Belgium

Historically, Belgium was controlled by the Habsburgs of Austria and Spain. It was then a part of France, and from 1815, it was a part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In 1830 Belgium became independent. Traditionally one of the wealthiest parts of Europe and one of the most industrialized, Belgium has had varied types of play from simple toys and pursuits to sophisticated games with elaborate rules. Certainly as early as 1379, there were playing cards in the region, which were noted in the writings of Johanna, Duchess of Brabant, and Wenceslaus of Luxemburg.

Young children in Belgium played many of the largely universal games such as Hopscotch, Skipping, Skittles, Marbles, and Hide-and-Seek. Some of these can be seen in the paintings of Pieter Bruegel the Younger, who was born in Brussels and spent most of his life in Antwerp. He includes in his works scenes of children, mainly boys, involved in street games such as Leapfrog (which was generally known in Flanders as Sheep-Jumping), Fighting on Horseback, playing with hobby horses, and also the game Trip Him Up. In one painting, Bruegel portrays a peasant mother teaching her children how to take part in a country dance, and in one of his winter scenes, he shows local men involving in skating, curling on a frozen lake, and boys with toboggans.

The French influence in the region has resulted in older people playing boules, with both younger and older people taking part in recreational golf. The country has many golf courses, such as the Royal Club at Ter-vuren, which has hosted a number of professional tournaments. Soccer has become an important part of life for the country, with the population playing it as a recreation in school fields and courtyards across the country. In rural parts of Belgium, pelota is played, harking back to the historical connections with Spain.

Since Medieval times, puppeteers have been popular in village and town festivals and markets. Most perform for small children and tell moral tales. In the Middle Ages, pageant plays were staged; they have had a recent revival with small theatrical groups helping to enliven market days. From the late Middle Ages, the wealth of Belgium, largely made through selling wool, meant that it became home to many printers—it is not surprising that it became a center for printing playing cards.

The town of Turnhout, near Antwerp, has been known for printing and selling playing cards since 1826, and later became involved in making card games and games including dice. In 1970 the three remaining game companies amalgamated to form Cartamundi, which still produces packs of cards for casinos around the world. There have been several editions of the board game Monopoly, some using bilingual boards in Flemish and French and some in just one language. All of the games represent the entire country of Belgium, not just a particular city.

A surviving Flemish painting from the 15th century shows a woman playing Chess against a man with a number of onlookers. The Flemish painter Lucas van Leyden (1494–1533), who also lived in Antwerp, painted a scene showing a woman and a man playing Chess. This painting now hangs at the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin, Germany. Chess remains popular in Belgium—the Fédération Royale des Échecs de Belgique (The Royal Chess Federation of Belgium) was established in 1920, with its headquarters in Anvers. An annual Belgian Women's Championship has been held since 1946 and an Annual Belgian Championship since 1949.

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