Теория и практика перевода. Терехова Г.В. - 76 стр.

         In the second half of the sixteenth century the Belgians and Dutch reacted
against the tyranny of Philip II (1555-1598), King of Spain and the Nether-lands.
This resistance was intertwined with troubles between Catholics and Protestants. In
the 1580's the Protestants of the Northern Netherlands managed to secede. The
Spanish king reconquered the south, where Catholicism was imposed. The leading
traders and intellectuals migrated to the north and took their capital and knowledge
with them. Moreover, the Dutch were able to block the Scheldt estuary until 1794.
This caused the decline of Antwerp and the rise of Amsterdam.
         Under Archduke Albert and Archduchess Isabella (daughter of Philip II) the
Southern Netherlands (Belgium excluding Liège) became semi-autonomous (1598-
1621) and they could preserve some of their cultural splendour (Rubens). The
Southern Netherlands, once back under Spanish control, had to pay for the defeats
inflicted on their masters. They thus lost many territories to the Northern Netherlands
and France forever. The country suffered heavily during the wars of the French king
Louis XIV, who wrought havoc in Brussels in 1695.
         In 1713 the Southern Netherlands entered into Austrian hands. They devoted
themselves to encouraging prosperity. The Austrians promoted trade and commerce.
In the 1720's the Company of Ostend was successful in trading with the Orient but
the Austrian emperor was forced by the other European powers to suspend the
company's operations. In Wallonia, the industrial sector was characterized by
innovation.
         In the meantime the princedom of Liège remained independent within the
Holy Roman Empire. In 1794 Austrian rule came to an end whit the French conquest
of the Southern Netherlands and Liège and their annexation to France.
         The French and Dutch periods (1794 - 1830)
         In 1792 the troops of the French republic managed to conquer the Southern
Netherlands and Liège, but at the start of 1793 the Austrians reoccupied the country.
A new French military campaign in 1794 put an end to Austrian rule once and for all.
         France annexed the Southern Netherlands and Liège. The newly integrated
territories were imposed the same republican institutions. When Napoleon came to
power, Belgium became part of the French empire. Napoleon implemented a wide
ranging framework of civil law, which is known as the Code Napoléon. This later
became the basis of civil law in Belgium.
         During the French period Belgian industry took off. Steam engines and
machines were smuggled into Belgium and British immigrants erected factories.
Wallonia became the most industrialized region on the continent of Europe. Ghent
was the only industrial city in Flanders. The port of Antwerp benefited from the
French occupation as the Dutch blockade of the Scheldt was lifted.
         The French government imposed military service on all young males. So
many Belgians were forced to fight in the Napoleonic wars. During his reign all
political freedom was suspended. In Flanders, use of the Dutch language for any
purpose was suppressed and the press barred from using it.
         After the defeat of Napoleon, the allied powers meeting at the Congress of
Vienna (1814-1815) decided to erect a barrier against France by uniting the Northern