Belgium Church Records

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Belgium

Church records (Parochieregisters, Kerkelijke registers, Registres ecclésiastiques)

Research use: Usually information given is quite complete and identifies parents and other relationships. There are gaps, however, in many parish registers.

Record type: Births and baptisms; marriages, marriage proclamations; deaths and burials; confirmations; church censuses, memberships, and family registers.

Time period: 1500s-present. Many early church records were destroyed during the Thirty Years’ War 1618-1648 and in subsequent conflicts. Generally registers exist for the following denominations:

• Roman Catholic (Rooms Katholieke, Eglise catholique) 1527-
• Dutch Reformed (Nederlands Hervormde) 1553-
• French Reformed (Waals Hervormde, Eglise réformée) 1583-
• Evangelical Lutheran (Evangelisch Lutherse, Eglise luthérienne) 1590-
• Old Catholic (Oud Katholieke) 1615-
• German Reformed (Evangelisch Hervormde) 1615-
• Baptist/Mennonite (Doopsgezinde, Eglise baptiste) 1622-
• Anglican (Engelse) 1698-
• Jews (Joodse gemeende, Congrégation Juive) 1709-
• Greek Catholic (Grieks Katholieke) 1798-

Contents:

• Baptismal/birth records: Baptism and/or birth dates; children’s names, parents’ residence and names (sometimes mother's maiden name is given); witnesses’ and godparents’ names, and sometimes their residence and relationships to infants.
• Marriage records: Candidates’ names, marriage and/or proclamation dates; often parents’ names, birth places, residence, witnesses and former spouses.
• Death/burial records: Name of deceased, death and/or burial dates; often age and/or birth date and cause of death; residence, spouse’s name, especially for women; parents’ names for deceased children.
• Confirmation records: Children were confirmed between the ages of 7 and 12. Candidates name, age, residence and father’s name. Church censuses, membership lists, family registers: Names of married couples, their ages or birth dates and places, sometimes marriage dates, childrens’ names, ages or birth dates, death or burial dates of children. Sometimes marriage dates and names of spouses of children are given.
• Donations before death or for masses for the dead: Names of husbands and wives, and sometimes other family members.

Location: Provincial, state, municipal and church archives.

Population coverage: 20% before 1700; 50-70% after 1700.

Marriage contracts and banns (Huwelijksvoorwaarden en bijlagen, Contrats de mariage)

Research use:Gives marriage information, identifies family relationships, shows places of residence not shown in parish registers.

Record type: Marriage information and documentation.

Time Period: 1300-present.

Content: Couples’ names, marriage intention dates, residences, occupations, witnesses’ names, often parents’ names and sometimes other relationships.

Location: City, state and church archives.

Population coverage: Possibly 5-10%.

he old Parish Registers are of great use to the genealogists. They include:

• Baptism Records - note the sponsors, i.e., godparents and their place of origin
• Marriage Records - note the witnesses
• Deaths or Burials - often disconcertingly sparse in information

Alphabetical indexes by parish are available and could comprise more than one village. All of these records are generally kept at the National Archives (Archives générales du Royaume) for the Brabant Province, and at the State Archives in each of the other Provinces (see list above for addresses). They are sometimes found in City Archives (Brussels, Antwerp, and Mechelen for example).

Depending on the parish, the records go back to the early 18th century, and in some cases, to the 17th and 16th centuries. Although some may not have been available, all of Belgium’s Parish registers that are extant have been microfilmed, along with their indexes (Tables). In an effort to preserve the records in Brussels (AGR), using the microfilms is preferred over handling the originals.

Parish records sometimes give minimal information, such as missing parents’ names on christening records. In such cases, it is vital to take note of the godparents or sponsors to establish kinship.

Belgian genealogists have created a huge national file that contains all old Parish registers Indexes. This should prove invaluable to all researchers.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has microfilmed and is continuing to microfilm these records for all of Belgium for the Archives Générales du Royaume (AGR) as the privacy laws permit. The microfilms can be viewed at the Archives’ facilities or through a Family History Center. Check the FamilySearch Catalog at http://www.familysearch.org to find the one you need.