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Albert II Of Belgium
, house = Belgium , father = Leopold III of Belgium , mother = Astrid of Sweden , birth_date = , birth_place = Stuyvenberg Castle, Laeken, Brussels, Belgium , death_date = , death_place = , signature = Albert II of Belgium Signature.svg , religion = Roman Catholicism Albert II, ; nl, Albert Felix Humbert Theodoor Christiaan Eugène Marie, ; german: Albrecht Felix Humbert Theodor Christian Eugen Maria, (born 6 June 1934) is a member of the Belgian royal family who reigned as King of the Belgians from 9 August 1993 to 21 July 2013. Albert II is the son of King Leopold III and the last living child of Queen Astrid, born a princess of Sweden. He is the younger brother of the late Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg and King Baudouin, whom he succeeded upon Baudouin's death in 1993. He married Donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria (now Queen Paola), with whom he had three children. Albert's eldest son, Philippe, is the current King of the Belgian ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Of The Belgians
Belgium is a constitutional, hereditary, and popular monarchy. The monarch is titled king or queen of the Belgians ( nl, Koning(in) der Belgen, french: Roi / Reine des Belges}, german: König(in) der Belgier) and serves as the country's head of state. There have been seven kings since independence in 1830. The incumbent, Philippe, ascended the throne on 21 July 2013, following the abdication of his father Albert II. Origins When the Belgians became independent in 1830 the National Congress chose a constitutional monarchy as the form of government. The Congress voted on the question on 22 November 1830, supporting monarchy by 174 votes to 13. In February 1831, the Congress nominated Louis, Duke of Nemours, the son of the French king Louis-Philippe, but international considerations deterred Louis-Philippe from accepting the honor for his son. Following this refusal, the National Congress appointed Erasme-Louis, Baron Surlet de Chokier to be the Regent of Belgium on 25 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laeken
() or () is a residential suburb in the north-western part of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. It belongs to the municipality of the City of Brussels and is mostly identified by the Belgian postal code: 1020. Prior to 1921, it was a separate municipality. Toponymy Etymology The name ''Laeken'' ( nl, Laken, link=no) derives from the Germanic ''Lacha'' or ''Lache'' ("water", "lake"), because the Molenbeek brook at the time formed a network of ponds at this height. The oldest mention of the village is in a diploma from 1080, where the name ''Gilbert de Lacha'' appears. There is also the mention ''Lachus'' in 1117. Main sights Royal Palace The Royal Palace of Laeken, official home of the Belgian Royal Family, is situated in Laeken. The palace was built in 1782–1784 by the French architect and urbanist Charles de Wailly. It was partly destroyed by fire in 1890, and was rebuilt and extended by the architect Alphonse Balat. The French architect Charles Girault gave it i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani
Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Hamad bin Abdullah bin Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani ( ar, حمد بن خليفة الثاني; born 1 January 1952) is a member of the ruling Al Thani Qatari royal family. He was the ruling Emir of Qatar from 1995 until 2013 when he abdicated the throne, handing power to his son Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani."Qatar: A tiny country asserts powerful influence" CBS ''60 Minutes'' via ''youtube.com'', 15 January 2012. The Qatari government refers to him as the Father Emir. Hamad seized power from his father, Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani, in a bloodless palace '' |
Beatrix Of The Netherlands
Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husband, Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld. Upon her mother's accession in 1948, she became heir presumptive. Beatrix attended a public primary school in Canada during World War II, and then finished her primary and secondary education in the Netherlands in the post-war period. In 1961, she received her law degree from Leiden University. In 1966, Beatrix married Claus von Amsberg, a German diplomat, with whom she had three children. When her mother abdicated on 30 April 1980, Beatrix succeeded her as queen. Beatrix's reign saw the country's Caribbean possessions reshaped with Aruba's secession and becoming its own constituent country within the kingdom in 1986. This was followed by the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010, which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as pope occurred in the 2005 papal conclave that followed the death of Pope John Paul II. Benedict has chosen to be known by the title " pope emeritus" upon his resignation. Ordained as a priest in 1951 in his native Bavaria, Ratzinger embarked on an academic career and established himself as a highly regarded theologian by the late 1950s. He was appointed a full professor in 1958 at the age of 31. After a long career as a professor of theology at several German universities, he was appointed Archbishop of Munich and Freising and created a cardinal by Pope Paul VI in 1977, an unusual promotion for someone with little pastoral ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belgian National Day
Belgian National Day ( nl, Nationale feestdag van België; french: Fête nationale belge; german: Belgischer Nationalfeiertag) is the national holiday of Belgium commemorated annually on 21 July. It is one of the country's ten public holidays and marks the anniversary of the investiture of Leopold I as the first King of the Belgians in 1831. History In the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, Belgium became part of the United Netherlands. After a period of growing unrest, the Belgian Revolution forced Dutch forces out of the country between August and October 1830. By November, the different revolutionary factions had coalesced around the idea of national independence and began drafting a constitution for an independent Belgian state. It was decided that it would become a constitutional and popular monarchy, reflecting the romantic nationalism popular at the time. Searching for a monarch, the revolutionaries decided on Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha who was a German arist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belgian Cabinet
