The Belgian Navy (, ) of the Belgian Armed Forces, is the naval service of Belgium.
History Early history
The Belgian Navy was created as the Marine Royale () on 15 January 1831. The force has operated in various forms throughout Belgian history.
When the country became independent after the Belgian Revolution of 1830, a Dutch squadron blocked the Scheldt estuary. To deal with this threat the Belgian Congress ordered two brigantines to be built, which bore the names Congrès and Les Quatre Journées. After the French Army, led by Marshal Count Gérard, captured the citadel of Antwerp in 1832, the captured Dutch gun boats were pressed into Belgian service. In 1840 the Belgian government bought the schooner Louise Marie and in 1845 the brig Duc de Brabant. Louise Marie participated in the Rio Nuñez Incident in 1849. In 1862, the Belgian government discarded its navy and pursued a minimalistic naval policy.
Disbandment In April 1862 the existing royal navy was disbanded as an economy measure. The navy's personnel were transferred to a "state navy force" manning small vessels and employed in non-military functions such as the provision of ferry services, inspection of incoming vessels and charting research. The need for a proper naval service to provide coastal and port defence was raised periodically but did not progress beyond the retention as a reserve of four lightly armed gunboats, moored in the Port of Antwerp and crewed by members of the Belgian Army's Engineering Corps.
World War I At the outbreak of World War I, Belgium had no navy (an impromptu force was assembled at the Battle for Lake Tanganyika) but the war caused this policy to change and a Corps of Destroyers and Sailors was created in 1917. The Belgian naval personnel served onboard French minesweepers and provided the artillerymen for Belgian merchant ships. The Treaty of Versailles allocated Belgium 11 torpedo boats and 26 minesweepers. For budgetary reasons, Belgium again abolished its navy in 1927.
World War II In 1939, against the looming threat of a new war with Germany, Belgium once again resurrected its navy as the Naval Corps. This new navy, consisting mostly of small patrol vessels and coastal artillery units, lasted barely a year until the German invasion of May 1940. During the 18 days campaign, the trawler A4 evacuated much of the government's gold reserve to Britain, while several others helped at the Allied evacuation at Dunkirk.
During World War II many members of the Naval Corps, together with Belgian fishermen and merchant sailors, escaped to Britain with the explicit wish of fighting the German occupiers. The Royal Navy took advantage of this opportunity to enlist the Belgians into separate groups of more or less entirely Belgian-crewed ships. From 1940 to 1946, the Belgian Section of the British Royal Navy crewed two corvettes, (Buttercup and ), a squadron of MMS minesweepers and three patrol boats (, Electra and Kernot). In 1946, Britain donated the ships to Belgium. These vessels became the backbone of the new Belgian Navy.
Cold War
The Belgian Navy was expanded in the late 1940s and the 1950s with the transfer of former U.S., British, and Commonwealth warships. After Belgium became a member of NATO, the role of the Belgian Navy was to help secure the North Sea, the English Channel, and the Western Approaches in cooperation with other navies in northwestern Europe. The first major surface ships that Belgium received were six s from the United Kingdom. They also received the and minesweepers from the United States. Later developments occurred in the 1970s, when the natively designed Belgian s were built, and in the 1980s when Belgium, France, and the Netherlands launched the s.
Post-Cold War In the beginning of the nineties, the end of the Cold War caused the Belgian government to restructure the Belgian Armed Forces in order to cope with the changed threats. This led to a reduction in the size of the Armed Forces. With regards to the Belgian navy, these cutbacks meant that one was taken out of service and that three s were sold to France. In 2002, the government decided to impose a "single structure" on the armed forces in which the independent Belgian Marine Royale ceased to exist. The former Navy became the Belgian Naval Component (COMOPSNAV) of the Armed Forces; it is also generally referred to as the Belgian Navy.
On 20 July 2005, the Belgian government decided to buy two of the remaining six Dutch M-class frigates to replace the two remaining frigates of the Wielingen class (Wielingen and Westdiep) at the time still in service with the Belgian Navy, which in turn were sold to Bulgaria. On 21 December 2005, the Dutch government sold Karel Doorman (F827) and Willem Van Der Zaan (F829) to Belgium. The two ships were sold for about 250 million Euros. These two M-class frigates entered service with the Belgian Navy where they were renamed Leopold I and Louise-Marie. In October 2005, the Wielingen-class frigate Wandelaar was officially handed over to the Bulgarian Navy, which christened the ship as Drăzki ('The Bolds'). The remaining ships of the class were transferred to Bulgaria as well, after completing modernization in Belgium. A Tripartite-class minehunter, Myosotis, which was renamed Tsibar was transferred to Bulgaria soon after.
The current Commander of the Belgian Navy is Rear Admiral Jan De Beurme (since September 2020).
In February 2013 it was announced that Belgium had ordered two patrol vessels from the French shipyard SOCARENAM, to be delivered within two years. Both were received, P901 Castor in 2014 and P902 Pollux in early 2015. The two vessels are to remain in service until 2044–2045.
Mission
In times of crisis and war the Belgian Navy will manage, with the support of its allies, the crises rising from the infringements to the principles of International law and from the Humans right and exercise the Belgian sovereignty in the maritime zones where the Belgian Navy is qualified, defend the underwater communication lines, main roads and allied, and protect the ports against any air, surface or underwater attack.
