The Belgica & Beyond


amateur translations, scans, & assorted research by m.w.
actively under construction.

WRITTEN FROM THE BELGICA 1897-1899

  1. Racovitza’s cartoons 
  2. Racovitza’s shipboard diary
  3. Racovitza’s letters home
  4. Lecointe’s meeting notes

CORRESPONDENCE

  1. before
  2. after

    NEWS OF THE BELGICA 1896-1900

    1. coverage in the Belgian press, translated
    2. coverage in the British press
    3. coverage in the American press
    4. scientific lectures, translated
    5. list of Expedition publications
      6.        a) Lecointe on Danco’s contributions

    QUELQUES EXPÉDITIONS SUIVANTES

    1. de Gerlache & Charcot (the Français)
    2. de Gerlache & the Duke of Orléans (the Belgica in the Arctic)
    3. the failed Second Belgian Antarctic Expedition (Arctowski & Lecointe)
    4. the successful Second Belgian Antarctic Expedition (Gaston de Gerlache)
    5.  the Royal Belgian Observatory
    6. Georges Lecointe’s 20th Century

      MARRIAGES & OTHER LIFE EVENTS

      1. Lecointe Family
      2. Arctowski
      3. de Gerlache
      4. Racovitza
      5. van Mirlo
      6. van Rysselberghe

      ASSORTED BELGICA RESOURCES

      1. bibliography
      2. associated persons
      3. contemporary photographs


      the sailors of the Belgica performing a “starlight concert” on Sept. 26, 1897, from Johan Koren’s diary

      contact: packloafertranslations@gmail.com

      la famille Lecointe



      En ce que me concerne, j’avais prié ma famille, dont les membres sont fort nombreux, de ne pas venir me faire d’adieux, le jour du départ. Je ne voulais pas d’attendrissement à bord, ni de scènes d’émotion. Mon désir fut respecté. Seul, mon frère aîné vint me serrer la main, au dernier moment, et se retira.

      — GEORGES LECOINTE, IN THE LAND OF THE PENGUINS

      Assorted information relating to the immediate family of Captain Georges Lecointe (1869-1929). Collected and transcribed/translated by m.w. from Belgian, French, and Luxembourgish national archives of birth/death/marriage certificates, contemporary newspapers, In the Land of the Penguins by Georges Lecointe, and sources provided by Hilde Langenaken, archivist at the Royal Observatory of Belgium.

      Please contact me with any questions and especially reach out if you are knowledgeable about the Belgian schooling system or “mental” healthcare at the turn of the 20th century as I do believe my translations relating to the Lecointe sisters’ lives may need some work. This page is mostly intended as an organizational tool for myself and a supplement to Lecointe’s fairly extensive Wikipedia page.

      Léon Victor Lecointe (1818 - 1891)
      Father of Georges; born 1818 in Paris, was living in Belgium by 1842. Mathematician, author of many basic and higher-level math textbooks used at various levels of schooling. Adored by King Leopold II. Death certificate, while difficult to read, seems to indicate a first wife who died young without children.

      Victoire Josephine Merjai (1821 - 186?)

      First or second wife of Léon, stepmother and aunt to Georges; born 1821 in Luxembourg, married Léon on April 25, 1848 in Luxembourg. Unable to locate her death certificate.

      Françoise Rosalie Eulalie Merjai (1831 - ?)

      Second or third wife of Léon, sister to Victoire, mother of Georges; born 1831 in Luxembourg, married Léon on January 28, 1866 in Namur, Belgium. Unable to locate her death certificate, but she was dead by the time of the Belgica expedition.

      Lucie Alexandrine Eugenie Albertine Lecointe (1851 - 1917)
      Eldest child of Léon and Victoire, eldest sibling of Georges; born 16 February 1851 in Arlon, married Henri Charles Jacques Schoentjes, a professor of science. They had two daughters and two sons and came to greet the Belgica upon its return to Antwerp. Henri retired in February 1913 and Lucie died on the 20th of December, 1917, most likely while Georges was interned in the Netherlands.

      Albert Edouard François Léon Ignace Lecointe (1853 - 1914)
      Scond child of Léon and Victoire, eldest brother and close companion of Georges; born 19th February 1853 in Namur, Chief Engineer of the Belgian Maritime Service and professor of engineering. Avid promoter, alongside Georges, of the idea of a Belgian Navy. Married Léonie Elenore Angeline Dupont on 1st May 1886 in Elsene with Léon, his father, as witness. Part of the Belgian Esperantists League alongside some of his siblings. As the Chief Maritime Engineer, he inspected the Belgica before its departure; it was on his recommendation that the voyage was delayed a month for engine repairs. He was also the only member of the Lecointe family permitted to attend the setting-off ceremony of the Belgica, as mentioned above. Died 23rd of May 1914.

