Émile Francqui

Lucien Émile Francqui ( born June 25, 1863 in Brussels, † November 1, 1935 same place ) was a Belgian explorer and statesman.

Francqui became a lieutenant in the Belgian army and came in September 1885 as a topographer to the Congo, where he in 1890 of the great expedition of Bia to Katanga joined. After Bia had died on August 4, 1892 Fancqui took over the further research. He discovered the source of the Lualaba and pursued the further course of this current over the waterfalls of Nsilo down to a series of wide stretches of water, which he recognized as five individual lakes: Kabwe, Kabele, Upemba, Mutenda and Kissale (or Kassali ). On his travels he not only made discoveries, but also ensured that the beginning of the fight against the slave trade in the Congo. In January 1893 Francqui met in a Lusambo on Sankuru and returned together with Henri Delcommune on February 3, 1893 after the Stanley Pool ( Brazzaville) back.

King Leopold II was quick to recognize the talents of Francqui and sent him in 1897 to China to negotiate a railway contract for Belgium. There Francqui held on until 1902. Its main competitor in this matter was Herbert Hoover, who later became President of the United States. Later Francqui Governor of the Banque d' Outremer. After the outbreak of the First World War, Belgium was largely occupied by German troops and the population suffered from hunger. The U.S. put a utility on that later initiated by President Hoover Belgian Fund to alleviate the suffering. The foods were transported over neutral Holland, but you needed a reliable partner in Belgium itself Hoover remembered Emile Francqui, the president of the National Relief Committee (Comité National de Secours et d' Alimentation / Nationaal Hulp en Voedingscomité ) was. They called him the " uncrowned King of Belgium ".

After the war, they had to be able to build up sufficient funds available to Belgium again. Francqui was determined to put this money into education and organized a university society that promoted the construction and the establishment of universities. Prince Leopold, later King Leopold III. asked Francqui the early thirties in improving the health care system in the Belgian Congo to help. Francqui laid the foundation stone for the Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine in Brussels, which moved in 1933 to Antwerp.

He founded and funded in 1932, together with Herbert Hoover, it has set itself the goal of promoting basic research in Belgium Francqui Foundation. Currently a prize money of 150,000 euros will be awarded to a young Belgian scientist or a young Belgian scholar year. The winner is determined by the Foundation and awarded the prize by the Belgian king. The Francqui price is a major scientific prize in Belgium.

Francqui was twice Minister of State in the Cabinet, in 1926/27 and 1934 / 35th