Wallonie Libre
Wallonie Libre or Free Wallonia is a small political movement in Belgium. It is believed to have been founded on June 18, 1940 on the battlegrounds of Waterloo in the Brabant province, the place where Napoleon was defeated in 1815 by the British, Prussian and Russian armies. Wallingants, the Walloon nationalists, used this battleground in the Interbellum for the purpose of propaganda and demonstrations. Free Wallonia claims to be the eldest resistance movement against nazism in Belgium.
Throughout history, the Free Wallonia movement has been known by far as the only true Wallingant organization in Belgium. It organised the so-called combat wallon, the Walloon combat, leading to the 1980 Congress where the movement began to call for complete Walloon independence. Notable moments in their history were the riots in 1950 following the Royal Question, the organization of an annual National Walloon Congress and the 1960-1961 Winter General Strike, following the adoption of the Unique Law.
In 2005, Jacques Rogissart, the then national leader of Free Wallonia, decided to join the Rassemblement Wallonie-France (Rally Wallonia-France), led by Paul-Henry Gendebien. He created a counter-organization called Nouvelle Wallonie Libre (New Free Wallonia). He was replaced by Jacques Dupont.
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