In times of peace the Belgian Navy has the following roles: To ensure the presence of Belgium at sea. To support our diplomacy and our foreign trade. Technical and military collaboration with the allied countries. Participation in humanitarian actions. Contribute to the nation in the maritime zones for which Belgium is responsible: Contribution to oceanographic search. Control of fishing Contribution to the control of pollution at sea. Participation in the plan of assistance in territorial waters Support for customs and police operations Detection of wrecks. Participation in rescues at sea. Contribution to the training of the commercial naval officers Control of territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone. If necessary, opening of the centre of hyperbaric medicine to the population. Destruction of explosive devices at sea Preparation with the tasks to be carried out in times of crisis and war. Contribution to dissuasion at sea by the means of permanent allied squadrons.
Organisation
Leadership
Ranks
Officer ranks
Other ranks
Fleet of ships
Active fleet of ships Class In service Origin Picture Type Builder Ship No. Comm. Displacement Notes Frigates (2) M class 2 ASW frigates Schelde Naval ShipbuildingLeopold IF930(in Belgian service) (in Netherlands service) 3,300 tonnes Second-hand purchase from the Royal Netherlands Navy, replaced 2 remaining Wielingen class. Modernised in 2012–15. To be replaced with 3 Future Surface Combatant frigates around 2030. Louise-Marie F931 (in Belgian service)
(in Netherlands service) Patrol vessels (2) 2 Coastal patrol vessel SOCARENAM Sociéte Calaisienne de Réparation Navale et Mécanique Castor P901 455 tonnes A third one has been ordered in 2024. Pollux P902 Mine warfare ships (5) 4 Minehunters Mercantile-Belyard Shipyard Bellis M916 536 tonnes 6 City-class mine countermeasures vessel to replace this class from 2025.Frans consortium mag nieuwe Belgische mijnenjagers bouwen
In September 2025 Belgium announced that it will donate its four remaining s to Bulgarian Navy (, , , and ). Crocus M917 Lobelia M921 Primula M924 City class 2 MCM "Mine Countermeasures Vessel" (hull) Naval Group Oostende M940 3 Nov 2025 2,800 tonnes Successor of the in collaboration with the Royal Netherlands Navy announced in March 2019.M94125 Sep 2026 Auxiliary ships (1) 1 Hydrographic research vessel Freire Shipyard 25 June 2022 1,200 tonnes Successor of the Belgica. Note: 1 ship donated to the Ukrainian Navy in June 2025. The Narcis underwent full maintenance before being donated. Belgium provided basic training and the Netherlands offered on-the-job training for the crews.
Ships on order and future ships ClassOn orderOriginPictureTypeBuilderShipNo.Planned Comm.StatusDisplacement / lengthNotesFrigates (2)ASWF class "Anti-Submarine Warfare Frigate"2 (+ 1 planned to be ordered) Artist impressionAnti-submarine frigateDamen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding––Under contract6,400 tonnesThe Belgian Armed Forces and Royal Netherlands Navy will replace their M-class frigates with the Future Surface Combatant. The new Belgian government announced its intention to order an additional third frigate.––Under contractMine countermeasures vessels (5)City class4 MCM "mine countermeasures vessel"(hull) Naval GroupM942 Fitting out2,800 tonnesSuccessor of the in collaboration with the Royal Netherlands Navy announced in March 2019.M943 ConstructionM944 Under contractM945 Under contractPatrol vessels (1)1Coastal patrol vesselSOCARENAM Sociéte Calaisienne de Réparation Navale et Mécanique Vega P903 Delivery first half of 2027Under contract455 tonnesIn 2023 Belgium decided to get a third patrol ship to patrol the Belgian sector of the North Sea.Belgium will get a third patrol ship
Aircraft Aircraft operated by 40th Heli Squadron, from the Belgian Air Force.
Current fleet ModelQuantityOriginPictureTypeRoleNotesNH90 NFH4 Medium helicopterUtility and search and rescue2013 The first NH90 helicopter was delivered and introduced into service replacing the Westland Sea King and Alouette III from 2014 onwards. The 4 helicopters will be transformed for the ASW mission. It was planned as part of the STAR plan. It was confirmed in December 2025.UMS Skeldar V-2001 (+ 5 on order) Unmanned rotorcraftNaval surveillance and mine countermeasure droneFirst flight performed in 2026. 1 will equip each ship of the City class.
Future aircraft ModelOn orderTypeRoleNotesTBD4HelicopterSearch and rescueFour new helicopters will succeed the NH90 NFH in the SAR role from 2026-2027. The purchase was planned as part of the STAR plan, and was confirmed in December 2025.
Past fleet list Belgian Navy ships since 1945:
F910 Victor Billet, Tacoma-class frigate (decommissioned 1959, scrapped 1959)
F910 Wielingen, Wielingen-class frigate (decommissioned in the summer of 2007 and sold to Bulgaria) F911 Westdiep, Wielingen-class frigate (decommissioned on 5 October 2007 and sold to Bulgaria) F912 Wandelaar, Wielingen-class frigate (decommissioned 2004 and sold to Bulgaria in 2005) F913 Westhinder, Wielingen-class frigate (decommissioned 1993, scrapped 2000)
M915 Aster, Tripartite minehunter (sold to Pakistan 2018) M918 Dianthus, Tripartite minehunter (sold to France 1997) M919 Fuchsia, Tripartite minehunter (sold to France 1997) M920 Iris, Tripartite minehunter (sold to France 1997) M922 Myosotis, Tripartite minehunter (sold to Bulgaria 2007) M923 Narcis, Tripartite minehunter (donated to Ukraine 2025)
M900 Adrien de Gerlache (ex HMS Liberty, acquired 1949 – decommissioned 1969) M901 Georges Lecointe (i) (ex HMS Cadmus, acquired 1950 – decommissioned 1959) M901 Georges Lecointe (ii) (ex HMCS Wallaceburg, acquired 1959 – decommissioned 1969) M902 Van Haverbeke (i) (ex HMS Ready – acquired 1951 – decommissioned 1960)