Antoine Leclère

Antoine Leclère is a Research Fellow at the Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research and a PhD candidate at the University of Liège. He is affiliated with the Faculty of Law and Criminology at Metajuridica. His research focuses on the legal and political history of the Principality of Liège, with special emphasis on sovereignty conflicts, revolutionary dynamics, and diplomatic relations in early modern Europe.

Education: Master's thesis titled La plume à la main et la rapière au fourreau (2021) analyzed the diplomatic policies of Prince-Bishop François-Charles de Velbrück. Current PhD research explores constitutional ideas and legal frameworks in the Austrian Netherlands and Liège.

Research Interests:

• Historical legal institutions and jurisdictional conflicts
• Revolutionary movements and sovereignty disputes
• Pre-modern diplomatic strategies and international relations
• Institutional evolution of early modern states

Recent work analyzes the Prussian military intervention in Liège (1790), the Spa Games Case before the Reichskammergericht, and constitutional innovations during the Liège Revolution. His publications consistently examine intersections between legal systems, political power, and territorial sovereignty.

Awards: Recipient of the 2022 Prize of the consular corps of Liège Province and a 2023 research fellowship from the Belgian National Fund for Scientific Research.

Professional Activities: Active in international conferences on pre-modern neutrality (2025) and participates in legal theory seminars at the University of Liège. Supervised by Prof. Pierre Raxhon and Bernard Demoulin for his doctoral research.