Belgium's Colonial School System and the Evolution of Power

The History of Belgium: A Small Country with a Giant Colonial Legacy — Fexingo History · Oct 23, 2026 · 9m · transcript

While previous episodes have explored the violence of the Congo Free State and the mechanics of colonial extraction, this episode turns its gaze toward the classroom. We examine how Belgium’s colonial education system in the Belgian Congo was designed not to liberate, but to create a compliant class of intermediaries known as the évolués. Through the story of Albert Kalisiri, a Congolese student navigating the rigid patronage system under Father Ludo De Witte, we see how literacy and missionary schools became tools of social control. The conversation traces the shift from religious…