Crown Prince Philippe and Crown Princess Mathilde Current Events: Mar 2005-May 2005

[Ennyllorac]

Welcome to the new thread for Crown Prince Phillippe and Crown Princess Mathilde.

Please remember to adhere to our guidelines. http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4920

The old thread can be found at http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=187913#post187913

Happy Posting!

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

They just announced that Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde will attend the Church Blessing and the Wedding Reception of Prince Charles and his wife Mrs Camilla Parker Bowles on April 8th.Together with them are Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands with Prince WA and princess Maxima,The Grand Duke of Luxembourg,TRH Prince Haakon and Princess Mette-Marit.

 

[Hannelore]

They just announced that Prince Philippe and Princess Mathilde will attend the Church Blessing and the Wedding Reception of Prince Charles and his wife Mrs Camilla Parker Bowles on April 8th.Together with them are Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands with Prince WA and princess Maxima,The Grand Duke of Luxembourg,TRH Prince Haakon and Princess Mette-Marit.

Really? Who announced it, is it a reliable source? I heard here and there that no-one from Belgium was invited...

 

[Larzen]

The lates seems to be that Maxima and WA invitation got lost, seemingly Beatrix has not gotten one and it seems Mathilde and Philippe has not gotten an invitation either. I can see no confirmation on the official pages either.

Haakon and Mette-Marit as well as Laurentien and Constantijn seems to be the only foreign royal guests that have officially said that they are going. It seems strange to not invite the Belgian Crownprince when all the other heirs has been invited. Victoria cant attend because she is going to Japan and Frederik is going on a private trip to Greenland and Mary cant/want attend without him, I have not read anything about Felipe. You would think that someone from Charles office would pick up a phone when they did not get any answer....

 

[Hannelore]

'School Prinses Mathilde' ingehuldigd in Niger

In Azamalane, een dorp nabij de stad Agadez in Niger, is maandag de 'School Prinses Mathilde' ingehuldigd. De school is één van 409 soortgelijke instellingen die geholpen wordt door de Belgische sectie van Unicef, het VN-kinderfonds. De inhuldiging werd bijgewoond door minister van Defensie André Flahaut.

De school omvat drie gebouwen en richt zich tot een gemeenschap van 1.658 bewoners, aan de rand van de woestijn. De school werd maandag plechtig genoemd naar de echtgenote van prins Filip, iets meer dan één jaar na haar bezoek aan het Afrikaanse land, van 15 tot 19 februari 2004.

De school maakt deel uit van de scholen die Unicef-België financieel ondersteunt - onder meer voor de bouw van klassen met een metaalstructuur - door het schenken van fondsen, banken en tafels.

Vertrekkend van het principe dat onderwijs een recht is volgens de universele verklaring van de rechten van de mens en de VN-conventie over de rechten van het kind, heeft Unicef-België een actie opgezet. Die leverde bijna 700.000 euro op en 58.478 gepersonaliseerde schriften, bestemd voor kinderen in Roemenië, Niger en de Democratische Republiek Congo.

Een deel van de schriften werd overgevlogen met de militaire Airbus die defensieminister Flahaut, op weg naar de Democratische Republiek Congo, tijdens een tussenstop in Niger bracht. (belga) </STRONG></EM></U></I></B>

 

[Hannelore]

Part of an old interview with Justine Henin-Hardenne:





"L.L.M. Last year, after the final at Wimbledon, you heard the news your grandfather had passed away...



J.H. Yes, it was tough. Prince Philippe and princess Mathilde, who were there to attend the match were very kind to me and they brought me back to Belgium with their private jet.



L.L.M. Had you already met them before?

J.H. Yes, at the Royal Palace with King Albert. Mathilde has always been a tennis fan, long before she married prince Philippe. You can see when she assists a match, she's really into the match. We're even thinking about playing a doubles match together at the tenniscourts at the Castle of Laeken. Queen Paola also likes to play tennis. It's really nice to see that we are followed also by these kind of people. It warms your heart. "

 

[Hannelore]

'School Prinses Mathilde' ingehuldigd in Niger

In Azamalane, een dorp nabij de stad Agadez in Niger, is maandag de 'School Prinses Mathilde' ingehuldigd. De school is één van 409 soortgelijke instellingen die geholpen wordt door de Belgische sectie van Unicef, het VN-kinderfonds. De inhuldiging werd bijgewoond door minister van Defensie André Flahaut.

