King Albert II Announces his Abdication: July 3rd 2013

[grevinnan]

what about little Elisabeth now? will she be styled Duchess of Brabant?

The title Duke of Brabant is reserved for the Kings eldest son, or if he has no son then the eldest grandson. Unless a recent change to the title requirement, Princess Elisabeth will not be Ducess of Brabant.

 

[Princess Xenia]

I'm not saying that Carl Gustav or Margrethe will abdicate in a near future. But i do think they will abdicate. Just because it's not tradition doesn't mean it can't happen. Just look at Belgium.

I was also sharing my own thoughts. What happened in Belgium was not unexpected for me. The king and queen have been on long vacations for several times that they have been criticised for it. The palace hasn't denied the abdication rumours for a while now . The king is 79 years old now and this year he will have his twentieth year on the throne . I am sad to see him go, but I think it was best for the king and queen and the crown prince and the Belgians .

 

[Noble Consort Ming]

The title Duke of Brabant is reserved for the Kings eldest son, or if he has no son then the eldest grandson. Unless a recent change to the title requirement, Princess Elisabeth will not be Ducess of Brabant.

Not since a 2001 amendment to the rule.

Moniteur Belge - Belgisch Staatsblad

Le titre de Duc de Brabant ou de Duchesse de Brabant sera toujours porté, à l'avenir, par le Prince ou la Princesse, fils aîné ou fille aînée du Roi, et, à défaut, par le Prince ou la Princesse, fils aîné ou fille aînée du fils aîné de la fille aînée du Roi

The title Duke of Brabant or Duchess of Brabant will always be carried by the Prince or Princess, oldest son or oldest daughter of the King, and failing this, by the Prince or the Princess, oldest son or oldest daughter of the oldest son of the oldest daughter of the king.

 

[xenobia]

I was also sharing my own thoughts. What happened in Belgium was not unexpected for me. The king and queen have been on long vacations for several times that they have been criticised for it. The palace hasn't denied the abdication rumours for a while now . The king is 79 years old now and this year he will have his twentieth year on the throne . I am sad to see him go, but I think it was best for the king and queen and the crown prince and the Belgians .

And here in Sweden, the king has reigned for 40 years. That's a very long time. But he's only 67 years old and Victoria is busy raising and (we guess) still expanding her family. If she had been older I think he would have abdicated. My impression is that he's quite tired of being a king. The scandals over the last couple of years, and the rapid decline of support for monarchy in Sweden, isn't a secret to anyone. The king himself is very well aware of it.

King Harald of Norway is ten years older. Haakons kids are older than Victorias. I think we will see a shift on the throne in Norway before anything happens in Denmark or Sweden. Margrethe may not abdicate, but I really think that Carl Gustav will do just that. Not now, but later on.

I do however think that Juan Carlos will follow Beatrix and Alberts example real soon. The spanish monarchy needs to hit the refresh button, and I think that Felipe is more than ready to take on the responsibility.

 

[Dman]

I agree about Spain.

 

[Princess Xenia]

And here in Sweden, the king has reigned for 40 years. That's a very long time. But he's only 67 years old and Victoria is busy raising and (we guess) still expanding her family. If she had been older I think he would have abdicated. My impression is that he's quite tired of being a king. The scandals over the last couple of years, and the rapid decline of support for monarchy in Sweden, isn't a secret to anyone. The king himself is very well aware of it.

King Harald of Norway is ten years older. Haakons kids are older than Victorias. I think we will see a shift on the throne in Norway before anything happens in Denmark or Sweden. Margrethe may not abdicate, but I really think that Carl Gustav will do just that. Not now, but later on.

I do however think that Juan Carlos will follow Beatrix and Alberts example real soon. The spanish monarchy needs to hit the refresh button, and I think that Felipe is more than ready to take on the responsibility.

I agree with you about Spain. Although Juan Carlos has done so much for Spain over the years I can understand why he is not that popular anymore. If his abdication would allow Spain to remain a kingdom , I definitely say he should abdicate.

 

[xenobia]

I agree with you about Spain. Although Juan Carlos has done so much for Spain over the years I can understand why he is not that popular anymore. If his abdication would allow Spain to remain a kingdom , I definitely say he should abdicate.

It's a tricky question. The real problem, IMO, is that the spanish monarchy is so relatively new and doesn't have the same public support and tradition as (for example) the brittish or danish monarchy. Juan Carlos is the King with a capital K. He's done great things for Spain over the years. However, at this point in time, I do think that it would benefit the monarchy to renew itself. Felipe and Letizia are well educated/prepared, and (as far as I can understand) popular in Spain.

