Country name: conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium
local long form: Royaume de Belgique/Koninkrijk Belgie
local short form: Belgique/Belgie
Government type: federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarch
Capital: Brussels
Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (French: provinces, singular
- province; Flemish: provincien, singular - provincie); Antwerpen,
Brabant Wallon, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur,
Oost-Vlaanderen, Vlaams Brabant, West-Vlaanderen; note - the
Brussels Capitol Region is not included within the 10 provinces
Independence: 21 July 1831 (from the Netherlands)
National holiday: Independence Day, 21 July (1831)
Constitution: 7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament approved a constitutional package creating a federal state