The Little Van Gogh
The Little Renoir
The Little Monet
The Little Degas
The Little Klimt
The Little Turner
The Little Bruegel
The Little Van Eyck
The Little Rubens
The Little Cézanne
The Little Waterloo
Marie-Antoinette
A History of Belgium for children
To Franzi Nestor
Before you start reading, take a sheet of paper and several pencils.
You will need them to do the exercises.
Whenever you see this pencil, it is your turn to play!
Merchant ships come from all parts of the world to moor alongside the quays of Antwerp, the biggest port in Europe. Here they unload their precious cargoes: spices, cane sugar, silk, linen cloth, iron, copper, gold, diamonds, pigments,…
In those days, Belgium did not yet exist. It was part of a region known as the Low Countries. The kings of Europe were fighting among themselves to divide up the world between them, and battle was raging between Catholics and Protestants. An eighty year war (1568-1648) had started. The City of Antwerp was also under threat…But happily, in 1609 the Archdukes Albert and Isabella signed a twelve year peace agreement…
This is the golden age of Antwerp. You can find everything you want. You might easily run into scholars, scientists and famous artists.
Look at Antwerp harbour. What kind of ships are moored there? Where have the ships come from? What are the houses like?
PETER PAUL RUBENS was born on June 28th 1577 in Siegen, in Germany. His father was a protestant lawyer and deputy mayor of Antwerp. One day he had to flee, because of the war with Spain, and for religious reasons. So Rubens spent his childhood in Cologne. On the death of his father, the family returned to Antwerp as the situation had changed. The Spanish had reconquered the city and the Rubens family could once again settle there, on condition that they became Catholics.