Colonel Maximilien Charles Ferdinand Strauch (Lomprez, 4 October 1829 â Beez, 7 June 1911) was a Belgian officer who played a role in the colonization of the Congo Basin. He was a trusted advisor of King Leopold II of Belgium, who entrusted him with the functions of secretary-general of the Association internationale africaine (1878), secretary of the Comité d'études du Haut-Congo (1878) and chairman of the Association internationale du Congo (23 February 1885 â 1 July 1885).