BELGIAN NATIONAL DAY CELEBRATED IN BAKU

The Embassy of the Kingdom of Belgium in Azerbaijan organized a reception in honor of the Belgian National Day 🇧🇪 on July 18 at the 22nd floor of Landmark.
The Ambassador Bert Shufs welcomed all the guests of the evening, spoke about the history of this holiday and wished everyone a great evening.
Heads of diplomatic missions, diplomats, cultural and scientific figures, as well as business and media representatives gathered to celebrate as well.
At the reception was presented a delicious buffet consisting of dishes and snacks of the Belgian national cuisine, Belgian beer, as well as the world-famous Belgian chocolate.

HISTORY

Belgian National Day is celebrated annually on July 21, starting from 1890.

After the Belgian Revolution of 1830, which led Belgium to independence from the Netherlands, the newly formed National Congress decided that their country would be a kingdom and on June 4, 1831, called Leopold I for the reign. He accepted the offer, soon arrived in Brussels and officially received power on July 21 same year.

Officially, the holiday was recognized by law on May 27, 1890.

Currently, celebrations in honor of the National Day are held throughout the country. Belgians are very honored on this calendar day. The most large-scale festivities take place in Brussels, among which the brightest is the grandiose military parade (Grand-Place), which takes place on Palace Square after the traditional solemn appeal to the people of the King of Belgium. In his speech, the monarch congratulates people on a memorable date and calls on them to unite to preserve the integrity and greatness of the state.

After the parade, the streets of the capital are filled with crowds of Belgians and tourists, music is heard everywhere and musical groups, dance and theater groups perform. Also on this day, many state museums and historical monuments can be visited for free, among them - the Royal Museum of Fine Arts, the Royal Museum of History and Art, and even the Royal Palace and the Parliament of Belgium. The holiday ends, according to tradition, with a grand firework.