Belgian Royal Coats of Arms & Monograms

[theroyalfly]

I am not sure it is a good idea. I know the Royal Decree of 2015 says that the Princes and Princesses can use the titles they hold "by right of ancestry". Germany, however, is now a republic and the titles they are claiming, like Duke of Saxony and Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, are no longer legally recognized.


Apparently, the Belgian government said that, by ceasing to use the Wettin arms, the Belgian Royal House was being hostile to Germany and that wouldn't make sense today 100 years after the Great War. Quite frankly, that is a very odd statement, but, irrespective of suggesting how subservient some EU countries have become to Germany, I don't see how using titles that the Federal Republic of Germany doesn't recognize would be equivalent to extending an olive branch to your neighbors.


Besides, it is also inconsistent. Princess Astrid's children are Princes and Princesses of Belgium who descend in direct female line from King Leopold I. Under Art. 4 of the Royal Decree of 2019, they will use then the new arms of the Princes or Princesses of Belgium who are not the heir, which includes the Saxony arms. However, they are not members of the House of Wettin and are not entitled by ancestry to use the titles of Duke of Saxony or Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha as those do not descend in female line. To be consistent with the 2015 decree , they should use the arms of the House of Austria-Este instead.


Please also note that gender equality in the 2019 Royal Decree applies only to the King or reigning Queen. For all other categories in the Royal House, including a monarch who has abdicated, the Duke of Brabant, a generic Prince of Belgium who is not the heir, and a generic Prince who is not a Prince of Belgium, there are differentiated shields for males and females in their respective coats of arms.


The best thing to come out of this Royal Decree in my opinion is that Princess Elisabeth at least got a proper coat of arms as Duchess of Brabant, differentiated from those of her siblings and cousins, which was badly needed. Besides, I personally think that all the proposed designs are quite nice.

Actually, I understand both points. Firstly, I also think it's unnecessary to add anything on the coat-of-arms and the question why it had to wait 6 years for this to happen remains a mystery. Secondly, Albert I decided to change the House name from Saxe-Coburg and Gotha to Belgium in 1920 due to anti-German sentiment so I think, it's pretty unnecessary to include anything about SCG again in the coat-of-arms. Lastly, I think the only coat-of-arms that needs changing is the Duchess of Brabant's. And I'm extremely happy with the result.

But all is well. Philippe might have felt the need to look back on their ancestry. Good thing, they had this recent trip and decided on this.

There's really no problem if we look at the bigger picture.

Well, it is not the coat-of-arms of the House of Saxony, it is the coat-of-arms of the House of Belgium (with an element of Saxony indeed). As the House of Belgium has a gender-neutral titulature, I can understand the use of Arms corresponding with these titles, even while Amedeo is factually an Archduke of Austria, he is still a Prince of Belgium.

The titles of the House Sachsen-Coburg indeed do not exist anymore in the Bundesrepublik Deutschland, but these were part of the official titulature of the princes of the Royal House of Belgium. King Albert's own father Léopold III, his uncle Charles and his aunt Marie-José were all prins (prinses) van België, prins (prinses) van Saksen-Coburg en Gotha, hertog (hertogin) van Saksen. That after WWI King Albert I did interrupt the use of this style, of course does not mean that in 2019 King Philippe, grandson of Léopold III, can not decide to re-use these titles.

Thank you for the clarification, Duc! I also feel that it's unnecessary to reuse their ancestral titles should Philippe decide on this. Ultimately, I think he just felt reconnected to his roots during his trip and decided to act on the coat-of-arms.

All is well.

 

[An Ard Ri]

The Coat of arms of HRH The Duchess of Brabant as of the royal decree July 2019.

