Lydia Deveen
1929-...
Lydia Deveen joined the resistance at age twelve, secretly distributing underground newspapers during the war. She later became a professor, politician, and lifelong advocate for women’s rights, free speech, and social justice.
Lydia Deveen was born on 26 June 1929 in Brussels and grew up in a liberal and Flemish-minded family. Her father, Emanuel Deveen, was a schoolteacher and an active member of the resistance during the Second World War. At the age of twelve, Lydia began helping as well, including by distributing the Faux Soir—a spoof newspaper produced by the Independence Front. She hid copies between her school notebooks. Her father was responsible for underground press activities in the province of Brabant, and Lydia recalled how teachers would return her notebooks—with the newspaper inside—often slipping in a small coin as thanks for her brave contribution to the resistance.
After the war, Lydia studied Germanic philology and art history at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB), then continued her education at Columbia University in New York. Upon returning to Belgium, she worked as a librarian at the Royal Library and later became curator of the Print Room. In 1978, she was appointed professor of art history at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB).
Lydia was also politically active: she served as a senator and Brussels state secretary, and played a key role in the foundation of De Rode Leeuwen (The Red Lions), a Brussels-based Flemish socialist movement that split from the unitary Socialist Party in 1968 over language policy.
She married Frans De Pauw, one of the founders of the VUB and its medical campus in Jette. Together, they shared a passion for education, culture, and political engagement. Throughout her life, Lydia remained deeply committed to promoting freedom of expression, women’s rights, and a pluralistic society. Her wartime youth, marked by her courageous resistance work, profoundly shaped her lifelong dedication to democratic values and social justice.
Sources:
- Scheelings, Frank, "Deveen, Lydia." Encyclopedie van de Vlaamse Beweging, ADVN, https://encyclopedievlaamsebeweging.be/nl/deveen-lydia.
- Lydia Deveen. Interview afgenomen tijdens de Verhalenavond “Getuigenissen over vrijzinnig humanisme”, georganiseerd door CAVA op 10 mei 2014 in CC De Werf te Aalst. CAVA, https://cava.research.vub.be/nl/collecties/mondelinge-bronnen/vrijzinnig-humanisme/vrijzinnige-verhalenavonden/verhalenavond-aalst/lydia-deveen-over-eerste-wereldoorlog-vlaamsgezindheid-activisme-tweede-wereldoorlog-collaboratie.