The Federal Government of Belgium ( nl, Federale regering, french: Gouvernement fédéral, german: Föderalregierung) exercises executive power in the Kingdom of Belgium. It consists of ministers and secretary of state ("junior", or deputy-ministers who do not sit in the Council of Ministers) drawn from the political parties which form the governing coalition. The federal government is led by the Prime Minister of Belgium, and ministers lead ministries of the government. Ministers together form the Council of Ministers, which is the supreme executive organ of the government (equivalent to a cabinet). Formally, executive power is vested in the king, who formally appoints the ministers. However, under the Constitution of Belgium, the king is not politically responsible for exercising his powers, but must exercise it through the ministers. The king's acts are not valid unless countersigned by a minister, and the countersigning minister assumes political responsibility for the act ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Princess Joséphine-Charlotte Of Belgium
Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium (11 October 1927 – 10 January 2005), was the Grand Duchess consort of Luxembourg as the wife of Grand Duke Jean. She was the first child of King Leopold III of Belgium, and sister of the late King Baudouin and former King Albert II and aunt of King Philippe. She was also the first cousin of King Harald V of Norway and a maternal third cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. Childhood Joséphine-Charlotte was born in 1927 at the Royal Palace of Brussels. She was the oldest child and only daughter of the King Leopold III of Belgium and his first wife, Princess Astrid of Sweden. She was christened a month after her birth. Her godfather was her uncle, Prince Charles, Count of Flanders and her godmother was her future mother-in-law, Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg. While expecting her daughter, Astrid had read a biography of her ancestress, the French empress Joséphine de Beauharnais. Josephine was also the name of one of the child's great-au ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lilian, Princess Of Réthy
Princess Lilian of Belgium, Princess of Réthy (born Mary Lilian Henriette Lucie Josephine Ghislaine Baels; – ) was the second wife of King Leopold III of Belgium. Born in the United Kingdom and raised in Belgium, she became a volunteer as a car driver that transported wounded Belgian and French to the hospital in Bruges during World War II. Lilian married King Leopold III in 1941 and became consort of the Belgian monarch. The couple produced three children. She was also a stepmother to Leopold III's children from Queen Astrid and became the "first lady" of Belgium during the first nine years of her stepson King Baudouin's reign. Her charity work revolved around medicine and cardiology. Early life and education Mary Lilian Baels was born in Highbury, London, England, where her parents had fled during World War I. She was one of the nine children of Henri Baels from Ostend and his wife, Anne Marie de Visscher, a member of the Belgian nobility from Dentergem. Lilian was in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Princess Marie-Christine Of Belgium
Leopold III (3 November 1901 – 25 September 1983) was King of the Belgians from 23 February 1934 until his abdication on 16 July 1951. At the outbreak of World War II, Leopold tried to maintain Belgian neutrality, but after the German invasion in May 1940, he surrendered his country, earning him much hostility, both at home and abroad. Leopold's act was declared unconstitutional by Prime Minister Hubert Pierlot and his cabinet, who moved to London to form a government-in-exile, while Leopold and his family were placed under house arrest. In 1944, they were moved to Germany and then Austria, before being liberated by the Americans, but banned for some years from returning to Belgium, where his brother Prince Charles, Count of Flanders, had been declared regent. Leopold's eventual return to his homeland in 1950 nearly caused a civil war, and under pressure from the government, he abdicated in favour of his son Baudouin in July 1951. Leopold's first wife, Astrid of Sweden, w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Princess Marie-Esméralda Of Belgium
Princess Marie-Esméralda of Belgium, Lady Moncada (born 30 September 1956) is a member of the Belgian Royal Family. She is the half-aunt of King Philippe of Belgium and Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg. Princess Marie-Esméralda is a journalist, author and documentary-maker. She is also an environmental activist and a campaigner for women’s rights and indigenous people’s rights. Family Princess Marie-Esméralda is the youngest child of the late Leopold III of Belgium and his second wife, Lilian Baels, Princess of Réthy. Her full siblings are the late Prince Alexandre of Belgium and Princess Marie-Christine of Belgium. Her half-siblings include the late King Baudouin of Belgium, former King Albert II of Belgium (who is also Marie-Esméralda's godfather), and the late Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg from her father's marriage to his first wife, Queen Astrid. Princess Marie-Esméralda of Belgium married Sir Salvador Moncada, a Honduran- British pharma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Leopold III
Leopold III (3 November 1901 – 25 September 1983) was King of the Belgians from 23 February 1934 until his abdication on 16 July 1951. At the outbreak of World War II, Leopold tried to maintain Belgian neutrality, but after the German invasion in May 1940, he surrendered his country, earning him much hostility, both at home and abroad. Leopold's act was declared unconstitutional by Prime Minister Hubert Pierlot and his cabinet, who moved to London to form a government-in-exile, while Leopold and his family were placed under house arrest. In 1944, they were moved to Germany and then Austria, before being liberated by the Americans, but banned for some years from returning to Belgium, where his brother Prince Charles, Count of Flanders, had been declared regent. Leopold's eventual return to his homeland in 1950 nearly caused a civil war, and under pressure from the government, he abdicated in favour of his son Baudouin in July 1951. Leopold's first wife, Astrid of Sweden, was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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