Coat of Arms of King Albert II as of July 2019

 

[Tatiana Maria]

The explanations for the changes are communicated within the decree (page 8):

http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/mopdf/2019/07/19_2.pdf#Page8

Considering the Constitution, articles 85 and 113;

Considering the royal decree of 13 July 1880 establishing the arms of the Royal House, in its form amended by the royal decree of 17 June 1910;

Considering the royal decree of 16 December 1840 awarding the title of Duke of Brabant to the presumptive heir to the Crown and that of Count of Flanders to Prince Philippe, in its form amended by the royal decree of 16 October 2001;

Considering the royal decree of 12 November 2015 on the subject of conferring the title of Prince or Princess of Belgium;

Whereas, following Our ascension to the Throne, it is proper to adapt the rules setting out the arms of the Royal House and those of its members to the historical and juridical developments that have occurred after the coming into effect of the royal decree of 17 June 1910;

Whereas the decrees in effect at the present time are no longer adequate for all of the situations which present themselves, and it is essential to correct the risk of confusion which opens the door to inappropriate and harmful heraldic usages, publicly as well as privately;
​

Those points make obvious why it was necessary to "adapt the rules to the historical and juridical developments":

Following the amended Article 85 of the Constitution, Elisabeth, not Gabriel, is the future monarch, and Astrid and her children are higher in the line to the throne than Laurent and his children.
The royal decree of 16 December 1840 was amended by the royal decree of 16 October 2001 so that Elisabeth, not Gabriel, is the Duchess of Brabant.
The royal decrees of 2 December 1991 and 12 November 2015 regulated the titles and names of Astrid's descendants together with the descendants in male line.

However, according to the the royal decree of 13 July 1880 in its form amended by the royal decree of 17 June 1910,

1. Gabriel, Emmanuel, Laurent, Nicolas, and Aymeric would use a grand coat of arms dressed with a helmet, supporters, flags, motto, canopy, and crown, much like the coats of arms on page 11 and page 13 in the PDF link above (and posted in message #32 ).

2. Elisabeth, Eléonore, Astrid, and Louise would use a shield dressed with merely a crown, much like the coat of arms on page 19 in the link.

3. Amedeo, Anna Astrid, Maria Laura, Joachim, Luisa Maria, and Laetitia Maria would not use the Belgian royal arms, but only the arms of their father.
​

Applying a resplendent coat of arms to Nicolas and Aymeric, while the Crown Princess was forced to use a simplified one, and six princes and princesses higher in line to the throne than Nicolas and Aymeric were denied the use of the royal arms, was obviously inconsistent with the juridical developments since 1910.


As far as the reintroduction of the arms of Saxony is concerned, King Philippe, as a necessary legal step in the royal decree of 12 November 2015, reintroduced the Saxe-Coburg titles for the descendants of Leopold I in male line (read more here: http://www.theroyalforums.com/forum...elgian-royal-family-38975-16.html#post2186636). The use of the arms of Saxony is in keeping with the reintroduction of the titles.


However, the decree is indeed years overdue, considering that the introduction of gender-neutral primogeniture was completed in 1991, and the reintroduction of the Saxe-Coburg titles in 2015. Which is why I wonder whether the mention of "inappropriate and harmful heraldic usages" may be hinting at some particular incident which was upsetting to the King.

Alternatively, perhaps there will some type of celebration of Princess Elisabeth's coming of age at which her father would like to display her coat of arms.

According to one source, the decision of reinstating the Saxe-Coburg-Gotha main royal arms happened after their recent visit at the ancestral Friedenstein Castle.

Royal Decree of 12 July 2019

**http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/eli/arrete/2019/07/12/2019030777/moniteur

The decree is dated July 12, but the preparatory work must have been initiated a long time prior to the visit to Friedenstein Castle on July 9. The royal decree of 1880 required a whole year of preparations, and while modern technologies would perhaps be able to expedite the procedure, it would realistically still require a longer span of time than three days for the deliberations of the council of nobility and submissions of designs for authorization and drafting.

