Dyle (department)

Dyle was a former department of France and Belgium. It existed during two distinct periods:

• French Department (1795-1814): This was a department of the French First Republic, and later the French Empire. It was formed in 1795 during the French annexation of the Austrian Netherlands and was named after the river Dyle. Its capital was Brussels. The department was subdivided into three arrondissements: Brussels, Leuven, and Nijvel (Nivelles). After Napoleon's defeat in 1814, this department was dissolved.

• Province of South Brabant/Brabant (1815-1995): Following the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the territory of the former French Dyle department largely became part of the new United Kingdom of the Netherlands. This new entity designated the area as the Province of South Brabant. Following Belgian independence in 1830, South Brabant became a province of Belgium. In 1995, South Brabant was split into the modern provinces of Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant, and the Brussels-Capital Region. The name "Dyle" is therefore no longer officially associated with an administrative region, but the Dyle river continues to flow through the area, retaining a historical and geographical link to the region.