Archives of Frans Wildiers, governor of Antwerp

Collection description

Holding institution:: Centre for Historical Research and Documentation on War and Contemporary Society

Holding institution (official language):: Centre d’Études et de Documentation Guerre et Sociétés Contemporaines

Postal address:: Luchtvaartsquare 29 / Square de l’Aviation 29, 1070 Bruxelles (Anderlecht)

Title (official language):: Archief Frans Wildiers, gouverneur van Antwerpen

Scope and content:: This fonds contains a file concerning the Jews in the St.-Erasmus hospital in Antwerp (reference mic 78/27).

Administrative/biographical history:: Frans Wildiers (1905-1986), since 1930 a lawyer at the Bar of Antwerp, became politically active in the Vlaamsche Front (Frontpartij) in Schoten. In 1933 he founded the Vlaams Nationaal Verbond-section of the district Antwerp. In 1936 he was elected in the council of the province of Antwerp; in 1938 he became a councillor in Schoten. During the Second World War Wildiers, supported by the VNV and the occupier, subsequently became mayor ad interim of Schoten, the replacement of Arseen Kennes in the provincial council, successor of Jan Grauls as governor of the province of Antwerp (1942) and also (albeit temporarily) governor of the province of Brabant (1943). At the end of the war Wildiers distanced himself from the political collaboration of the VNV and committed acts of administrative resistance. In 1949 Wildiers was sentenced to prison and stripped of his civil rights and political mandates. He was fully rehabilitated in 1957. Afterwards Wildiers played a role in the Vlaamsch Economisch Verbond, as the editor in chief and later director, and he transformed the bulletin of the organisation into an economical weekly and later daily newspaper (the predecessor of the current paper De Tijd). (S. Gyselinck, “Frans Wildiers (1905-1986)”, in ODIS - Database Intermediary Structures Flanders (raadpleegbaar op http://www.odis.be))

Subject terms:: Antisemitism; Antisemitism--Antisemitic measures; Health and medical matters; Health and medical matters--Hospitals

Finding aids:: List mic 78. The fonds is also described in the database of the CEGESOMA.

Links to finding aids:: http://pallas.cegesoma.be/pls/opac/plsp.getplsdoc?lan=N&htdoc=general/opac.htm