 

[leidi]

One question: where in Elisabeth's coat of arms is her mother's side of the family? Or is it just a paternal thing?
I am not very good with heraldic stuff so I thank anyone who can answer me

 

[An Ard Ri]

There's no reference to House of d'Udekem d'Acoz on Elisabeth's Coat of Arms

Coat of arms of the House of d'Udekem d'Acoz

 

[An Ard Ri]

The Coat of Arms of the late Queen Fabiola

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

One question: where in Elisabeth's coat of arms is her mother's side of the family? Or is it just a paternal thing?
I am not very good with heraldic stuff so I thank anyone who can answer me

It is usually a paternal line but in the case of Princess Catharina-Amalia the arms of the Zorreguieta family were added (a stronghold flanked with two cypresses and two wolves): https://docplayer.nl/docs-images/49/19258169/images/page_8.jpg

Traditional Princess Catharina-Amalia's paternal Von Amsberg arms would have been there. So it is a choice to use the maternal Zorreguieta arms instead. Click on the document to expand.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

One question: where in Elisabeth's coat of arms is her mother's side of the family? Or is it just a paternal thing?
I am not very good with heraldic stuff so I thank anyone who can answer me

The decree does not make any allowances for references to the other side of the family in the arms of the royals of the blood. Any given royal under each category uses exactly the same arms. Elisabeth's arms are completely paternal then, whereas the arms of Astrid's children are completely maternal.

Please also note that gender equality in the 2019 Royal Decree applies only to the King or reigning Queen. For all other categories in the Royal House, including a monarch who has abdicated, the Duke of Brabant, a generic Prince of Belgium who is not the heir, and a generic Prince who is not a Prince of Belgium, there are differentiated shields for males and females in their respective coats of arms.

In addition, a helmet tops the shield in the arms of a King emeritus or a Duke of Brabant, but not in the arms of a Queen emerita or a Duchess of Brabant. Having said that, the new rules considerably narrowed the gap between the arms of females and males in comparison to the rules of 1910, and the remaining differences are not too noticeable.

It is usually a paternal line but in the case of Princess Catharina-Amalia the arms of the Zorreguieta family were added (a stronghold flanked with two cypresses and two wolves): https://docplayer.nl/docs-images/49/19258169/images/page_8.jpg

Traditional Princess Catharina-Amalia's paternal Von Amsberg arms would have been there. So it is a choice to use the maternal Zorreguieta arms instead. Click on the document to expand.

You are right. To be more specific, it is traditional in royal heraldry at large to display the arms of the bearer's dynastic origins as an inescutcheon, the smaller shield in the center. For instance, the arms of Oldenburg are used in this capacity in the arms of the Danish Queen and Crown Prince (the Glücksborg dynasty being a cadet branch of Oldenborg), and the inescutcheon of the Swedish royal arms has changed each time the name of the royal house was changed.

But not every house consistently follows this rule, and in particular it appears the two branches of the House of Nassau have decided on alternative designs. The personal arms of the Dutch royals display the arms of the Houses of Lippe, Amsberg, Vollenhoven, and Zorreguieta on their inescutcheons, even though the royal house is the House of Orange-Nassau, and the Luxembourg grand coat of arms displays an inescutcheon of Bourbon-Parma even though the ruling house is Nassau.

 

[An Ard Ri]

The coat of Arms of HRH Eleonore of Belgium since the Royal Decree of July 2019.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

Princess Eléonore's new coat of arms also includes other new elements (supporters in the form of lions, a canopy, and so on). It can be viewed on page 16 of this link and is described in article 4 of the decree on page 8.

https://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/mopdf/2019/07/19_2.pdf#Page16

Princesses Astrid, Maria Laura, Luisa Maria, Laetitia Maria, Louise, Marie-Christine, and Esmeralda will use the same coat of arms.

 

[leidi]

Thank you everyone for the explanation!

 

[An Ard Ri]

Princesses Astrid, Maria Laura, Luisa Maria, Laetitia Maria, Louise, Marie-Christine, and Esmeralda will use the same coat of arms.

Princess Astrids should be different as she's married to the Archduke of Austria-Este I don't know why the Belgian Royal Court does not differentiate between the Princesses.

 

[maria-olivia]

Princess Marie Christine never came back to Belgium, was banned ?, wanted no souvenir of her parents but only money , money. I wonder if the may use her Coat of Arms.
I wonder which coat of arms has Princess léa , widow of Prince Alexander ?

 

[An Ard Ri]

The coat of arms of the late Princess Joséphine Charlotte, Grand Duchess consort of Luxembourg combined the coats of Arms of a Belgian Princess with those of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.

