Free Belgian forces

The Free Belgian forces (French: Forces belges libres, Dutch: Vrije Belgische Strijdkrachten) were soldiers from Belgium and its colonies who fought as part of the Allied armies during World War II, after the official Belgian surrender to Nazi Germany. It is distinct from the Belgian Resistance which existed in German-occupied Belgium.

In 1940, Belgian pre-war émigrés and former soldiers who had escaped occupied Belgium were formed into units within the British military which later fought in the European and Mediterranean Theatres. These included an infantry formation, which later became the Brigade Piron, as well as Commando and paratroop units. Belgians also served in the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy, serving in Belgian-only units as well as in majority-British units. Significant numbers of soldiers from the Belgian Congo fought on the Allied side against the Italians in East Africa. After the liberation of Belgium in September 1944, the Free Belgian forces formed the backbone for the newly reorganized Belgian army.

Belgian involvement in World War II began when German forces invaded Belgium, which had been following a policy of neutrality, on 10 May 1940. After 18 days of fighting, Belgium surrendered on 28 May and was placed under German occupation. During the fighting, between 600,000 and 650,000 Belgian men (nearly 20% of the country's male population) had served in the military. Most were made prisoners of war and detained in Germany, though some were released before the end of the war. Leopold III, king and commander in chief of the army, also surrendered to the Germans on 28 May along with his army and remained a prisoner for the rest of the war. The Belgian government fled first to Bordeaux in France, and then to London in the United Kingdom where it formed an official government in exile in October 1940.

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