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Count Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz

1936–2008

Born
28 Apr 1936, Uccle
Country of birth
Belgium
Died
25 Sep 2008, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve
facts
8
sources
1
images and files
0

Facts and their sources

Tap a fact to see where it comes from.

  • Birth28 Apr 1936, UccleProbable1 source
  • Death25 Sep 2008, Ottignies-Louvain-la-NeuveProbable1 source
  • Titlemayor of a place in BelgiumConfirmed1 competing claim1 source
  • Titleprovincial council memberConfirmed1 competing claim1 source
  • UnionAnna Maria KomorowskaConfirmed1 source

A life in time

  1. Born · Uccle

    Birth, Uccle

  2. Child born: Queen Mathilde of Belgium

    Birth, Uccle

  3. Died · Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve

    Death, Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve

What was it like?

The world around Uccle, 1936: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

Count was born around the same time as Elvis Presley, Woody Allen, and Carl Sagan.

Known for

Titles held

  • mayor of a place in Belgium
  • provincial council member
Born around the same time

  • Elvis Presley

    1935 · American singer and actor (1935–1977)

  • Woody Allen

    1935 · American filmmaker, actor and comedian (born 1935)

  • Carl Sagan

    1934 · American astrophysicist, cosmologist and author (1934–1996)

  • Garrincha

    1933 · Brazilian association football player (1933–1983)

  • Yuri Gagarin

    1934 · Soviet pilot and cosmonaut, first human in space (1934–1968)

  • Tenzin Gyatso

    1935 · 14th Dalai Lama, the spiritual and temporal leader of Tibetans

Fashion

Frugal clothing maintenance habits

People often wore clothing until it was heavily mended; it was not considered shameful to wear a pant with a patch or a sweater with mended elbows. For special occasions, some men would still wear the black jacket and striped trousers they had first worn at their wedding twenty years earlier.

Boys' and youth clothing trends

Starting around 1936, golf breeches that bloused around the calf became popular for Sunday best, while boys typically received their first pair of long trousers around age 17 or 18 as a sign of becoming a man. Children’s weekday clothing was less of a concern, with schoolchildren often wearing iron-shod boots and short trousers.

Music

Radio listening became immensely popular

By 1939, radio listening became a widespread habit in Belgium, with the number of radio sets soaring to over 1.15 million.

The rise of jazz culture

Jazz became a major craze in the 1920s and 1930s, with Belgian cities hosting their first jazz concerts and tournaments for amateur dance orchestras.

Getting around
Around 1940–1945

Wartime travel and fuel costs

During World War II, strict fuel rationing forced civilians to rely on bicycles or overcrowded trams, and private car travel became extremely rare. Petrol for the few permitted vehicles cost between 30 and 50 francs per liter on the black market.

Around 1926–1926

Train travel times between Belgian cities

In 1926, a non-stop express train connected Brussels and Antwerp in 40 minutes, while a journey from Brussels to Cologne took 5 to 6 hours.

Daily life

Childhood Chores and Schooling Experiences

Children's daily routines involved chores like fetching water or tending to animals, while schooling was often disrupted, especially during the war years. Some schools eventually introduced amenities like communal showers, though access to such facilities remained a luxury for many.

Daily Life: Water, Heat, and Toilets

Many working-class homes lacked running water and electricity, requiring families to fetch water from a public pump and use coal stoves or gas lamps for heating and lighting. Toilet facilities were typically located outside the main house, often requiring a cold walk to a backyard shed.

Food
Around 1941–1941

Three hours waiting for butter ration

In early 1941, a person had to wait in line for three hours in the cold just to receive a ration of 120 grams of butter.

Around 1940–1943

Wartime bread was sticky and gray

During the 1940s, wartime bread contained additives like pea or bean flour and straw, resulting in a sticky, gray loaf that had to be left for 24 hours before it could be sliced.

Prices and wages

Decline in food budget share

By the late 1940s, food expenses accounted for approximately 45 percent of a worker household's budget, a significant decrease from about 58 percent in 1929.

Around 1928–1929

Income of industrial worker families, 1928-1929

In the 1928-1929 budget inquiry, some industrial worker families earned at least 24,000 francs annually, a threshold that separated them from white-collar families.

Work

Common Blue-Collar Jobs in Belgium

Blue-collar jobs were concentrated in industries such as metalwork, mining, transport, construction, and textiles.

Earnings in Domestic and Industrial Work

In 1942, live-in Hungarian maids earned a minimum of 350 BEF per month, while an unskilled labourer in 1945 earned 5.60 francs per hour.

During their lifetime

  1. 1944

    Operation Gutt currency reform

    Following the liberation of Brussels in October 1944, the government carried out Operation Gutt to exchange existing banknotes and curb post-war inflation.

  2. 1956

    First nuclear chain reaction achieved in Belgium

    Belgium successfully achieved its first controlled nuclear chain reaction at the BR 1 research reactor in Mol.

  3. 1958

    Brussels hosts World Fair Expo 58

    The World Fair in Brussels, Expo 58, modernized the country and introduced citizens to a new era of global possibilities.

  4. 1962

    First nuclear electricity connected to grid

    The BR 3 reactor, Belgium's first electricity-producing nuclear reactor, was connected to the power grid.

  5. 1974

    Ban on non-EEC labour immigration imposed

    Following the oil crisis, the Belgian government imposed a ban on unskilled labour immigration from non-EEC countries.

  6. 1999

    Dioxin contamination scandal hits food exports

    A major dioxin contamination scandal led to widespread bans on Belgian food exports and forced the government to resign.

Family

Spouses

Children

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.