Microfilm collection of the National Archives of Belgium

Collection

Title (official language):: Verzameling Microfilms van het Algemeen Rijksarchief

Scope and content:: This collection contains a number of microfilms relevant to this guide. We firstly note three microfilms (references 1324/1 to 1324/3) containing personal archival material of Samson Wiener (1851-1914), lawyer, senator, businessman and member of the Conseil Supérieur of Congo Free State. The originals are preserved by the Wiener family, who in 1971 gave permission to the General State Archives to make microfilm copies of the archives. The documents (totalling some 29 files) cover the years 1883-1914. We mostly find correspondence and notes, mainly related to the activities of Wiener as legal advisor to Leopold II with regard to his policy of overseas expansion i.a. in Congo Free State but also similar attempts in China, the Philippines, Manchuria, Mongolia etc. This microfilm collection furthermore contains copies from archives that undoubtedly contain information on the organisation of the Holocaust in Belgium during the last German occupation – see i.a. the nos. 673/1-26 (archives of the German military administration in Belgium and northern France, from the National Archives in Washington, references T 501/102 to T 501/119), no. 1446 (described as “German documents concerning Belgium during the Second World War”, also from the National Archives in Washington, references T 501/B97) and no. 782 (documents related to the German administration in Belgium, from the Bundesarchiv in Koblenz).

Subject terms:: Holocaust; Jewish political activity; Personal records; Professions; Professions--Lawyers; World War II

Access, restrictions:: Requires the authorisation of the Algemeen Rijksarchivaris.

Finding aids:: The entire collection of microfilms is described in R. Laurent, Répertoire numérique des microfilms de complément ou de sécurité conservés aux archives générales du Royaume, I 253, Brussel, ARA-AGR, 1994. The “Papiers Sam Wiener” are described in E. Vandewoude, Papiers de Sam Wiener. Relevé, Brussel, 1971 (see also the start of microfilm no. 1324/1) and via the summary list in M. D'Hoore, Archives de particuliers relatives à l’histoire de la Belgique contemporaine (1830 à nos jours), Guides/Gidsen no. 40, Brussel, ARA-AGR, 1998, pp. 823-824.