 

[klaboom]

Here is the link to the documentary in Canvas I mentioned in previous post

Canvas video | Canvas

Happy Watching!

 

[leidi]

Juan Carlos has said that he would never abdicate, so Felipe has to wait his turn to be able to inherit the throne.

And to be completely honest, the monarchy isn't exactly popular in Spain, where independentist movements have been gaining ground lately (see for example the 90k catalan independentists that gathered at the Camp Nou in Barcelona last saturday, the whistling that happens everytime teams like Athletic de Bilbao and Barcelona face each other in the King's Cup, the Corina, Urdangarin scandals, etc), in fact the only aspect where nearly everyone is under one flag is football, since we're pretty good at it and when La Roja wins there are celebrations everywhere but the figure of the King isn't as strong as it used to be, it is not seen as a guarantee of national unit in a country that has about 3 different regions that want to separate.

And honestly? you ask people in the streets what they think of Letizia and pretty much everyone agrees she's not fit to fill Queen Sofia's shoes (not my personal opinion, I am rather indifferent towards Felipe and Letizia, I guess you can call me a Juancarlista but not a monarchist).

So no, Juan Carlos knows he can't abdicate, it will bring a quick end to the monarchy in Spain, at least if he dies people might respect Felipe for a while (the mourning) but the Third Republic (or maybe a confederation of States) will come sooner than later.

 

[Mademoiselle Lilo]

kind of acrid/sweet news;sad to see King Albert going but also thrilled to see a new generation take the lead just Like happen in Netherlands.
sure Mathilde will make wonderful Queen she have sush unique and Magestic allure so good luck for both Philippe and Mathilde.

 

[principessa]

Do you think that Princess Astrid, Prince Laurent and Princess Claire will remain working for the royal family?

 

[NGalitzine]

How heavy a schedule of official engagements and patronages do Astrid, Laurent & Claire undertake now?

 

[Princess Xenia]

Do you think that Princess Astrid, Prince Laurent and Princess Claire will remain working for the royal family?

I believe they will. Because Philippe's children are too young to have an official royal engagement. They might go with their parents to some ceremonies. They are also limited by school obligations. I also think that prince Amedeo will help the family in some engagements
Especially in economic missions.

 

[tommy100]

I believe they will. Because Philippe's children are too young to have an official royal engagement. They might go with their parents to some ceremonies. They are also limited by school obligations. I also think that prince Amedeo will help the family in some engagements
Especially in economic missions.

I imagine Astrid/ Lorenz, Laurent/Claire will have to carry on with some duties as Philippe's children are so young. As we saw with the new King and Queen of The Netherlands when they didn't attend the wedding of Madeleine of Sweden, they will need some adult members of the family for such events when Philippe and Mathilde can't (too busy or protocol says they can't),

 

[Marengo]

Can we expect another Van Rossem type incident when Philippe is sworn in? I expect it.

That wouldn't be surprising, but this time it is more likely that it will come from a seperatist and not from a socialist.

 

[Marchesina]

Not since a 2001 amendment to the rule.

Moniteur Belge - Belgisch Staatsblad



The title Duke of Brabant or Duchess of Brabant will always be carried by the Prince or Princess, oldest son or oldest daughter of the King, and failing this, by the Prince or the Princess, oldest son or oldest daughter of the oldest son of the oldest daughter of the king.

good news! so we're going to have a Duchess of Brabant soon. It would be awesome (though unlikely, considering the whole linguistic issues in the country) if new King Philippe will restore the old title for his other children (i.e. count of Flanders, Prince of Liège ... and a new one for Eleonore of course). I like the way they sound along with the title of Prince/ss of Belgium, like in Sweden and UK.

 

[Princess Xenia]

That wouldn't be surprising, but this time no from a socialist but from a seperatist is more likely.

Yes , you are right. It is very likely that a separatist do it this time.
I hope Philippe will be expecting such incident, I don't want to see him shake the way king Albert was shaking 20 years ago.

 

[ricarda]

Regarding other European abdications, you can almost be 100% certain that QMII wont follow the same path. She said an excellent thing a couple of years ago, "jeg bliver på pinden, til jeg falder af den" (bad translation: "I stay on my branch/stick till I fall off"). With all due respect to the monarchs who have abdicated, I think that to QMII, abdication isn't even an option. The role as a monarch is something you have for life (which I think she's actually said once).

