The Belgian Congo was a Belgian colony in Central Africa from 1908 until independence in 1960 and became the Republic of the Congo (Léopoldville). The former colony adopted its present name, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in 1964.
Leopold II, King of the Belgians and de facto owner of the Congo Free State from 1885 to 1908
Children mutilated during King Leopold II's rule
Former residence of the Governor-General of the Belgian Congo (1908–1923) located in Boma
On the left hand side, the former Ministry of the Colonies, adjacent to the Constitutional Court, Brussels
Belgium controlled several territories and concessions during the colonial era, principally the Belgian Congo from 1908 to 1960, Ruanda-Urundi from 1922 to 1962, and Lado Enclave from 1884 to 1910. It also had small concessions in Guatemala (1843–1854) and Belgian concession of Tianjin in China (1902–1931) and was a co-administrator of the Tangier International Zone in Morocco.
A missionary posing with a victim of the Congo atrocities
African troops recruited by the Congo Free State
Force Publique soldiers from the Belgian Congo in World War II
Belgian colonial officials in Léopoldville, 1938