Free leaflet available at the tourist office
(The leaflet is printed in Dutch, but the map it contains, together with this English translation, makes the walk accessible to English-speaking visitors.)
Discover traces of our colonial history while walking.
This informative 2.5 km route takes you through the center of Halle.
Points of interest are numbered on the map included in this leaflet.
The route is accessible for wheelchairs and strollers.
Visit www.dekoloniseerhalle.be for more information.
For questions or contact, email: dekoloniseerhalle@gmail.com
By scanning the QR code in this leaflet, you can use the free Heritage App as a guide and access additional background information.
This leaflet was created as part of the local citizen initiative and partnership Dekoloniseer Halle.
With support from:
City of Halle | Den AST | ZENDER | FLANDERS
Halle is best known for the Saint Martin’s Basilica and, of course, the nearby Hallerbos. But there is much more to explore. The city offers cozy cafés and restaurants, pleasant shopping in car-free streets, and a full event calendar with something for everyone. For more information: www.visithalle.be
“This walk explores colonial traces in Halle and aims to lift a corner of the veil on our colonial past.”
“Forgotten, hidden, suppressed, and silenced stories and memories are brought to light to refresh our collective memory.”
The City Hall, built between 1608 and 1616 in the Flemish Renaissance style, is located on the Grote Markt. A memorial plaque (1912) on the side facing Basiliekstraat commemorates the stay of writer Hendrik Conscience (1812–1883) in Halle. Conscience was financially supported from the start by King Leopold I (1790–1865), who also appointed him as Dutch tutor for his children. Conscience frequently stayed in the inn ‘Lamme Gisj’ (still a café today, Ninoofsesteenweg 231) to visit his daughter Maria and son-in-law, justice of the peace Gentil Antheunis (also commemorated with a 1932 plaque).
Seeking prestige and trade outlets, Leopold I attempted several times to acquire colonies for the young Belgium, without success. Conscience’s novel Batavia (1858) is the first Flemish colonial novel, reflecting Leopold I’s colonial ambitions and illustrating the European colonial view of the world.
A highlight of visiting Halle is the basilica with its Black Madonna. The veneration of this statue of Mary and Jesus made Halle an important pilgrimage site.
In 1910, under the initiative of Dean Andreas Michiels (1871–1931), the original main altar (1533), made by artist Jan Mone (1480–1554) for Emperor Charles V (1500–1558), was moved to the Trazegnies Chapel. The new main altar, decorated with gilded copper, silver, and enamel, was installed that same year for the 500th anniversary of the church’s consecration. Notably, the current main altar includes figures and coats of arms, including a Black warrior from Congo with the Congo Free State (1885–1908) coat of arms under Leopold II (1835–1909). The blue background and five-pointed yellow star still appear in Congo’s current flag.
Several streets around City Hall (1994) at Oudstrijdersplein reference Halle’s connection to Congo. In 1937, Gasmeterstraat was renamed Baron Jacquesstraat at the request of the Colonial Circle of Halle. Other colonial pioneers were also honored: Victor Baetens, Albrecht Ardevel, and Felix Steens. They were all active in the Congo Free State (1885–1908), Leopold II’s private colony and a prime example of 19th-century “plunder colonialism.”
Jules Jacques played a notorious role in rubber extraction, using ruthless terror. Colonial projects at the time relied on forced labor and were extremely profitable due to the high demand for rubber from newly developed tires. On 21 March 2018, a QR code with explanation was added to his street sign. The violent conquest of Congo is now well-documented academically.
The Zenne Terrace is an ideal place to reflect on the industrial transition of the Zenne Valley. Industrial colonialism brought raw materials from the colony while using the colony as a market for industrial products. Factories such as Lecoq and Bollinckx testify to this socio-economic reality.
The Ateliers de Construction Lecoq in Nederhem began in 1838, producing train carriages, bridges, metal structures, and railway materials. Locals still call the Nederhem bridge the “Lecoq Bridge.” The Bollinckx engine factory in Buizingen, by 1890, was a well-known manufacturer of gas engines and steam machines. Orders for Lecoq and Bollinckx were filled for Belgian Congo. Today, the Zenne Valley, dominated by the ABC economic axis (Antwerp – Brussels – Charleroi), is evolving into a diverse living environment with a green corridor along the river.
The two colonial statues in Albert Park were an initiative of the Colonial Circle of Halle (1920–1966).
The statue honoring Halle’s Congo pioneers by sculptor Dolf Ledel (1893–1976) was unveiled in 1932.
