Luxembourg American Cultural Society
  • Member Login
  • Contact
  • Member Login
  • Contact
Newsletter
  • Cultural Society
    • Mission
    • Board of Directors & Staff
    • Intern & Volunteer
    • Learn & Engage
    • Luxembourg Kids Crafts
  • Museum
    • Visit Us
    • Hours & Admission
    • Group Tours
    • Facilities Rental
    • Luxembourg American Family Tree
  • Membership
  • Events
    • All Events
    • Let’s Talk Luxembourg
    • Luxembourgish Language Class
    • Luxembourg Fest Week
      • Annual Members Meeting
      • Fest Cultural Forum
      • Luxembourg Under the Stars
      • Luxembourg Fest Mass
  • Luxembourg
    • About the Country
    • Travel to Luxembourg
    • Dual Citizenship
      • Why Use the LACS?
      • Dual Citizenship Process
      • Dual Citizenship’s Legality in the US
    • Luxembourg News
  • Research Center
    • Visit the Research Center
    • Research Collection
    • Research Resources & Tips
    • LACS Video Library
    • Donate an Artifact
  • Store
  • Member Login
Donate

About the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

  • Home
  • / About the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

Despite its small size – 2,586 km2 and home to 576,000 inhabitants – the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is a sovereign state with a rich history. Nestled between France, Belgium and Germany in the heart of Europe, it has been involved in the great European developments.

The turbulent past of the Grand Duchy is a true mirror of European history. During the Middle Ages, its princes wore the crown of the Holy Roman Empire. In Early Modern Times, its fortress was a major bone of contention in the battle between the great powers.

Before achieving independence in the 19th century, Luxembourg belonged successively to the Counts and Dukes of Luxembourg, the Dukes of Burgundy, the Kings of Spain, the Kings of France, the Emperors of Austria and Kings of the Netherlands. During the 20th century, this wealthy and dynamic country acted as a catalyst in the unification of Europe.

Everything You Need to Know about the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

Click below for a downloadable publication by the Luxembourg Government that gives an overview of every aspect of this country in the heart of Europe.

About Luxembourg Publication

Key dates in the history of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg

