| 51st | Top state leaders in 1918 |
| 43rd | Top state leaders in 1911 |
Charles Marie Pierre Albert, Count de Broqueville (4 December 1860–5 September 1940 in Brussels) was the Prime Minister of Belgium during World War I. He was born in Postel, Belgium. He was the leader of Belgium's Catholic Party, and he served as prime minister between 1911 and 1918. Once it became clear that Germany intended to violate Belgian neutrality in August 1914, he oversaw Belgium's mobilization for war.
Despite this mobilization, de Broqueville opposed King Albert I's proposal to deploy the Belgian Army along the German frontier in 1914 — instead strategically placing them throughout the country. He recognized that wartime support for Belgium depended upon its continued status as a non-provocative neutral power.
The German invasion of 1914 forced the Belgian government into exile at Le Havre. De Broqueville fought the king on the neutrality issue — thereby denying Belgium a full alliance with the Allied forces.
This opposition of the king critically weakened de Broqueville's stance among members of his cabinet. Consequently, he resigned as Foreign Secretary in January 1918 and as Prime Minister in May when he lost the support of his own party.
De Broqueville also served as minister in various departments:
Later, Charles de Broqueville became Prime Minister a second time, serving from 22 October 1932 until 20 November 1934.
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Frans Schollaert |
Prime Minister of Belgium 1911–1918 |
Succeeded by Gérard Cooreman |
| Preceded by Jules Renkin |
Prime Minister of Belgium 1932–1934 |
Succeeded by Georges Theunis |
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