A country of Western Europe, Belgium has a coastline on the North Sea but is otherwise surrounded by the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and France. It is characterized by the Ardennes in the southeast, and drained lowland plains by the rivers Meuse and Scheldt. Flemish is spoken mainly in Flanders in the north, and French and Walloon, a French dialect, in Wallonia in the south. Belgium made a rapid recovery after World War II and has made economic progress ever since. It became one of the Benelux countries, with the Netherlands and Luxembourg, in 1948. This, and the geography of its position, gave it significant influence in Europe, and it became a founder member of the European Union, with Brussels now providing the administrative headquarters of the organization. The European Countries Today series provides information on the 15 of the most important countries in Europe. Each book in the series describes the history, geography, economy, culture, and relationship each country has with its neighbors. Thereis also a separate title, European Union Facts & Figures, which provides statistical and factual information about the European Union. Each title in this series includes color photos throughout, and back matter including: an index and further reading lists for books and internet resources. Key Icons appear throughout the books in this series in an effort to encourage library readers to build knowledge, gain awareness, explore possibilities and expand their viewpoints through our content rich non-fiction books. Key Icons in this series are as follows: Words to Understand are shown at the front of each chapter with definitions. These words are set in boldfaced type in that chapter, so that readers are able to reference back to the definitions—building their vocabulary and enhancing their reading comprehension. Sidebars are highlighted graphics with content rich material within that allows readers to build knowledge and broaden their perspectives by weaving together additional information to provide realistic and holistic perspectives. Educational Videos are offered in chapters through the use of a QR code, that, when scanned, takes the student to an online video showing a moment in history, a speech, or an instructional video. This gives the readers additional content to supplement the text. Text-Dependent Questions are placed at the end of each chapter. They challenge the reader's comprehension of the chapter they have just read, while sending the reader back to the text for more careful attention to the evidence presented there. Research Projects are provided at the end of each chapter as well and provide readers with suggestions for projects that encourage deeper research and analysis.