Religion and Communities: Roman Catholicism is the main religion in Belgium. Approximately 80% of the population are Roman Catholics, although nowadays only 20% of that population attends mass regularly. The other main religions in the country are Protestantism, Islam, Judaism and Anglicanism. Religion is the main reason that Belgium found its independence from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1830. The southern part of the Kingdom was mainly Catholic which broke off to form its country, which is the Belgium which we know today. Belgium is divided into three communities, the Flemish community, the French speaking community and the German speaking community. These three communities divide Belgium up into three regions. The first of these is Brussels which has a population of nearly a million and is mainly Dutch and French speaking. The Flemish region which has a population of nearly six million and is mainly Dutch speaking and Wallonia which is mainly French speaking and has a population of 3.36 million. The Flemish region or Flanders is situated to the north of the country and encompasses the cities of Antwerp and Limburg. Brussels is situated in the southern part of the Flemish region and Wallonia takes over the southern part of the country and the cities of Liege and Namur are located in this region.
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