962 Creation of the Holy Roman Empire by Otto I
963 Count Siegfried acquires the small fort Lucilinburhuc through an exchange act with the abbey of St Maximin in Trier, and makes it the seat of his county.
1308 Henry VII, Count of Luxembourg, is elected King of Germany. He is crowned Emperor in Rome in 1312.
1310 Marriage of John the Blind to Elisabeth, heiress to the Kingdom of Bohemia. The Counts of Luxembourg become Kings of Bohemia.
1337 Start of the Hundred Years War
1354 Emperor Charles IV elevates the County of Luxembourg to the rank of Duchy and cedes it to his half-brother Wenceslas I.
1364 With the definitive acquisition of the County of Chiny, the possessions of the Dukes of Luxembourg reach their greatest extent (10,000km2)
1388 Wenceslas II mortgages the Duchy of Luxembourg to his cousin Jobst of Moravia.
1437 Death of Sigismond, last Emperor of the House of Luxembourg
1443 The Duke of Burgundy, Philip the Good, conquers the town of Luxembourg. The Duchy of Luxembourg falls under the rule of the Netherlands. This marks the beginning of four centuries of foreign domination.
1555 Abdication of Charles V in favour of his son Philip II. The Netherlands and the Duchy of Luxembourg pass into the hands of the Spanish Habsburgs.
1659 Under the Treaty of the Pyrenees, Spain cedes the southern part of the Duchy of Luxembourg, including the town of Thionville, to France.
1661 Start of the personal reign of Louis XIV
1684 After a siege directed by Vauban, the troops of Louis XIV take the city and fortress of Luxembourg. Important fortification works are carried out.
1697 Under the Treaty of Ryswick, Louis XIV is obliged to return the Duchy of Luxembourg to Spain.
1701-1714 War of the Spanish Succession
1715 Following the War of the Spanish Succession, the provinces of the Netherlands are assigned to Charles VI of Austria. Luxembourg falls under Austrian control.
1795 After a siege of over seven months by French Revolutionary troops, the fortress surrenders. The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg becomes the ‘Département des Forêts’.
1798 Uprisings in the country against the introduction of general military service and the anti-religious policy of the Directory (‘Klëppelkrich’ – cudgel war).
1804 Introduction of the Napoleonic Code throughout the country, at the time the French Republic’s Département des Forêts
1815 Congress of Vienna. Creation of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg assigned in personal union to William I, King of the Netherlands. Territorial division: the Luxembourg territories of the Eifel and the other side of the Moselle, the Sûre and the Our are allocated to Prussia. As a member of the German Confederation, Luxembourg becomes a federal fortress and home to a Prussian garrison.
1830 Start of the Belgian Revolution
1839 Treaty of London. Luxembourg is split in two, its western part going to Belgium, while its eastern part continues to make up the Grand Duchy. Luxembourg acquires its current geographical form (2,586km2).
1842 Luxembourg joins the Zollverein, establishing economic union with Prussia which was to last until 1918. Discovery of mineral deposits in the south of the country.
1848 Luxembourg acquires a constitution guaranteeing the freedoms and fundamental rights of its citizens.
1867 Treaty of London. The Grand Duchy obtains the status of a perpetually neutral and disarmed state. The Prussian garrison leaves the fortress, which is dismantled.
1870 The apostolic vicariate is elevated to the rank of bishopric of Luxembourg by Pope Pius IX. Establishment of the first steelworks in the mining area.
1871 Creation of the German Empire (Second Reich)
1886 Birth of Robert Schuman, the ‘father of Europe’, in Luxembourg City.
1890 Accession to the throne of Grand Duke Adolphe of Nassau-Weilburg. Luxembourg obtains its own dynasty.
1902-1914 Birth of three parties — socialist, liberal, and Christian-social — which will determine political life in the 20th century.
1911 Creation of ARBED, which was to become the leading iron- and steel-making group in the Grand Duchy.
1912 Accession to the throne of Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde, the first sovereign to be born in the Grand Duchy since John the Blind
1914-1918 First World War
1914 On 2 August 1914, German troops invade the Grand Duchy, violating the neutrality granted by the Treaty of London.
1919 Abdication of Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde in favour of her sister, Charlotte. Introduction of universal suffrage.Double referendum: 80% of the Luxembourg people vote in favour of maintaining the dynasty, and 73% in favour of an economic union with France.
1920 France having refused the Luxembourg offer, Luxembourg enters into negotiations with Belgium.
1921 The Grand Duchy signs the convention instituting the Belgo-Luxembourg Economic Union (BLEU) with Belgium and adopts the Belgian franc as their common currency.
1929 Referendum on the ‘Muzzle Law’
1939-1945 Second World War
1940 On 10 May 1940, neutral Luxembourg is invaded by the German army. Grand Duchess Charlotte and the Government go into exile.
1944 On 10 September 1944, Luxembourg City is liberated by the Americans.
1944-1945 The Battle of the Bulge devastates the north and east of the country following the counter-offensive of the Germans.
1947 Ratification of the Benelux Convention, instituting a customs union between Belgium, the Netherlands and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
1949 Having abandoned its neutrality (1948), Luxembourg joins NATO.
1951 Luxembourg is one of the founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), forerunner of the European Union.
1952 The city of Luxembourg is appointed the provisional seat of the first European community.
1957 Alongside Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany and France, Luxembourg signs the Treaties of Rome establishing the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom).
1963 Issue of the first eurobonds listed in Luxembourg. The rise of the euro markets triggers the growth of the financial centre during the 1960s.
1964 Abdication of Grand Duchess Charlotte in favour of her eldest son, Jean
1973 First oil crisis. The ensuing crisis hits the Luxembourg economy head-on.
1981 Closure of the country’s last iron ore mine
1984 Lëtzebuergesch becomes the national language.
1985 Pope John Paul II, on a visit to the Grand Duchy, elevates it to the rank of archbishopric.
1986 Charlemagne Prize awarded to the people of Luxembourg in recognition of its commitment to the European cause.
1989 Collapse of the Berlin Wall
1992 The European summit in Edinburgh confirms Luxembourg City as the seat of the Community institutions alongside Brussels and Strasbourg.
1997 Definitive shut-down of the last blast furnace in the Grand Duchy. Steel production is henceforth limited to electric arc furnaces.
2000 Abdication of Grand Duke Jean in favour of his son, Henri.
2002 The euro enters into circulation and replaces the Luxembourg franc.
2003 Golden Lion for best pavilion at the Venice Biennale awarded to Chinese-Luxembourgish artist Su-Mei Tse
2005 National referendum in favour of the draft Constitution for Europe
2007 After 1995, Luxembourg City becomes European Capital of Culture for the second time, this time in association with the Greater Region.
2014 Luxembourg wins its first Oscar in 2014 for the animated film Mr Hublot (Zeilt Productions)
2014 The Grand Duchy celebrates 175 years of independence.

Proudly supported by:

Logo Ministère de l'Économie
Logo Ministère de la Culture
Logo Visit Luxembourg

Luxembourg American Cultural Center
100 Peter Thein Avenue
Belgium, WI 53004-0157
U.S.A.

Main office: (262) 476-5086

  • Legal Notice
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and conditions
  • LACS Online Media Room

This is my title

  • Legal Notice
  • Privacy policy
  • Terms and conditions
  • LACS Online Media Room
  • Cultural society
    • Mission
    • Board of Directors & Staff
    • Intern & Volunteer
    • Membership
  • Museum
    • Overview
    • Luxembourg American Family Tree
    • Group Tours
    • Facilities Rental
  • Luxembourg Fest Week
    • Annual Members Meeting
    • Fest Cultural Forum
    • Prost! Luxembourg Tasting Experience
    • Luxembourg Under the Stars
    • Luxembourg Fest Mass
  • Luxembourg
    • About the Country
    • Travel to Luxembourg
    • Luxembourg News
  • Research Center
    • Research Collection
    • Belgic-Luxembourg Resources
    • Research Resources & Tips
    • Rules & Regulations
    • Donate an Artifact or Archival Item
    • Research/Translation Requests & Fees
  • Membership
  • Donate
  • Contact us
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
SAVE & ACCEPT