1953 in Belgium

Events in the year 1953 in Belgium.

Incumbents

• Monarch – Baudouin
• Prime Minister – Jean Van Houtte

Events

• 31 January to 1 February – North Sea flood damages Belgian coastal defences, killing 28
• 9 April – Princess Joséphine Charlotte of Belgium (1927–2005) marries Prince Jean of Luxembourg (1921–2019), with civil registration in the Grand Ducal Palace and a nuptial mass in Notre-Dame Cathedral, Luxembourg
• 14 October – Sabena Convair Crash
• 24 October – Firedamp explosion in the Many pit in Seraing, owned by Ougrée-Marihaye, kills 26 (12 Belgians and 14 Italian immigrant workers)
• 31 October – First public television broadcasts of the Belgian National Broadcasting Institute, from the Flagey Building in Brussels

Publications

Non-fiction

• Gustave Cohen, Le Théâtre français en Belgique au Moyen Âge (Brussels, La Renaissance du Livre)
• Paul Harsin, La Révolution liégeoise de 1789

Fiction

• Louis Paul Boon, De Kapellekensbaan
• Hergé, Explorers on the Moon, serialised 1952-1953
• Georges Simenon, Feux rouges, Maigret et l'homme du banc, and Maigret se trompe
• Willy Vandersteen, De dolle musketiers, Suske & Wiske album (serialised 1952–1953)

Art and architecture

Paintings

• René Magritte, Golconda

Performance

• 14 to 18 July – Théâtre National de Belgique production of Jean Giraudoux's Ondine at the Lyric Theatre (Hammersmith).

Births

• 10 January
  • Olga Zrihen, politician
  •  Josiane Vanhuysse, cyclist
• 23 January – Carl Devlies, politician
• 26 January – Daniël Theys, glassmaker
• 1 February – Walter de Paduwa, radio DJ
• 21 February – Siegfried Bracke, politician
• 14 March – Dirk Van der Maelen, politician
• 3 April – Pieter Aspe, writer (died 2021)
• 5 April – Paul Broekx, Olympic canoer
• 11 April – Guy Verhofstadt, politician
• 1 May – Willy Linthout, comics author
• 7 May – Alain Brichant, tennis player
• 6 June – Jan Durnez, politician
• 30 June – Koen Fossey, illustrator
• 22 July – René Vandereycken, footballer
• 25 August – Georges De Moor, health statistician
• 20 September – André Delcroix, cyclist
• 26 September – Micha Marah, singer
• 27 September – Jean-Paul Comart, actor
• 9 October – Marcia De Wachter, economist
• 17 October
  • Thierry Soumagne, fencer
  • Claire Vanhonnacker, singer (died 1992)
• 27 October – Daniel Guldemont, martial artist
• 28 October – Jean-Marie Berckmans, writer (died 2008)
• 19 November – Didier de Chaffoy de Courcelles, businessman
• 20 November – Étienne De Beule, cyclist
• 4 December – Jean-Marie Pfaff, goalkeeper

Deaths

• 6 January – Maurice Corneil de Thoran (born 1881), musician
• 9 January – Jean Brusselmans (born 1884), painter
• 17 January – Jean de Bosschère (born 1878), writer and painter
• 19 January – Jean Delville (born 1867), painter
• 11 March – Charles Saroléa (born 1870), philologist
• 26 March – Paul Loicq (born 1888), hockey administrator
• 16 May – Django Reinhardt (born 1910), jazz musician
• 2 June – Servais Le Roy (born 1865), entertainment
• 20 June – Henri de Man (born 1885), politician
• 25 June – Jules Van Nuffel (born 1883), priest and musicologist
• 12 July – Joseph Jongen (born 1873), composer
• 14 September – Pierre Nolf (born 1873), scientist
• 18 September – Charles de Tornaco (born 1927), racing driver
• 2 November – Émile Cammaerts (born 1878), writer

References