De school omvat drie gebouwen en richt zich tot een gemeenschap van 1.658 bewoners, aan de rand van de woestijn. De school werd maandag plechtig genoemd naar de echtgenote van prins Filip, iets meer dan één jaar na haar bezoek aan het Afrikaanse land, van 15 tot 19 februari 2004.

De school maakt deel uit van de scholen die Unicef-België financieel ondersteunt - onder meer voor de bouw van klassen met een metaalstructuur - door het schenken van fondsen, banken en tafels.

Vertrekkend van het principe dat onderwijs een recht is volgens de universele verklaring van de rechten van de mens en de VN-conventie over de rechten van het kind, heeft Unicef-België een actie opgezet. Die leverde bijna 700.000 euro op en 58.478 gepersonaliseerde schriften, bestemd voor kinderen in Roemenië, Niger en de Democratische Republiek Congo.

Een deel van de schriften werd overgevlogen met de militaire Airbus die defensieminister Flahaut, op weg naar de Democratische Republiek Congo, tijdens een tussenstop in Niger bracht. (belga) </STRONG></EM></U></I></B>

Princess Mathilde school opens in Niger

In Azamalane, A village near to the city Agadez in Niger, the "Princess Mathilde School" has been opened on Monday. The school is one of the 409 similar institutions that receive help from the Belgian section of Unicef, the UN children's fund. The inauguration was attended by André Flahaut, minister of defense.

The school consists of 3 buildings and is available for 1.658 inhabitants who live on the border of the desert. On Monday the school solemny received prince Filip's wife's name, a bit more than a year after her visit to the African country (15-19 February 2004).

The school is part of the schools that Unicef Belgium supports financially -a.o. for the building of classrooms with a metal structure - by donating funds, benches and tables.

Starting from the concept that education is one of the universal children's rights, Unicef Belgium has strated an action. This has brought in nearly 700.000 € en 58.478 personal notebooks, meant to go to children in Roumania, Niger and Congo.

A part of the notebooks was flown in by a military airbus that brought minister Flahaut to Congo, and made a stop in Niger.

 

[Hannelore]

Filip & Mathilde have been spotted in Antwerp, they took Elisabeth to the queen Elisabeth hall to see the musical snowwhite....

Maybe little Elisa's already dreaming of a prince now

 

[Danielle]

Filip & Mathilde have been spotted in Antwerp, they took Elisabeth to the queen Elisabeth hall to see the musical snowwhite....

Maybe little Elisa's already dreaming of a prince now

Aww, how cute. It's never too young to start. Ha ha ha.

I find it strange that Philippe and Mathilde weren't invited to Camilla and Charles' wedding. Didn't Charles go to theirs?

 

[liv]

Charles was at their wedding in 1999.I think all the Crownprincely couples were invited.Because were is the difference.You can´t invite Mette/Haakon and Victoria and Mary/frederik but not the other Crown Princes,or?

 

[Hannelore]

Maybe they were invited but declined? We can only guess of course.

 

[Alexandria]

Maybe they were invited but declined? We can only guess of course.

I read on the Benelux Royals MB that they were not even invited. I don't think anyone would've had problems if they had been invited but had declined -- as other royals did, too, including Victoria, Frederik and Mary and Felipe and Letizia.

It does seem conspicuous to leave out Phillippe and Mathilde. I don't think that Charles is any better friends with Frederik, Victoria and Felipe than he is with Phillippe.

Haakon and Mette-Marit and Constantijn and Laurentien I can at least understand -- both couples lived briefly in London and could've had some interaction with Charles.

It seems like a bit of a snub to Phillippe and Mathilde. But perhaps in the end it turned out better for them -- they got to spend time with Elisabeth seeing Snow White!

 

[Hannelore]

I'm willing to believe it, but what I mean is, how does this person (at the Benelux board) know this, I don't think Charles told the press about who exactly he invited, who he didn't, who accepted and who declined for whatever reason...

So how can anyone really tell anyway?

This said, I don't think Filip & Mathilde have a special realtionship with any of the British royals. They're on ver friendly terms, but not personal friends. I mean they wouldn't spend their holidays together or anything like that...

 

[Alexandria]

I'm willing to believe it, but what I mean is, how does this person (at the Benelux board) know this, I don't think Charles told the press about who exactly he invited, who he didn't, who accepted and who declined for whatever reason...

I think Clarence House did release a list of invitees and a list of attendees yesterday. On the network I watched covering the wedding the anchor had a guest list in front of her and was reading off a list of the "illustrious" guest list and pointing them out during the arrivals. She also mentioned that Diana's family had been invited but that they had "other obligations" so I think there was some communique issued by Clarence House or from someone official associated with the wedding.

