Prince Constantijn & Princess Laurentien - Current Events, Part 4

[lucien]

Princess Laurentien attended the hand-out of the von de Gablentz Prize to german politician Rita Süsmuth,
former president of the Bundestag,the German parliament.

Otto von der Gablentz was a german diplomat who became german ambassador to The Netherlands in 1980 IIRC and stayed for 7 years.
He almost instantly moved us all,firstly be the fact he had made the effort to speak excellent Dutch,second,because of his open and new approach of the recent past,ie,the WWII and the nazi occupation between 1940 and 1945.The man was generally liked and highly respected.Not just for the dutch,but also for the Royal Family he became a familiar face and a dear warm friend.
After his term in The Netherlands he was the german ambassador to Israel and then to Russia,not the easyest posts.

After his retirement he and his wife settled to live here in Amsterdam.
He sadly passed away after a long illness in 2007.Greatly missed man in many a heart and mind.

ANP Beeldbank

courtesy royalimages.

Princess Laurentien and the widow,Mrs. von der Gablentz:

http://www.koninklijkhuis.nl/Actueel..._november_2009