POTTER United Families

With the addition of Gendebien to the Central committee, Louis'
woes began. At first the committee had gone along with the popular
hero. The only member of government well-known abroad, Louis
was assumed by foreign countries to be the head of the Government.
In 1830, Charles Rogier was only thirty years old, Van De Weyer was
only twenty-eight. Louis was forty-four. Count de Merode was not
much younger, being thirty-nine. While Gendebien was himself fortyone
and d'Hooghvorst as well, the others like Coppin, Vanderlinden,
Nicolaï, Jolly were very young leaders around Louis, the ancient voice
of the free united states of Belgium!
Louis thought that Gendebien came to see him as a threat: “Our
agreement was total independence and freedom. He was one of the
members of the committee with whom I got best along, on opinions
and principles, with whom I could be friend, but the positions he
took did not serve the interest of the citizens as much as the citizens
expected us to serve them.”
Louis definitely enjoyed the prominence his exile had given him;
history expert Blok calls him "the Belgian Lafayette”. On October 2,
King William appealed to the four great powers of the Vienna
Congress to help him end the disturbances in Belgium, with armed
help if necessary. France objected to this idea and sent Talleyrand,
then seventy-six years old, to London.
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