 

[Hannelore]

OK but that's the end of the process: who actually came to the wedding. We don't know who Charles exactly ha din mind in the beginning. But it's well possible he didn't think of inviting Belgian princes...

I'll just benefit from the occasion to post some pics of an official visit Filip and his wife Mathilde made to London in April 2000, and where they also met prince Charles (and the queen as well I believe).

 

[Hannelore]

and the rest...

 

[Larzen]

Thank you for the pictures Hannelore , its nice to see some pictures of Mathilde from the "beginning" I have not seen so many other than the happy entries. I have looked trought the treads here and on the royal website but found very little information about what she did\where she went the first year of marriage. Is there some place that would have information about it?

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Thanks lots Hannelore.

 

[Mette2]

Thanks a lot for the pictures Hannelore, they're really great . Also thanks for the info on Philippe, Mathilde, and Elisabeth - how sweet.

Speaking of sweet moments. At the moment Danish television is re-running the documentary 'A Royal Family' and today they showed how Christian the 9th is related to the Belgian Royal family. There was a short glimpse of Elisabeth's first birthday and I thought it was so cute how she tried to blow out the candle on the cake but couldn't. - Not really news I know, but I thought I'd just share my joy of seeing this, hope that's okay .

 

[Hannelore]

Of course it's OK Mette, that's what these boards are for!

 

[Hannelore]

Thank you for the pictures Hannelore , its nice to see some pictures of Mathilde from the "beginning" I have not seen so many other than the happy entries. I have looked trought the treads here and on the royal website but found very little information about what she did\where she went the first year of marriage. Is there some place that would have information about it?

I've looked around a bit on the internet, but I can't find anything either...So why don't I just share the highlights (that I remember) of her first year as a princess...

From the very beginning she's had her own program. There were duties together with Filip but she also went on visits on her own, mainly focussing on the weaker persons in society (children, elderly, psychiatric patients etc.). The first year she did rely on Filip much more than she does now (you could say that now they rely on each other). She launched her own fund, there was a first economic mission to New York and the couple gave an interview to the NY Times or the Washington Pos- I don't remember exactly (unfortunately I didn't keep the article, I just remember Filip saying that living with Mathilde is 'awesome'). Her first appearance in gala (and with her tiara) was at the Spanish state visit to Belgium.

I'll try to find some more pics from those 'early days' and post them here. If you don't mind I'll skip the happy entries since those are photos we all know by now...

 

[Hannelore]

One of the first visits after their marriage (so in the first weeks/months of 2000) was a visit to the Belgian senate. Mathilde wore a very pretty suit of Olivier Strelli. And because she placed her hand on her belly a few times, magazines and newspapers all wrote she had to be pregnant. Of course she wasn't Mind you, there were rumours she had a miscarriage, but these never got further than the gossippress and they're very unlikely to be true...

 

[Hannelore]

Just before their marriage, the launch of the website of the prince Filip fund, at the royal palace. Of course very little attention went to the website, and everyone focused on Mathilde and her engagement ring, which was seen in public for the first time. The central stone, a ruby, is Mathilde's favorite gem and this specific ruby was bought for her by Filip himself in Birma.

 

[Hannelore]

A visit to the psychiatric hospital of Geel in Flanders

 

[Hannelore]

A private visit to Portugal for the baptism of one of the children of the duke of Bragança and his wife Isabel. Filip is the child's godfather.

 

[HMQueenElizabethII]

Great!Lovely,thanks lots Hannelore.

 

[Hannelore]

The launch of the princess Mathilde fund in December 2000. The fund hands out it's annual price on December 4th (their wedding day). Mathilde was quite nervous, so Filip accompanied her. She made her first speech (in Dutch and French). And Paris Match put her on their cover

 

[Hannelore]

Before their marriage, a concert at the royal palace.

 

[Larzen]

Thank you very much for the information and pictures I did not expect that you would dig up all theese pictures, they are a very elegant hard working and descreet couple with beautiful children. She looked very elegant from the start, especially at the visit to the hospital in Geel, and the visit to the belgian senate, and I also loved her blue engagement gown with the ruffles around the neck.

 

[Hannelore]

Also in 2000, king Albert II had to undergo urgent heart sergery. Filip & Mathilde were on skiing holiday and returned home immediately. Luckily all went well and the king recovered quickly.

Here they are visiting their father (in law)