Two centuries of marine biology in Belgium In Belgium, with its rather small and monotonous coastal line and without much sea commerce going on, only a very slight interest in marine science existed before 1800, During the nineteenth century, however, marine biology became one of the main topics for research among Belgian scientists. This was largely due to the efforts of the Louvain professor Pierre Joseph Van Beneden (1809-1894) and his son Edouard (1846-1910), professor in Liege. Around 1900, their leading role was taken over by Gustave Gilson (1859-1944), who largely succeeded in shaping Belgian oceanography around a well-defined research programme focusing on the Mer Flamande. Apart from Gilson, some other researchers such as Desire Damas (1877-1959) and Paul Pelseneer (1863-1945) contributed to the study of marine science in Belgium.