Luxembourg History

The Romans conquered the area now known as Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands in the first century B.C, and it was included in the Belgica prima province. In the early 5th century A.D., the area came under the control of the Frankish kingdom of Austrasia and of Charlemagne's empire. After the collapse of the Carolingian empire in the mid 9th century, a number of political units emerged in the area of the Low Countries, including the county of Flanders, the duchy of Brabant, the county of Holland, and the bishopric of Liège. Luxembourg began as a feudal domain of the Holy Roman Empire in A.D. 963.

In 1060 the country came under the rule of Count Conrad who founded the House of Luxembourg. In 1308 the Count of Luxembourg became Holy Roman Emperor Henry XII, and in 1354 Luxembourg was raised to a duchy. In 1445 it was incorporated into the Duchy of Burgundy, and in 1482 the area passed to the vast Habsburg domains. From the 15th to the 18th centuries, Luxembourg's history was shared with that of southern Netherlands as Spain and Austria alternately dominated the country until 1795 when Napoleon seized the area of Luxembourg and established French institutions.

In 1815 at the close of the Napoleonic Wars, the Congress of Vienna elevated Luxembourg to a Grand duchy and placed it under the rule of William I, King of the Netherlands, and the northeastern portion surrounding Bitburg was given to Prussia. At the same time, Luxembourg joined the German Confederation, and the capital (which is named Luxembourg, or in the local dialect, Letzeburg, or "little fortress") was garrisoned by Prussian troops. When Belgium rebelled against the Netherlands in 1830, Luxembourg supported the Belgians. After Belgium gained independence in 1839, it claimed the entire country of Luxembourg. The western half of Luxembourg was ceded to Belgium, and the rest remained as a grand duchy in a personal union with the King of the Netherlands who was Grand Duke. Luxembourg remained a member of the German Confederation.

In 1866 the King of the Netherlands decided to sell Luxembourg to France; this action nearly brought about a war between France and Prussia. In 1867 the European powers at the Treaty of London declared Luxembourg an independent, neutral country. It became a parliamentary democracy under a constitution adopted in 1868.

The Grand duchy was occupied by German troops in both world wars, and was liberated both times with the arrival of American forces. At Hamm, outside Luxembourg city, more than 5,000 American soldiers lie buried, including General George S. Patton, Jr.

On 26 June 1945 the country became an original member of the United Nations. An agreement establishing a customs union among Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, known as Benelux, took effect on 1 January 1948. Under the terms of a constitutional amendment adopted in 1948, Luxembourg abrogated its traditional neutrality and became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.