The franc (French: franc, Dutch: frank, German: Frank) was the currency of Belgium until 2002 when the euro was introduced into circulation. It was subdivided into centimes (French), 100 centiem (Dutch) or Centime (German).

The conquest of most of western Europe by revolutionary and Napoleonic France led to the French franc's wide circulation. In the Austrian Netherlands (now Belgium), the franc replaced the kronenthaler. This was in turn replaced by the Dutch guilder when the United Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed.

Following independence from the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the new Kingdom of Belgium in 1832 adopted its own franc, equivalent to the French franc, followed by Luxembourg in 1848 and Switzerland in 1850. Newly-unified Italy adopted the lira on a similar basis in 1862.

In 1865 France, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy created the Latin Monetary Union (to be joined by Greece in 1868): each would possess a national currency unit (franc, lira, drachma) worth 4.5 g of silver or 290.322 mg of fine gold, all freely exchangeable at a rate of 1:1. In the 1870s the gold value was made the fixed standard, a situation which was to continue until 1914.

Guy Bleus (born October 23, 1950 in Hasselt, Belgium) is an artist associated with the mail art movement and performance art.

His work covers different areas, including administration (which he calls Artministration), postal and olfactory communication.

In 1978 he founded the The Administration Centre – 42.292 which became a huge art archive with works and information of 6000 artists from more than 60 countries. “Guy Bleus has one of the finest archives of mail art in Europe, if not the world.”

Bleus was the first artist who systematically used scents in plastic arts. Since 1979 he showed smell paintings, mailed perfumed objects and made aromatic installations; he also created spray performances where he sprayed a mist of fragrance over the audience.

Exploring the possibilities of communication media as art media, he investigated the postal system in Indirect correspondence (1979) and searched for an alternative postal system in Airmail by balloons. Together with Charles François he was a pioneer using a computer connected to a modem for artistic communication (in 1989). He also applied reproduction media such as Microfilm, CD-ROM and DVD-ROM for artistic reasons.

Marc Robert Wilmots (born 22 February 1969 in Dongelberg, Belgium) is a Belgian former footballer and current manager of Belgium.

In his club career, that started in 1987, Wilmots played for Sint-Truiden, Mechelen, Standard Liège, Schalke 04, and Bordeaux. At Schalke, he helped them to the 1997 UEFA Cup Final. His goal in the first leg was cancelled out by Internazionale in the second leg, but Schalke went on to win the game on penalties, with Wilmots scoring the decisive kick. He retired in 2003, after his second stint with Schalke.

For Belgium, Wilmots scored 28 goals in 70 caps, his first coming in May 1990. He played in four World Cups, going scoreless in 1994, but getting two goals in 1998 and adding three in 2002. Wilmots is Belgium's leading goal scorer in World Cup history. Wilmots also played in Euro 2000, when Belgium co-hosted the tournament.

Wilmots became a football manager in summer 2004 for Sint-Truidense, but was sacked in February 2005. On 28 September 2009, he announced his return to the Belgium national football team. From 1 October 2009 on, he served as assistant for Dick Advocaat and later for Georges Leekens. On 15 May 2012, Following the exit of Georges Leekens, Wilmots assumed the Belgium reins on an interim basis, with Eric Gerets ruled himself out of the running to land the post on a permanent deal.

La Esterella, born Esther Lambrechts (May 7, 1919 in Antwerp – April 11, 2011 in Antwerp) was a Flemish singer. She was best known for her classic "Oh Lieve Vrouwetoren". She had a typical deep voice, causing her to be called sometimes the Belgian Zarah Leander. La Esterella was the first Flemish artist who achieved international success.

La Esterella began her career as a seamstress. She occasionally sang at parties and was thus noticed by the conductor Jacques Kluger. But, when asked, she refused to sing in his band because she didn't have parental permission. In 1940 she began participating in song contests in the music hall Oud-België in Antwerp. There she was discovered by her future husband and manager Charly Schleimovitz. She began her career as a singer of popular light classical and romantic songs in several languages. Her voice could span three and a half octaves. She had an immediate success with the public. Her husband didn't just arrange the business agreements but also taught her how to become a professional singer, turning her into a perfectionist.

Eden Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian international footballer who currently plays for French club Lille in Ligue 1 and the Belgium national team. He primarily plays as an attacking midfielder and a winger. Hazard is known for his creativity, speed, and technical ability and is described as a "fearless, explosive attacking midfielder who can change the game with a turn of pace or a dribble". He has also been described as "a defender's nightmare" and has earned critical acclaim for his playing style, which has led to the media, coaches, and players drawing comparisons to FIFA World Player of the Year winners Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Hazard is the son of former Belgian footballers and began his football career in Belgium playing for local clubs Royal Stade Brainois and Tubize. In 2005, he moved to France joining first division club Lille. Hazard spent two years in the club's academy and, at the age of 16, made his professional debut in November 2007. In his first full season as a starter, he won the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Young Player of the Year award becoming the first non-French player to win the award. In the 2009–10 season, Hazard captured the award again becoming the first player to win the award twice. He was also named to the league's Team of the Year. Since making his debut in 2007, Hazard has become an integral part of the club under manager Rudi Garcia racking up over 190 appearances. In the 2010–11 season, he was a part of the Lille team that won the league and cup double and, as a result of his performances, was named the UNFP Ligue 1 Player of the Year becoming the youngest player to win the award. Hazard was also given the Bravo Award by Italian magazine Guerin Sportivo for his performances during the 2010–11 season.