The linguistic ratios in the Belgian army are regulated by the Act of July 30. 1938. This Act claimed at a complete equality between both important national languages, in order to put an end to the French quasimonolinguality of the military elite. Although the 1938 Act has been rather ineffective for more than fourty years, the linguistic situation in respect of the Belgian army officers has improved considerably since 1970. A closer cxamination reveals that this principal idea of equality has not been realized as to the field officers and the general officers, but that approximately the linguistic balance is attained among the lower officers.