 He started his literary career with the romantic "Kronyken der Straten van Antwerpen" (3 volumes, 1843) but he turned himself against the idealizing style of Hendrik Conscience, and became a convinced proponent of a moderate realism, which he defended also theoretically ("Over het realismus in de letterkunde", 1862).In 1844, he was one of the founders of the "Vlaemsch Belgie", the first daily paper in the Flemish interest.In his novels and theatre plays he sketched the selfishness of farmers and citizens or the adventures of captains and seamen.