King Baudouin of The Belgians (1930-1993)


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Marengo

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Perhaps it is time to give King Baudouin a seperate thread here. This thread can be used for pictures, questions information and other things related to the late king.

Tomorrow it will be 15 years since he died. HLN came with the news that the palace still receives letters adressed to the late king every day!

Article in Dutch here.
 
Today it's exactly 15 years ago king Boudewijn died in his Spanish holiday home in Motril. He was 62 and had been king of the Belgians for 42 years.

A remembrance mass was held (like each year) at the Onze Lieve Vrouwe church of Laken. It was attended by queen Fabiola, king Albert, queen Paola and princess Astrid. (and princess Margaretha and prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein).

1800 people showed up for the mass, there were also numurous visitors in the royal crypt.

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Oh, how I wish I could read Dutch, or understand. Drat!

I am surprised that so many people came to the Mass, that's great!
 
I think Princess Marie-Annunciata, Princess Marie-Astrid and Prince Josef Emmanuel of Liechtenstein were there too.

---
After the mass HM Queen Fabiola stayed for one complete hour in the royal crypt.
 
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Seeing the videos about the death of King Baudouin/Boudewijn it brings back the feelings (how time flies!) from 15 years ago. I remember awkening to the sad sad news of the death of this amazing King, I was ovecome with sadness. I mourned him! I wrote a card of condolence to Queen Fabiola and recived some weeks after the funeral a thank you card with a wonderfull picture of the King and Queen. Living only a few minutes from the Belgian border, we really felt the sadness of the Belgians. I watched the coverage of the funeral on tv with my grandmother, we were united in grief. Our hearts went out to the Queen. Just three years after the Kings death I lost my grandmother, once again I was heartbroken. They both are sadly missed!:angel:
 
It is just how sad the way that King Baudouin suddenly died there were no signs that he was sick he seemed to be in pretty good health at the time of his unexpected death.I feel saddness for his family espically his widow Queen Fabolia and plus the Beligan people who were so fond of their beloved king.May he rest in peace.
 
Actually, the King had been having heart problems before his death. He had undergone heart surgery in Paris (I think).
also, he is reputed to have said to one prime minister "We are not feeling well these days" (yes, he spoke in royal plural). And later he said the same, but in sigular. So this probably shows his problems were worsening. However, his health problems were kept quiet from the public. This is why his death was such a shock for everyone.
 
Baudouin began experiencing an irregular heartbeat around 1980, a full thirteen years before his death(according to Paris Match).

What I find incredible is that the heart surgery that he underwent in 1992-eighteen months before his death-was apparently botched...according to some reports they used the wrong kind of artificial heart valve.

I mean, COME ON!! This man was a King...surely he was privy to the most expert medical care available in Europe, or even here in the U.S if had wanted to come here for treatment.

Irregular heartbeat is a very common problem, he should not have died that way.

Also heart problems are hereditary for the men in that family. Baudouin's younger half-brother Prince Alexandre had open heart surgery in Boston when he was only about 13, King Leopold III died from heart disease, and King Albert himself has had heart surgery too.
 
I remember that Napoleon said that to have the power was very important the charm (I think it was Napoleon, but I have doubts about this).
I think the charisma that made references Napoleon was the charisma of Baudouin and Queen of England.
the King Baudouin with his innate personality, as Elizabeth II, was a king with power. Baudouin was stronger than the critics. He was above criticism, the criticism did not affect his position, HE did not changed his personality for the critics .. Elizabeth II has had criticism but it does not change her way of being.
Baudouin was widely criticized for his personality, he was very Catholic ,he wanted influenced about the treatment of certain laws (the law of abortion)
It was criticized because he was a king who represented a sovereign, the people of Belgium, so he was widely criticized, but critics did not changed his way of thinking.
He was very catholic and it wasn´t changed his way of thinking. He was Baudouin
 
Do you know where is buried the first born child (a boy) of Margaretha of Luxembourg/Liechtenstein ? in Laeken in the royal crypt??
 
Do you know where is buried the first born child (a boy) of Margaretha of Luxembourg/Liechtenstein ? in Laeken in the royal crypt??
Yes, he is buried in Laeken, near to Empress Marie Charlotte of Mexico.
 
Are you talking about HSH Prince Leopold Emmanuel Jean Marie of Liechtenstein,son Princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein and Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein ?
I read,He was born in 1984, he didn ´t live more 24 hours.
I did not know where he was buried. Mafan, Thanks for the information.