      Aline Eléonore Augusta Lecointe (1855 - 1909)
      Third child of Léon and Victoire; born 6th January 1855 in Namur, Regent of the State School and professor of German in the “normal middle section.” Married Servais Jules Smalt on the 18th of August 1888 in Liège. Mother of 3 children, her daughter, Marguerite, died age 7. Aline retired in April 1900 and was awarded a pension of 1,900 francs that July. She died on the 24th of April, 1909.

      Berthe-Elisa-Victoire Lecointe (1856 - 19?)
      Fourth child of Léon and Victoire; born 30th October 1856 in Namur, Regent of Primary Education for the State Schools of Antwerp-Hoboken and professor of Esperanto under the name Elisa. Published etymological jokes in a few French newspapers and was, alongside her brothers, an avid promoter of Esperanto in Belgium. Came to the docks to greet the Belgica. She was still advertising for Esperanto classes as late as 1913 and there is a public call for a “Mme. E Lecointe” to pick up her mail in 1915, but her death certificate remains elusive.

      Jean-Jules-Antoine Lecointe (1858 - 1892)
      Fifth child of Léon and Victoire, second brother of Georges; born 24th November 1858 in St. Servais. Artillery lieutenant. Died after a short illness on 9th of December 1892 in Thessaloniki, then part of the Ottoman Empire. When his death was reported, the paper included “something distressing:” “His fiancée, Mlle. Eva de Baeremaecker, announced his death before the letter containing the fact had arrived.”

      Léonie Flora Nathalie Désirée Lecointe (1860 - ?)
      Sixth child of Léon and Victoire; born 17th September 1860 in St. Servais. Married M. Louis Alphonse Nys in St. Servais on the 2oth of June, 1896. No death certificate has been located.

      Victorine Agathe Andrée Flora Lecointe (1862 - ?)
      Seventh and final child of Léon and Victoire; born 7th July 1862 in St. Servais. Married Louis Verbylen, a wood merchant, who died the 15th of June 1883 in France. No further documents relating to Victorine have been located.
       
      Blanche Lecointe (1866 - ?)
      First child of Léon and Françoise, Georges’ only full sister; born 18th July 1866 in Antwerp. On the 25th of December 1895, Blanche was committed to the Schaerbeek Asylum on 385 Chausser de Louvain. She was 29 years old. Her official address remained 102 Rue de Staassart, Ixelles, Brussels for the fourteen years that she was institutionalized. On the 16th of October 1909, Georges sued for her independence, which was granted on October 23rd. Blanche is interred alongside Georges and his wife. The tombstone does not bear her name. I have yet to find her death certificate. For more on the Schaerbeek Asylum during this period, I suggest this article (in French).

      Georges Lecointe (1869 - 1929)
      Second and final child of Léon and Françoise, Captain of the Belgica and second in command of the Expedition; born 29th of April 1869 in Antwerp. Became engaged to Charlotte (see below) on the eve of the Expedition’s departure; they were married the 16th of June, 1900, in Antwerp. Director of the Royal Observatory of Belgium, among other roles. Died the 27th of May, 1929, aged 60, in Uccle, Belgium. Buried with his wife and sister.

      Charlotte Marie Josephine Lucie Dumiez (1873 - 19?)
      Born 3 November 1873 in Antwerp. Before Georges, the only confirmed document of hers is an offhanded mention of a racehorse she owned in the early 1890s. Became engaged to Georges on the eve of the Expedition’s departure, apparently after her father’s wishes; they were married the 16th of June, 1900, in Antwerp. Lived with Georges and their three children (below) at the Royal Observatory of Belgium, presumably until her death. Charlotte is buried with Georges and his sister, Blanche, though her name is not marked on the grave. Her death certificate eludes me.

      Henri Albert Lecointe (1901 - 19?)
      Eldest son of Georges and Charlotte; born 15 July 1901 in Uccle. 

      Charlotte Marie Lecointe (1902 - 19?)
      Only daughter of Georges and Charlotte; born 16 August 1902 in Uccle. Sent a postcard to a friend from the Observatory during WWI where she drew an X over the Director’s house to indicate her residence there. 

      Louis Georges Lecointe (1904 - 19?)
      Youngest child of Georges and Charlotte; born 25 October 1904 in Uccle. 


      Georges & Charlotte Lecointe, 1913