Maurice Maeterlinck (1862 – 1949) is the only Belgian author to have received the Nobel Prize for Literature up to now. He was awarded this highest literary honour in 1911 in recognition of the high esteem in which he was held internationally as one of the leading writers of the time. Maeterlinck was definitely one of the leading lights of symbolism in literature, a philosophical-cum-artistic movement that regarded earthly reality merely as a symbol of a deeper, sometimes fatal reality, against which there is no remedy.
Maeterlinck was born in Ghent to a wealthy, French-speaking family, and was educated in French. As was quite common in the upper class in Flanders he regarded himself as Flemish and as far as he was concerned, French was the only cultural language available.
Maeterlinck's literary heyday was during the period leading up to the First World War, when, within a relatively short time, he produced masterpieces of innovative literature thanks to his poetry, early essays and, above all, his plays.

Maurice Polydore Marie Bernard Maeterlinck was born in Ghent on Friday, 29 August 1862, at number 6 Peperstraat. Within the bosom of this wealthy family, his father, Polydore Maeterlinck, mainly spent his time managing his fortune, which increased substantially upon his marriage with Maurice’s mother, Mathilde van den Bossche. The family also owned a mansion in Oostakker, and the  most charming part, a five-hectare garden, boasting flowers, fruit trees, bees and the canal to Terneuzen close by, made a deep impression on the young Maurice.