Make Belgium stronger.

What ways could make Belgium be a more powerful country. Early independence? Colonize more of Africa? Ever take some land from the Netherlands?
 
What ways could make Belgium be a more powerful country. Early independence? Colonize more of Africa? Ever take some land from the Netherlands?

IIRC the (young) Leopold II had the ambition to expand his country with Dutch Limburg, Dutch Zeeuws Vlaanderen (Zeelandic Flanders) and (though I read different things about this) Dutch North Brabant. All those parts of the Netherlands were south of the 'Big Rivers' (Rhine & Meuse) and had a Catholic majority (note that in parts of certain provinces north of the 'Big Rivers' there also was a Catholic majority, but the provinces Limburg and North Brabant had an overall Catholic majority).
 
IIRC the (young) Leopold II had the ambition to expand his country with Dutch Limburg, Dutch Zeeuws Vlaanderen (Zeelandic Flanders) and (though I read different things about this) Dutch North Brabant. All those parts of the Netherlands were south of the 'Big Rivers' (Rhine & Meuse) and had a Catholic majority (note that in parts of certain provinces north of the 'Big Rivers' there also was a Catholic majority, but the provinces Limburg and North Brabant had an overall Catholic majority).
Yeah, but I doubt he would be able to get it. Certainly they wouldn't have liked it. From 1848 all catholics were equal to protestants, while in belgium they would all be second class citizens (like the Flemish). Actualy I would say it would even weaken Belgium. They would add two provinces who would probably want to return to the Netherlands and would lead the Flemish wish to rejoin as well. Belgium loses its neutrality, because they started an unprovoked imperialistic attack on a neutral country. Noone would support Belgium now. The Netherlands would only have to look to either Prussia or France and make an alliance to divide belgium and Britain wouldn't stop them.

A better case for belgium probably would be a different result during the Belgian revolution in which it would keep all of Limburg and Luxemburg and possibly gain Zeelandic Flanders. Maybe if they managed to kick the Dutch out of Maastricht (and the other places in Limburg that were still ruled by the Netherlands) and the Prussians out of Luxemburg (quite a feat btw).
 
A better case for belgium probably would be a different result during the Belgian revolution in which it would keep all of Limburg and Luxemburg and possibly gain Zeelandic Flanders. Maybe if they managed to kick the Dutch out of Maastricht (and the other places in Limburg that were still ruled by the Netherlands) and the Prussians out of Luxemburg (quite a feat btw).

Since only with help from France the Belgian rebels could achieve that, how do you prevent the rebellion from being seen as a French takeover? With an open or almost open war between France and Prussia, the provisions of the German Confederaration (where the GD of Luxembourg aka the King of the Netherlands was a member anyway) will kick in and we have a Dutch-Prussian-Austrian-OtherGerman war against the French and the Belgians.
With the UK probably neutral and not on the French side.

One possibility: After 1815, there was much discontentment among the catholic population of the prussian Rhenish province(s) and Westphalia, and up to the 1830s, many statesmen in Berlin feared a general anti-Prussian uprising there. If this rebellion somehow manifests, the Prussian position will be much weaker, especially if it is directly linked with the Belgian rebellion. AFAIK, before 1835 there was some talk among Rhenish Catholics to offer their homelands to the Austrian emperor Francis I. who was still seen be many as the "German" (HRE) emperor Francis II.
 
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