugees, bith Belgian and French. She helped set up workrooms for unemployed Frenchwomen, organizing concerts in part to provide work for musicians, opened tuberculosis hospitals and founded the American Hostels for Belgian refugees. She edited the The Book of the Homeless (1916). This include writings, art, erotica and musical scores by important European artist.

Unoccupied Belgium

The Belgian Army with British help managed to hold onto a small corner of the country. Some Belgians were cared for in the small southwestern corner of the country where the Belgian Army and the British BEF stopped the Germans. We are not sure just how many refugees were taken in by the Belgians in this small area. We suspect that most of the refugees were moved to more secure areas further south.

Britain

A smller group of Belgians reached Britain by ship, some 250,000 refugees. Britain did not offer sanctuary, the Belgians just came and were not turned bck. This was the largest single influx of pople in Britain's history. The British were totly unprepared. Suddenly Belgians began arriving immeiately after the German invasion. They landed in ports all along the Kentish coast (southeast England). And for several months they kept coming, landing almost daily at Dover, Folkestone, Grimsby, Harwich, Hull, Margate, and Tilbury. Folkestone was a bustling port, but no one there was prepared when 16,000 Belgian refugees arived in one single day (October 14, 1914. The British response was much more orgnizd than the Dutch resppnse. The Belgiansere now fighting allies, so the British made an important to assist them. The Britush did not set up camps, but purpose-built villages they had their own schools, newspapers, shops, hospitals, churches, and even prisons and police. These were given the status of Belgian territory administered by the Belgian government. They people even used Belgian currency. Few communities did notparticipate in this effort. Families across the country took them in and this included all four nations (England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. One historian reports, "A group of Belgians detraining in Northampton were met by 'kind-hearted ladies [who] were ready at the station with steaming coffee, buns and sweets'. Such refugees arriving in the English Midlands 'brought home to us the tragedy of their martyred country'." [Purseigle] The refugees were initially greeted with open arms by the British people. The government fount the refugee issue ueful. Their desperate plight ptomoted anti-German feeling and generate public support for the War which unlike Workd war II came as sudden surprise to the Bitish people. Another source reports that "Contact with the Belgian refugees acted as a good reminder of why the First World War was a war worth fighting. [Sheffield]. The press widely reported the refugee plight on the ccontinent. One expert describes ghow "There was a jubilant feeling of going to get 'the Bosche' and the 'plucky little Belgians' fitted into that narrative. It was often the case that if you didn't have a refugee staying with you, you knew someone who did. They were treated rather like pets." [Declercq] The British like the Americans were moved at the plight of the Belgians. And this when the refuges showed up, their was an outpooring of sympathy and willingness to help them.

America

Americans were moved by the plight of the Belgians. It primarily responsed with relief supplies to assist the starving Belgians, both those remaining in Belgium and the refugees who fled to othr countries such as France. France es basically self sufficent in food production, but the conscription of men in rural areas affected food production. France was not able to feed the massive number of refugees which flooded into the country. America stepped in with food shipments for the refugees even before entering the War. This developed into a massive American effort to assist not only Belgian refuees, but eventually refugees and starving people throughout Europe and the Mideast. One very special group of Belgian refugees which America also took in was the children of Belgian immigrants in America. They came over expecting to bring their wives and/or their children over after becoming established. The outbreak of the war left children and wives separated. A Detroit priest of Belgian origins who was actively working with Belgian relief returned to Belgium to bring the children to America and reunite the families. Ameica was still open to European migration, but the War resulted in steamship lines curtailing voyages, bith because of the U-boat threat and the war-time need for shipping. In addition the War closed off many ports. There no longer was ways for most Central Europeans to get to the ports. And Government conscriotion meant that young men could not emigrate even if they could. In the case of Belhium, because of the German occupation and allied embargo, emigration was essentially impossible.

Sources

Declercq, Christophe. Director, Online Centre for Research on Belgian Refugees.

Norga, Ir�ne. War diary (August 23, 1914). At the time she was crossing Hainaut on her flight to France, accompanied by her cousin Ir�ne and her parents.

Purseigle, Pierre. The Reception of Belgian Refugees in Europe: A Litmus Test of Wartime Social Mobilisation.

Sheffield, Gary. Professor of War Studies at the University of Wolverhampton.

Warton,Edith. "Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belfort." A series if articles published in american newspapers.

Created: 9:59 AM 1/17/2016
Last updated: 10:53 AM 2/23/2018