Yes, Margrethe once said that she will stay on the throne until she falls off it. But in connection with her 40th jubilee she actually modified it a bit in an interview (by saying: "if my health allows it").

So, I am not 100% sure that Queen MII will never abdicate, especially if this trend continues. But I think if she abdicates she will be the last out of the Scandinavian monarchs. I see it sooner happen in Norway or Sweden.

 

[Eveline]

Yes , you are right. It is very likely that a separatist do it this time.
I hope Philippe will be expecting such incident, I don't want to see him shake the way king Albert was shaking 20 years ago.

The shaking of Albert was also due to his Parkinsons disease, that is more under control now. An interviewed person yesterday said Filip is more capable of handling stress, so we might see less shaking

My vote is on Gerolf Annemans to step in the footprints of Van Rossem. He was so rude yesterday during the news broadcasting. And he, along with some other guys from Vlaams Belang, the nationalist/separatist party of Belgium stood in front of the palace with banners. That banners said something like 'Long live the republic of Flanders' if I recall correctly. They also sung the 'Vlaamse Leeuw.Flemish Lion', kind of the national song of Flanders.
Annemans really wants the monarchy to be gone. I'm glad they have no power in our political system (they were tried for being a racist party years ago).

 

[Marchesina]

Parkison's disease? never heard of that before. are you sure? I mean, even if it's controlled with medicines, after 20 years it would be quite visible by now

 

[Eveline]

I thought it was common knowledge around here, but I can't find a source that actually says it's true. I find that quite odd now. They used to call him 'Bertje Bibber' (bad translation: Shakie Bertie ). If I find a trustworthy source, I'll let you know ...

The comment about the medication was made by a Belgian magazine, but apparantly they say 'it's been said he has a beginning stage of Parkinson that is being controlled by medicines.'. It's an article from 1993.

 

[Marchesina]

I thought it was common knowledge around here, but I can't find a source that actually says it's true. I find that quite odd now. They used to call him 'Bertje Bibber' (bad translation: Shakie Bertie ). If I find a trustworthy source, I'll let you know ...

The comment about the medication was made by a Belgian magazine, but apparantly they say 'it's been said he has a beginning stage of Parkinson that is being controlled by medicines.'. It's an article from 1993.

sure you can control the shaking at the beginning, but after 20 years, it being a rather quick developing disease, I find it quite strange that it's so hard to guess. I mean, remember Pope John Paul II...he was diagnosed early '90s and he died in 2005, and it was really visible.

 

[maria-olivia]

Please respect our King Albert II . What is written in magazines are non-senses !

 

[Princess Xenia]

I have never heard of the this that the king has Parkinson's disease.
I was really upset to see His Majesty like that when he was taking his oath. And it was quite understandable for me. His beloved brother king Baudouin just died then and when you want to become the king of your nation someone shouts and denounces you in your country's parliament.
I hope Philippe be ready for his oath.

 

[Marengo]

I think we can respect the king and still talk about his Parkinson. But, like Eveline, I thought that the disease was common knowledge.

 

[cdm]

I thought it was just nerves in 1993.
Doesn't Parkinson start with hands that shake? Albert had a shaky head back then.

 

[Eveline]

I really do respect the king, not to be misunderstood.
Marengo, I'm relieved I'm not the only one who thought that
Maybe it was because of the diagnosis of the pope that the shaking of Albert was said to be Parkinson. I have no understanding of the disease, so I won't speculate wether Albert has it or not. I just grew up with that information

I'm sure Filip will do well. His first 'speech' today showed him a bit nervous, but also really kind and warm. Can't wait to 21st july. According to the newspaper, he's going to take the oath at 13h30.

 

[principessa]

Will the abdication and inauguration be broadcasted?

 

[Fürstin Taxis]

And honestly? you ask people in the streets what they think of Letizia and pretty much everyone agrees she's not fit to fill Queen Sofia's shoes (not my personal opinion, I am rather indifferent towards Felipe and Letizia, I guess you can call me a Juancarlista but not a monarchist).

Which is quite funny, because Sofia was never that popular. Now they have an other Royal woman to dislike, and Sofia is "suddenly" great. She is a fantastic Queen and I think it´s a pity she never got the recognition she deserved years ago.

 

[Marchesina]

I sincerely hope that on July 21st, everybody will respect the important step that Prince Philippe/King Albert will make, no matter what their political points of view are. I feel P.Philippe is growing in confidence upon his new institutional role, and I'm quite sure he'll surprise everyone, demonstrating little by little how good a sovereign he will be