- Born
- Died
- Hendrik Conscience was born on December 3, 1812 in Antwerp, French Empire [now Belgium]. He was a writer, known for De loteling (1919), De arme edelman (1921) and Baas Ganzendonck (1929). He was married to Maria Peinen. He died on September 10, 1883 in Elsene, Belgium.
- SpouseMaria Peinen(August 4, 1842 - September 10, 1883) (his death, 3 children)
- In 1855, translations of his books began to appear in English, French, German, Czech and Italian which achieved considerable popularity outside Belgium.
- Over the course of his career, he published over 100 novels and novellas and achieved considerable popularity. After his death, with the decline of romanticism, his works became less fashionable but are still considered as classics of Flemish literature.
- He is considered the pioneer of Dutch-language literature in Flanders, writing at a time when Belgium was dominated by the French language among the upper classes, in literature and government.
- The French writer, Alexandre Dumas, plagiarized Conscience's book, The Conscript, to produce a work of his own, profiting from the chaotic intellectual property laws of the time. Numerous pirated translations also appeared.
- He was given an official funeral and buried at the Schoonselhof cemetery in Antwerp, his tomb now being a monument in honour of the great writer.
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