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The Belgian Royal Family: the House of Belgium
1831: a prince of Saxe-Coburg becomes king
Belgian independence was proclaimed in 1830, and the monarchy was established in 1831. Leopold I, Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, took the oath on 21 July 1831 and became the first King of the Belgians [1]. Belgium is a hereditary constitutional monarchy: the royal office can only be held by a descendant of Leopold I [1].
The rule of succession
Under Article 85 of the Constitution, the King's constitutional powers are hereditary "in the direct, natural and legitimate descent" of Leopold I, "by order of primogeniture". The text makes no distinction between the sexes [2]. A descendant who marries without the King's consent loses their rights to the crown, unless the King restores them with the assent of both Chambers [2].
The Kings of the Belgians
The court or house website of the monarchy gives the following line [1]:
| Sovereign | Note | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Leopold I | First king; oath of 21 July 1831 | [1] |
| Leopold II | [1] | |
| Albert I | [1] | |
| Leopold III | [1] | |
| Prince Charles | Regent (1944–1950), not king | [1][7] |
| Baudouin | [1] | |
| Albert II | Abdicated on 21 July 2013 | [1][3] |
| Philippe | Seventh King of the Belgians since 21 July 2013 | [3] |
Detailed reign dates appear on the court page for each king [1].
The King in the Constitution
The Constitution closely frames the royal office [2]:
- No heir. If Leopold I has no descendants, the King may name his successor with the assent of the Chambers. Without such a nomination, the throne is vacant (Art. 86) [2].
- Another crown. The King cannot also be head of another state without the assent of both Chambers, by a two-thirds majority (Art. 87) [2].
- Inviolability. "The person of the King is inviolable; his ministers are responsible" (Art. 88) [2]. No act of the King has effect unless it is countersigned by a minister, who thereby takes responsibility for it (Art. 106) [2].
- Limited powers. The King has no powers other than those formally given to him by the Constitution and by laws made under it (Art. 105) [2].
- Civil list. The law fixes the civil list for the length of each reign (Art. 89) [2].
- Majority and oath. The King comes of age at 18. He takes the throne only after swearing, before the united Chambers: "I swear to observe the Constitution and the laws of the Belgian people, to maintain national independence and the integrity of the territory" (Art. 91) [2].
- Regency. If the successor is a minor, or the King is unable to reign, the united Chambers provide for the regency, which can be entrusted to one person only (Arts. 92–94) [2]. It was under these rules that Prince Charles was regent from 1944 to 1950 [1][7].
King Albert II
King Albert II was born on 6 June 1934 at the Château du Stuyvenberg in Brussels. The son of King Leopold III and Queen Astrid, born a princess of Sweden, he received the title Prince of Liège at birth [6]. His mother died in a car accident at Küssnacht, Switzerland, on 29 August 1935 [6].
On 2 July 1959 he married Donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria. They have three children: Prince Philippe (1960), Princess Astrid (1962) and Prince Laurent (1963) [6]. In 2020 he officially acknowledged that he is the father of Princess Delphine, born in 1968 [6]. On the death of King Baudouin, he took the oath on 9 August 1993 as sixth King of the Belgians [6].
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde
King Philippe was born in Brussels on 15 April 1960, the eldest son of King Albert II and Queen Paola [3]. On 3 July 2013, Albert II announced his abdication. On the national day a few weeks later, Philippe took the oath and became the seventh King of the Belgians [3].
Queen Mathilde was born on 20 January 1973 in Uccle, the eldest daughter of Count and Countess Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz [4]. She married Prince Philippe, then Duke of Brabant, on 4 December 1999, and became Queen of the Belgians on 21 July 2013 [4].
Princess Elisabeth, heir to the throne
Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant, was born on 25 October 2001 in Anderlecht. As the first child of the King and Queen she is first in line to the throne [5]. Since 21 July 2013 she has held the title Duchess of Brabant, reserved for the heir presumptive [5]. Her siblings are Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel and Princess Eléonore [5].
Other members of the royal family
The court or house website also lists King Albert II, Queen Paola, and the King's siblings Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent [5].
In the historical Almanach de Gotha
Licence: contains material adapted from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). This article is released under the same licence. Primary and institutional sources are summarised or briefly quoted.