Albert Thys

Who was Albert Thys?

Albert Thys was a Belgian businessman who was active in the Congo Free State. He gave his name of Thysville to the station of Sona Qongo, currently Mbanza-Ngungu in Bas-Congo.

Born in Dalhem, Thys graduated at the École de guerre, before entering into the service of king Leopold II of Belgium in 1876, as secretary of the colonial businesses. After the return of Henry Morton Stanley, the king sent Thys to England to propose a new expedition to Central Africa on behalf of the Association Internationale Africaine. Thys was actively involved in the organisation of the first expeditions which would lead to the constitution of the Congo Free State.

After arriving in Congo in 1887 he promoted the Matadi-Léopoldville Railway, which was built from 1890 to 1898. He imposed a route by the south, deviating from the Congo river. He was one of the principal craftsmen of the development and the economic development of the Congo Free State and Belgian Congo.