Like most in Europe, the Belgian line of
succession is governed by absolute primogeniture (the eldest child,
regardless of gender, ascends to the throne) through the
descendants of King Albert II. The new laws of succession took
effect in 1991, and if all the descendants of Albert die, the line
then falls to the male descendants of King Leopold I’s male line.
To remain in the line…
King Philippe took the Belgian throne
after the abdication of his father, King Albert II, on 21 July
2013. King Albert announced his intent to abdicate on 3 July, with
his abdication taking effect on Belgium’s National Day. The day
began with the traditional Te…
While Belgium doesn’t have jewels that
belong to the Crown but to individual members of the Royal Family,
some pieces are considered the most important, which we could
potentially see at the Coronation of King Charles III. First, when
it comes to tiaras, the…
Princess Elisabeth follows in great-great-grandmother's footsteps on visit to Egypt
16th March 2023
A century after her ancestor walked the
same routes and stayed in the same hotels, Princess Elisabeth, The
Duchess of Brabant, has carried out a working visit to Egypt with
her mother. Queen Mathilde and Princess Elisabeth undertook a
three-day visit to Egypt to recreate the trip undertaken by Queen
Elisabeth in 1923. The Belgian queen consort had a passion for
Egypt and helped form the basis…
Queen Mathilde and Princess Elisabeth of
Belgium are on a royal tour of Egypt this week, but they aren’t the
first Belgian royals to visit the African nation. Their trip is
inspired by Elisabeth’s namesake, who ventured to King Tut’s tomb
and was fascinated…
The curse of Egyptian King Tut’s tomb is
well-known. Of those who have entered Tutankhamun’s tomb, many have
succumbed to unexpected, early deaths. From Lord Carnarvon to
Howard Carter, those who “disturbed” the tomb had early deaths
under the…
Queen Mathilde acquires a new goddaughter due to a peculiar Belgian tradition being enacted
23rd February 2023
Queen Mathilde has acquired a new
goddaughter after a family in Molenbeek asked The Queen of Belgium
to become godparent to their child. Her Majesty does not know the
family, but has accepted, gifting the child an engraved silver cup,
and arranged for an audience to be held with the Mayor of the city.
But how did Queen Mathilde end up being the godmother to a child
she does not know? Belgian…
King Albert and Princess Delphine show father-daughter affection for the first time
18th February 2023
King Albert and Princess Delphine have
been pictured greeting each other warmly for the first time in
public. The royals attended the annual Mass for deceased Royal
Family members at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken in
Brussels. As the royals arrive at the church…
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde listen to grieving families following devastating earthquake
15th February 2023
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the
Belgians travelled to the Flanders to meet with two grieving
families. On Monday, 13th February, Their Majesties arrived
in the municipality of Houthalen-Helchteren, in Belgian Limburg
province, and were welcomed by two families…
King Philippe of Belgium and his unique relationship with the church
12th February 2023
King Philippe of Belgium will be marking
a decade of kingship in July 2023; he took the throne after his
father abdicated in 2013. Philippe’s role as sovereign has a
different relationship with the church than many other monarchs.
Belgium does not have a state church. As of 2018, over 60% of
Belgians identify as Christian, with 57% of the population
identifying as Catholic. As monarch…
