During the first two weeks of August 1914, the Germans besieged Liège and Belgium was dragged into the Great War. Nearly a million Belgian refugees poured into the Netherlands.100,000 were to stay permanently. There were 21 refugee camps spread throughout the country. Camp life was not always peaceful. In Camp Zeist an insurrection occurred as a result of the exorbitant prices on alcohol and tobacco in December 1914. The Belgians threw stones, the Dutch guards retaliated with bullets. Eight people were killed and eighteen wounded.
The Belgians in Camp Harderwijk built a bicycle track and a snackbar for french fries. After the war, the Dutch government presented the penniless Belgians with a bill of 98 million guilders for providing shelter and other amenities. Half of this debt was later remitted.