Coat of arms of HRH Princess Joséphine Charlotte, Grand Duchess consort of Luxembourg

​

 

[Mbruno]

Princess Eléonore's new coat of arms also includes other new elements (supporters in the form of lions, a canopy, and so on). It can be viewed on page 16 of this link and is described in article 4 of the decree on page 8.

https://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/mopdf/2019/07/19_2.pdf#Page16

Princesses Astrid, Maria Laura, Luisa Maria, Laetitia Maria, Louise, Marie-Christine, and Esmeralda will use the same coat of arms.

Wouldn’t the arms without the supporters and canopy be her “ small arms” ? They should include the princely crown though.

Wikipedia had updated the arms of the members of the Belgian RF including Princess Éleonore, see

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Eléonore_of_Belgium

 

[An Ard Ri]

Princess Marie Christine never came back to Belgium, was banned ?, wanted no souvenir of her parents but only money , money. I wonder if the may use her Coat of Arms.
I wonder which coat of arms has Princess léa , widow of Prince Alexander ?

According to Wikipedia ,Princess Léa of Belgium uses the general Princess of Belgium coat of arms same as the Kings younger daughter, sister,sister inlaw and nieces,its a bit chaotic .

Coat of arms of a Princess of Belgium

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

Princess Léa was married to a son of a King. She is in the same position as Princess Claire. It is correct indeed.

 

[Mbruno]

According to Wikipedia ,Princess Léa of Belgium uses the general Princess of Belgium coat of arms same as the Kings younger daughter, sister,sister inlaw and nieces,its a bit chaotic .

Coat of arms of a Princess of Belgium

I think it is consistent. The logic is that there are five different "ranks" in the Belgian RF:

1. The King (or Queen) of the Belgians
2. The King (or Queen) emeritus (emerita), i.e. upon abdication
3. The Duke (or Duchess) of Brabant
4. The Princes (or Princesses) of Belgium (other than the Duke or Duchess of Brabant, or the King or Queen)
5. The other princes or princesses of the Royal House who are not Princes/Princesses of Belgium (not HRHs).

There is a specific coat of arms for each of the 5 categories. In addition, categories 2-5 also have differentiated arms for males and females. The present King's children, siblings, nephews/nieces and aunts fall all under category 4 and that is why they have the same arms. There could be separate arms for example for the King's children adding a cadet labelto the escutheon (as usual), but the Belgians decided to add a three-point label only to the arms of Duke/Duchess of Brabant.


As always, it is not clear who the members of category 5 are. As I said before, also in connection with the titles and styles of the Royal Family, my opinion is that category 5 includes
all descendants of Léopold I (other than the descendants of the King's aunts) who are not Princes or Princesses of Belgium under the Royal Decree of 2015. It would be equivalent then to a "prince du sang" or dynast, including all grandchildren of Princess Astrid or Prince Laurent. But that is only my personal interpretation of the Royal Decrees. I know other posters disagree.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

It is not the actual position or the HRH which determines the Arns but the descendance.

Princess Marie-Esmeralda (daughter of King Léopold III), Princess Astrid (daughter of King Albert II) and Princess Eleonore (daughter of King Philippe) have the same Arms: a blason with a golden lining.

Prince Amedeo (daughter of Princess Astrid), Prince Nicholas (son of Prince Laurent) have the same Arms: a blason with a purple lining.

All of them are HRH and Prince(ss) of Belgium. But the ones who are children of a King or Heir have a golden lining, the others a purple one. It is the distance to a King which makes the difference.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

It is not the actual position or the HRH which determines the Arns but the descendance.

Princess Marie-Esmeralda (daughter of King Léopold III), Princess Astrid (daughter of King Albert II) and Princess Eleonore (daughter of King Philippe) have the same Arms: a blason with a golden lining.

Prince Amedeo (daughter of Princess Astrid), Prince Nicholas (son of Prince Laurent) have the same Arms: a blason with a purple lining.

All of them are HRH and Prince(ss) of Belgium. But the ones who are children of a King or Heir have a golden lining, the others a purple one. It is the distance to a King which makes the difference.

