The rise of French in public life gradually began by the end of the 18th century,[10][11] quickly accelerating as the new capital saw a major increase in population following Belgian independence.[12][4][14][15] Dutch — of which standardization in Belgium was still very weak[16][17][15] — could not compete with French, which was the exclusive language of the judiciary, the administration, the army, education, high culture and the media.[18][10][11][20][13] The value and prestige of the French language was so universally acknowledged[3][14][15][15][22][23] that after 1880,[18][25][16] and more particularly after the turn of the century,[15] proficiency in French among Dutch-speakers increased spectacularly.[13]