The bronze bust of Leopold II by Arthur Dupagne (1895–1961) was inaugurated in 1953.
Belgian Congo was a colony from 15 November 1908 to 30 June 1960. Congo was presented as a “model colony,” highlighting “achievements” while obscuring mismanagement and atrocities. Following worldwide antiracist protests in 2020, Halle’s city government reframed the statues critically, creating a space for reflection, memory, and dialogue.
Belgium and Congo are deeply intertwined, with connections in nearly all societal domains. In collective memory, Belgian Congo has almost been reduced to a footnote. For example, the Catholic Workers’ Youth (KAJ) under Cardinal Jozef Cardijn was active in Congo.
The Belgian colonial system rested on three pillars, the “three C’s” (The Power Trio) : Crown (government / state / king / ... ), Capital (companies / corporations / businesses / finance / ... ), and Church ((education / religious institutions / intellectual sector / ...). It is crucial to distinguish individual contributions from the system’s impact. Individuals should not be equated with exploitative structures. The sum of personal intentions does not equal the system based on exploitation, segregation, and racism. Post-WWII human rights movements accelerated anti-colonial awareness and resistance.
This thematic walk invites you to view colonial history beyond black-and-white narratives. Like the parable “The Blind Men and the Elephant,” each person perceives only a part of reality. Six blind travelers touch different parts of an elephant, creating their own interpretations: tusk = spear, trunk = snake, leg = tree, tail = rope, ear = fan, flank = wall. This story is a metaphor for the need for dialogue that connects perspectives and tells the whole story.
Can you see the elephant on the Grote Markt?
A Portal with a Story
The Three Kings Portal of Halle Basilica (1385) shows the Black King respectfully, with equal status. This worldview changed after 1492, as colonialism and capitalism reshaped European representations of Black people.
The First Black African in Halle
The earliest known independent portrait of a Black man in Western art hangs in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, painted by Jan Mostaert (c.1474–1552/53). It depicts Christoffel De Moor, bodyguard to Emperor Charles V, who made a pilgrimage to Halle in 1520. A reproduction is in Den Ast Museum in Halle.
At the Berlin Colonial Conference (1884–1885), Leopold II realized his colonial dream. While humanitarian arguments were presented, economic profit was the main driver. Under international pressure and due to brutal exploitation (“red rubber”), Congo came under Belgian rule in 1908. Belgian Congo gained independence on 30 June 1960. The assassination of its first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, on 17 January 1961 in Katanga symbolizes the shift from classical colonialism to neocolonialism: from overt exploitation to hidden and indirect control.
Step through world history and discover portraits of people from Halle:
1000–1500 – Economic growth of European cities and states coincides with the rise of major empires in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.
1500–1600 – Explorer Christopher Columbus reached the Americas in 1492, initiating global exchanges of people, animals, and plants.
1600–1700 – European powers seized dominant positions in old and new trade routes. The transatlantic triangle trade of goods and enslaved people was central to capitalist expansion.
1700–1800 – Era of revolutions: French, American, and Haitian. In Haiti, enslaved Africans revolted, creating an independent state. Racial theories also emerged.
1800–1900 – Many South American countries gained independence, slavery was abolished, and European powers sought African colonies. The industrial revolution and European dominance shaped global dynamics.
1900–2000 – Wars caused immense suffering. Post-WWII, the UN (1945) was established. Decolonization and global human rights struggles intensified.
2000–… – Colonial legacies continue to impact many areas, threatening democracy, human rights, equality, justice, and sustainability. Decolonization remains vital.
Ernest Courtois (1856–1884) – Apothecary who traveled to Congo in 1883 on behalf of Leopold II. Died on the Congo River before age 28, during expeditions with Henry Morton Stanley. Inspired Joseph Conrad’s The Heart of Darkness (1899).
Gentil Antheunis (1840–1907) – Justice of the peace and son-in-law of Hendrik Conscience. Wrote the Belgian Congo anthem in 1905.
Victor Brien (1876–1959) – Mine engineer and professor; managed mining operations in Katanga, Congo.
Jean François Cuvelier (1882–1962) – Missionary and scholar of Congo; honorary chairman of Halle’s Historical Society.
Emile Possoz (1885–1969) – Magistrate in colonial Congo; ethnological studies and customary law research; collaborator of Placide Tempels.
Jan van den Weghe (1920–1988) – Flemish poet and colonial officer; authored colonial novels.
Jean-Pierre Laus (1949–2020) – Pioneer of decolonial initiatives in Halle; initiated annual remembrance of Lumumba’s assassination.