Charles de Coster

Born in Munich on August 20, 1827, and later active in Belgium, Charles de Coster became one of the key early figures in Belgian literature written in French. He is often remembered as a writer who helped shape a national literary identity at a time when Belgium was still a young country.

His most famous book is The Legend of Thyl Ulenspiegel and Lamme Goedzak, a lively, ambitious retelling of the old trickster tale set against the struggles of the Low Countries under Spanish rule. The novel blends folklore, history, humor, and political feeling, and it remains the work most closely associated with his name.

De Coster died in Ixelles on May 7, 1879. Though he was not fully celebrated during his lifetime, he later came to be seen as a major influence on modern Belgian letters.