Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant has entered the final stages of her year long military training at a special camp in Belgium. The heir to the throne is now just weeks away from becoming the first Belgian princess to complete military formation.
Embed from Getty ImagesElisabeth, now 19 years old, joined her fellow trainee officers, at the Lagland camp at Arlon where they will hone their military skills over three weeks. Press were invited to join the camp as it got under way and were on hand to see the trainees tackle an obstacle course.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe princess later spoke to reporters unprompted, telling them she had got used to her early starts, getting up at 6am every morning. And she described the changes she had undergone since last summer, saying ”I have had to adjust a lot here, but I have enjoyed it enormously.”
Embed from Getty ImagesThe future queen began her training with Belgium’s Royal Military Academy last autumn. In a speech at the start of the Academy’s academic year, in October 2020, Elisabeth’s father, King Philippe, told the new recruits that ”you will succeed because you will have lived…the values of the Royal Military School – a sense of honour, self-discipline, engagement, courage, respect.”
Embed from Getty ImagesThe Belgian Royal Family hasn’t yet announced what Elisabeth will do when her year long training ends. She is set to join her family at Belgium’s National Day celebrations on July 21st in Brussels when they will also celebrate the 8th anniversary of King Philippe’s accession to the throne.