Luxembourg Essay ⋆ Business Essay Examples ⋆ EssayEmpire

A landlocked country in Western Europe, Luxembourg (998 sq. mi., population 480,222, gross domestic product [GDP] $38 billion in 2007) is a hub of its economic and political activity. Once a part of the Low Countries that produced so much of the fine art and music of the late Middle Ages and Early Modern period, Luxembourg has a history dating back to the construction of Luxembourg Castle in 983, named for the House of Luxembourg whose dynasty presided over the country until 1477, when Luxembourg and the Netherlands became part of the Habsburg Empire. The modern state formally dates from 1867, after France and Prussia nearly engaged in war over control of the small country. Despite its independence, the king of the Netherlands remained the ruler of Luxembourg until 1890, when William III died and passed control of the Netherlands and Luxembourg to separate heirs.

Modern-day Luxembourg is a trilingual country, with German, French, and Luxembourgish as its official languages. Luxembourgish, spoken by some 300,000 people worldwide, is a Moselle Franconian language: a High German dialect developed among the German immigrants in France, Belgium, and Romania during the 12th and 13th centuries.

Luxembourg is a parliamentary democracy with a constitution ratified in 1868, a year after the second Treaty of London. The legislature is unicameral, consisting only of the Chamber of Deputies, the 60 members of which are directly elected from four regions every five years. The Council of State, 21 nonpoliticians appointed by the Grand Duke, advises the Chamber during the drafting of legislation. The Grand Duke, currently Henri I, is the hereditary monarch and head of state, while the prime minister is the head of government and serves on the Council of Government with the other ministers of the executive branch.

Since 1958, Luxembourg was part of the Benelux economic union with Belgium and the Netherlands—its fellow former Low Countries—the name of the union derived from the first letters of each country’s name. Most of Benelux’s concerns and duties have since been subsumed into the European Union, of which the Benelux countries were founding members.

Luxembourg is one of the wealthiest nations in the world, and the second-largest investment fund center (after the United States). The GDP per capita is the highest in the world—$87,995 in 2006—but in recent years the government has run at a budget deficit for the first time in recent history, a casualty of the 21st century’s slowing economic growth. Inflation and unemployment have historically been low, and the GDP high, thanks to a history of industrialization and banking excellence. The industrial sector has included significant export levels of steel, chemicals, and rubber, and as industry declined, the financial sector has soared. The country has actively courted the interest of internet companies, and both Skype and eBay have opened headquarters in Luxembourg as a result.

Bibliography:

Paul Arblaster, A History of the Low Countries (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005);
C. H. Blom, Emiel Lamberts, eds., James C. Kennedy, trans., History of the Low Countries (Berghahn Books, 1999);
Bernard A. Cook, Belgium: A History (Peter Lang, 2005).

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