Figure 1.--This is a wing of the Louvain Library befor the Germahsd burned it in the opening days of World War I. Click on the image to see the destroyed library after the Germans were dome with it. .

German soldiers broke into the library at the Université catholique de Louvain (about 11:30 AM). Louvain University was the earliest university to be established in what is now Belgium. It was founded (1425). Some oif Europe's great thinkers were educated there. They included theologian Saint Robert Bellarmine, the philosopher Justus Lipsius and the cartographer Gerard Mercator. The university aswas common in Eurioe, was comprised of separate colleges (there would eventually be 46), each of these colleges established book collections during the late-Middle Ages. A central library was founded (1636). This centralized library was located in the 14th-century Cloth Hall near the Town Hall. (Cloth or textiles was the foundation of the economy in the Low Countries.) It was thus a noted library with important special collections, including ireplaceable medieval manuscripts and books. It was widely recognized as one of Europe's great libraries. This cerntral library grew over the subseqwuent centuries, increasing in size through both purchase and donation. Louvain was a comparatively rich university and thus the Library was well funded. The Library was one of Beklgium's cultural jewels. It had survived the Dutch War of Independencre, the French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars abd Belgium's own Revolution. There were 300,000 volumes in its collection, and a group of special collections regognized thriufgout Eirope. The importance of the library could be seen in its glorious baroque buildings. The Library's holdings reflected Belgium's very ntionl cultural identity. They documented the intellectual contribution of the greatest minds of Low Ciuntruies and helped preserve the university’s strongly Catholic cultural flavor. It was also an important national resource, serving as as a library of legal deposit (much like the Librry of Congress in America). Although a university library, it was open to the public. Especially important were almost a thousand volumes of manuscripts, mostly classical authors and theological texts, including the early Church Fathers. There were also books on medieval philosophy and theology. There was also held a sizeable collection of incunabula (early printed book, especially one printed during the 15th century). There were uncatalogued collections of oriental books, and one of kind manuscripts in Hebrew, Chaldaic and Armenian. The Germans set all of thus ablaze. Within hours, the library and its collection were completely destroyed. The fire fuekd by books and tiners continued to burn for several days. Mmore than 230,000 book were described, including 750 medieval manuscripts. Personal libraries and the papers of notaries, solicitors, judges, professors, and physicians were also destroyed. A yoiuthful Louvain Jesuit Eugène Dupiéreux wrote in his diary, " Until today I had refused to believe what the newspapers said about the atrocities committed by the Germans; but in Leuven I have seen what their Kultur is like. More savage than the Arabs of Caliph Omar, who burnt down the Alexandrian library, we see them set fire, in the twentieth century, to the famous University Library."

Created: 3:02 AM 4/11/2022
Last updated: 3:02 AM 4/11/2022