Papers of Prime Minister Hubert Pierlot

Collection description

Scope and content:: This fonds, currently in the process of being reordered, firstly contains correspondence with various Belgian personalities, including Herbert Speyer (1941-1942). In the series of subject files we also find a number of relevant documents. They mainly relate to the support of Jewish refugees from Belgium by organisations in Portugal and the aid to Jews by Aristides de Sousa Mendes, the Portuguese ambassador in Bordeaux. We also note, in the subject files, various interesting reports – see for example a report by Maurice Benedictus about the ‘Jewish question’ in Belgium, a report on certain Germans and Germans Jews having played a role in the persecution of the Jews in Belgium (ca. 1942), documents related to the arrests in May 1940 (in which a lot of German, Austrian and stateless Jews were arrested), and others.

Administrative/biographical history:: Hubert Pierlot (1883-1963) started his political career as a member of parliament (1925) and senator (1926-1946) for the Catholic party. In the interwar period he served as the Minister of the Interior (1934-1935) and Agriculture (1936-1939). Pierlot is best known however for his term as Prime Minister of the Belgian government in exile in London during the Second World War (1939-1945). His historical merit lies in the fact that he succeeded in maintaining the legitimacy of the Belgian state after the defeat of May 1940 and in organising its total commitment to the allied effort during the war. Pierlot was appointed Minister of State in 1945. He was awarded the title of Count in 1946. As a political scientist and PhD in law, Pierlot published several works and articles – see for example his series of articles written for Le Soir during the ‘Royal Question’. (Y.-W. Delzenne & J. Houyoux (dir.), Le nouveau dictionnaire des belges, Brussel, Le Cri, 1998, vol. 2, p. 162.)

Access points: persons/families:: de Sousa Mendes, Aristides; Pierlot, Hubert; Speyer, Herbert

Subject terms:: Aid and relief; Antisemitism; Holocaust; Jewish Question; Refugees; World War II

Access, restrictions:: The fonds is closed until 2019. Consultation before this date requires the authorisation of the Algemeen Rijksarchivaris.