No, all of the above have the gold border as Princes and Princesses of Belgium in the direct line of descent from Leopold I, as determined by Article 4.

It is Princess Anna Astrid who has the purple border as a Princess of the Royal House who is not a Princess of Belgium, as determined by Article 5.


The words in the decree of 2019 are:

Article 1.

Our arms are [a description of his coat of arms].

Art. 2.

The King or Queen who has abdicated uses [a description of his or her coat of arms].

Art. 3.

The Duke or Duchess of Brabant uses [a description of his or her coat of arms].

Art. 4.

The other Princes or Princesses of Belgium of the male-line and female-line descendance in direct line from His Majesty Leopold I use [a description of their coat of arms].

Art. 5.

The Princes or Princesses of Our Royal House who are not covered by article 4 use [a description of their coat of arms].

Art. 6.

The small coat of arms of Our Royal House is [a description of its coat of arms].

Art. 7.

The middle coat of arms of Our Royal House is [a description of its coat of arms].
​

Princess Astrids should be different as she's married to the Archduke of Austria-Este I don't know why the Belgian Royal Court does not differentiate between the Princesses.

The conjugal arms of married royals and royals by marriage were not covered under the Royal Decree of 2019. Neither were they covered under the Royal Decrees of 1880 or 1910.

I suppose it is old custom and not legislation which allows married women to either "impale" their husband's arms with their own arms (which they keep after marriage) on the same shield or place them side by side on two separate shields (which seems to have been the custom in the Belgian royal family).

I am not sure if married men are allowed to use their wives' arms in the same way under the customs of the Benelux countries (they are allowed to do so in Britain).

According to Wikipedia ,Princess Léa of Belgium uses the general Princess of Belgium coat of arms same as the Kings younger daughter, sister,sister inlaw and nieces,its a bit chaotic .

Coat of arms of a Princess of Belgium

I am not sure what arms Léa is supposed to use considering she is a commoner and (I assume) not entitled to arms in her own right, but using her husband's arms by themselves would seem reasonable. However, in the Benelux countries, a married woman would place her arms in an oval, not a diamond.

Wouldn’t the arms without the supporters and canopy be her “ small arms” ? They should include the princely crown though.

I think so, although I am no expert.

Wikipedia had updated the arms of the members of the Belgian RF including Princess Éleonore, see

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Eléonore_of_Belgium

But not for Princess Astrid's branch of the family (whom they also refer to by the wrong titles).

 

[An Ard Ri]

Did Her Royal Highness The Princess of Réthy have her own coat of arms,I've never seen it?

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

In my understanding Elisabeth and her siblings are in direct line, from King on King. If we interpret it as direct descendance from Léopold I everyone qualifies. It is too vague, confusing and the Arms are only recognizable after a detailed study. The purpose of Arms, deducting the wearer, is completely lost here. One can not see who is the papa and mama of Belgian royals.

For an example:
Juliana had the Mecklenburg Bull as heart shield.
Beatrix and her sisters have the Lippe Rose as heart shield.
Willem-Alexander and his brother have the Amsberg Tower as heart shield.
Catharina-Amalia and her siblings have the Zorreguieta Stronghold as heart shield.

That makes their arms deductible: who is who.
But it is impossible to differentiate the Arms of Marie-Esmeralda (Baels), Astrid (Ruffo di Calabria) and Eleonore (d'Udekem d'Acoz) apart: all three of them have i d e n t i c a l Arms!

 

[Tatiana Maria]

In my understanding Elisabeth and her siblings are in direct line, from King on King. If we interpret it as direct descendance from Léopold I everyone qualifies.

But the decree leaves no room for interpretation in that aspect. Article 4 refers to Princes and Princess of Belgium in "direct line from His Majesty Leopold I", not "direct line from the King".

Art. 4. De andere Prinsen of Prinsessen van België uit de mannelijke en vrouwelijke nakomelingschap in rechte lijn van Zijne Majesteit Leopold I voeren het wapenschild, ruitvormig voor de Prinsessen, zoals beschreven in artikel 1, omboord van goud. [...]

