Wilfrid Brulez (27 February 1927 – 23 March 2023) was a Belgian economic historian with a particular interest in the Habsburg Netherlands' international trade, particularly with Italy, and diplomatic relations with the Holy See.
His in-depth study of the merchant house headed by Jean della Faille and Martin della Faille in 16th-century Antwerp fundamentally changed the perception of native involvement in international trade during Antwerp's Golden Age.
[1] It also led Fernand Braudel to change his view of the relative importance of land routes and sea routes between northern and southern Europe around 1600.
[2] Brulez was born in Blankenberge, West Flanders on 27 February 1927.
[3] He retired on 1 October 1987, and died at his home in Sint-Martens-Latem, East-Flanders, on 23 March 2023, at the age of 96.