![Gustave Wappers - Episode of the September Days of 1830 [1835]](http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7153/13661663343_04f6dfaaa9.jpg)
On August 25, 1829 riots erupted in Brussels and shops were looted. Theatregoers who had just watched a nationalistic opera joined the mob. Uprisings followed elsewhere in the country. Factories were occupied and machinery destroyed. Order was restored briefly after William committed troops to the Southern Provinces but rioting continued and leadership was taken up by radicals, who started talking of secession. The Belgian Revolution did not end until July 14, 1831.
[Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels - Oil on canvas, 660 x 444 cm]