Belgian armed forces, on the eve of the outbreak of World War I, underwent profound structural and organizational reforms. Until 1909, the Belgian army, including, of course, the Belgian infantry, consisted of a large number of volunteers and a number of soldiers appointed on the basis of conscription - rather selective than universal. In addition, the Belgian army was not very numerous - there were only about 43,000 soldiers in the line service in 1902! However, the growing international tension, and especially the aggressive policy of neighboring Germany, led to the initiation of deep reforms in 1909. In the course of these reforms, general conscription was de facto introduced, which increased the number of Belgian troops after mobilization, and efforts were made to improve the equipment of the army - especially in the field of artillery - with varying results. As a result of the universal mobilization announced on July 31, 1914, the Belgian army numbered about 220,000 people. However, it had only 120 machine guns and no heavy field artillery or howitzers. She also continued to march into battle in the dark blue uniforms introduced in 1853! The army was divided into 7 divisions: 6 infantry divisions and 1 cavalry division. In the field army, mainly in the infantry, about 117,000 people served, and in the fortress army - about 80,000. Despite the poor prospects, the Belgian army fought hard against the German invasion. It is worth adding that the Belgian army saved a piece of its country in the area of the Jizera River from German occupation, which it held until November 1918! At the end of the war, the Belgian army consisted of 12 divisions.