It is true Mafan, I have found this:

Royal Travel Blog: Royal Crypt Laeken

He is in the crypt.:angel:
 
What is interesting is that the only one who was not buried in Laeken but in the Cathedral St Michel et Gudule was the first born child of King Léopold I and Louise Marie d'Orléans called
 
follows
Louis Philippe like his grand father , Louis Philippe , King of the French. The Church was not even built when I died.
It is only a few years ago that he is in Laeken.. So all the members of our RF are there and I was surprised that a Little Liechtenstein Prince was there olso.
Thanks for the pictures of Beltraneja, I never saw them.
 
I'm also surprised.
This has no sense of history, he should be buried in Luxembourg or Liechtenstein.was it desire of Baldouion ?.
I think these things have any meaning historical.Surely , it has a behind historical.
 
Some times ago I read that baudouin and Fabiola have been very closed to Nikolaus and Margaretha in these days, and Margaretha spemt some time in Villa Astrida in Motril after she losed the baby...maybe it really was a desire of the King that the baby was buried in Laeken.
 
I just want to say that King Baidouin is one of my most favorite monarchs, possibly the greatest post-WWII monarch in the world in my own opinion. I adore Queen Fabiola also and love their story. The King was such principled man, such an upright man, but it seemed to me that he always set an example in a very quiet and non-threatening way. I hope someone will post some good portraits of him here someday, I would really like to see some.

RIP King Baudouin
 
Do you know how did Baudouin meet Fabiola? I have read two stories (both in "Fabiola: La Reine blanche"):

-They met in the house of Queen Victoria Eugenia of Spain in Laussane. Afterward, they met more times in Luxembourg.

-They met in Lourdes because Veronica O'Brien had been looking for Fabiola in Madrid.

Regards!
 
I remember to have read that they met in the house of Queen Victoria Eugenia, Fabiola's godmother, and that then they got engaged in Lourdes.
 
It is the best guarded secret in Belgian history, nobody knows for sure.

According to Cardinal Seuens, he arranged the match, he was simply looking for a devout young noble woman, sent Sister Veronica O'Brien out to Spain, where she met up with the Head of a school who knew Fabiola. According to this story, Sister O'Brien had a vision of a painting of the Virgin Mary. When she met with Fabiola at her appartment in Madrid, she saw that same painting at a wall in the appartment, and she knew Fabiola would be the one.

However, photographic evidence suggests they knew each other for a few years before the engagement, this would contradict the above story in timeline.

It is also possible the match happened at Queen Ena's in Switzerland, while Fabiola was accompanying one of her granddaughters (for whom the match was originally intended).

Other story claims that they met at a party in Madrid, but Fabiola didn't recognize him, as he was not wearing his glasses. They fell in love there and managed to keep it a secret for many years before their engagement.

It is said that she accepted his marriage proposal on a holiday in Lourdes, while they were driving towards Tarbes, after having refused him a couple of times.

In reality, even though Seuens' story seems plausible enough, the only people who know if it's true are King Boudewijn and Queen Fabiola, and I don't think either is going to tell.
 
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I remember to have read that they met in the house of Queen Victoria Eugenia, Fabiola's godmother, and that then they got engaged in Lourdes.
You are right,dear mafan,in all you have said, and The more important thing to me ,as a catholic who go to Lourdes every year,is the fact that they were engaged in Lourdes:angel:
 
The King Baudouin went alone to Lourdes when Queen Fabiola had her last miscarriage (5). He had to accept that he the King who have to give a heir to his country, would not.
To this same King to was asked to sign the law authorising the interruption of a pregnancy. He could not and something that may happen only in Belgium and due to the excellent Prime Minister we had at that time, he did not reign during 3 days , no flag on the 2 Royal Palaces, and when the vote was over , he was King again.
 
I admire king Baudouin for this, and for his character in general.He was an extraordinary human being,and he chose the best wife for him,they were so similar:flowers:
 
They were so simular and not , Baudouin as young King was shy and sad but she was warmless and so joyful (thanks to Spain Zubiaur), the result was a fantastic couple.
 
Thanks for your kind words,they shared the same catholic principles too:flowers:
 
He was a man of great principle, which makes him stand apart from so many other men in positions of power, now and throughout history.
 
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