Art. 4. Les autres Princes ou Princesses de Belgique de la descendance masculine et féminine en ligne directe de Sa Majesté Léopold Ier portent l'écu des armes, en losange pour les Princesses, tel qu'il est décrit à l'article 1er, chargé d'une filière d'or. [...]

(Art. 4. The other Princes or Princesses of Belgium of the male-line and female-line descendance in direct line from His Majesty Leopold I use the shield of the arms, upon a lozenge for the Princesses, in the form in which it is described in Article 1, with a gold border. [...])

https://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/mopdf/2019/07/19_2.pdf#Page8​

It is too vague, confusing and the Arms are only recognizable after a detailed study. The purpose of Arms, deducting the wearer, is completely lost here. One can not see who is the papa and mama of Belgian royals.

For an example:
Juliana had the Mecklenburg Bull as heart shield.
Beatrix and her sisters have the Lippe Rose as heart shield.
Willem-Alexander and his brother have the Amsberg Tower as heart shield.
Catharina-Amalia and her siblings have the Zorreguieta Stronghold as heart shield.

That makes their arms deductible: who is who.
But it is impossible to differentiate the Arms of Marie-Esmeralda (Baels), Astrid (Ruffo di Calabria) and Eleonore (d'Udekem d'Acoz) apart: all three of them have i d e n t i c a l Arms!

Well, under the historical laws of arms, mothers had no right - in the normal course of events - to transmit their arms. Neither the Queens consort of Belgium, nor the Queens consort of the Netherlands prior to Queen Máxima, transmitted their arms to their sons and daughters.

It seems to me that the arms of the Princes consort of the Netherlands were introduced into the heartshields of their children because they were men and not women, just as their titles and family names were introduced into those of their children (while Queen Wilhelmina for example never was a Princess of Waldeck and Pyrmont by right of her mother). Three consecutive princes consort was clearly sufficient to turn it into a custom which was followed for Máxima, thus the heartshield of Zorreguieta in her children's arms (although it confuses me why Máxima legally renounced the name Zorreguieta upon marriage instead of transmitting it to her children as the princes consort did).

Did Her Royal Highness The Princess of Réthy have her own coat of arms,I've never seen it?

I don't know for sure, but I highly doubt she would have been granted one, given that the government did not even assent to legalizing the courtesy title of Princess of Réthy.

 

[theroyalfly]

This Royal Decree of 2019 just made all its flaws apparent. The 'coat-of-arms' should be subject for intense modification.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

This Royal Decree of 2019 just made all its flaws apparent. The 'coat-of-arms' should be subject for intense modification.

What do you mean? Within the Belgian nobility it is normal that all men in a noble family use the same coat of arms, so distinguishing between five different ranks in the royal family (see messages 48 and 50) seems to me adequate.

 

[maria-olivia]

The degree is from July 2019. As you know you have actually no Government.
Will we have one in Ocober 25 th for Princess Elisabeh 18th Birthday, not sure.
It was wise to do it at the Moment of our National Day.
All is ready for the entire Royal Family.
Queen Mathilde Coat of Arms will be later for Queen Elisabeth.

 

[Mbruno]

This Royal Decree of 2019 just made all its flaws apparent. The 'coat-of-arms' should be subject for intense modification.

Which flaws were made apparent ?

 

[An Ard Ri]

The coat of arms of HI&RH Prince Lorenz,Archduke of Austria-Este.

 

[Duc_et_Pair]

[...] Máxima legally renounced the name Zorreguieta upon marriage instead of transmitting it to her children as the princes consort did).
[....]

Máxima renounced nothing. Like Mathilde, or Fabiola, or Paola did not renounce anything. They just have another style, title, name and form of address since their marriage.

It is true that Máxima's children do not have the surname Zorreguieta. But they also no longer have their father's name Von Amsberg... The Government has given a reason, but this is about the Belgians, so better in another thread.

 

[Tatiana Maria]

The degree is from July 2019. As you know you have actually no Government.
Will we have one in Ocober 25 th for Princess Elisabeh 18th Birthday, not sure.
It was wise to do it at the Moment of our National Day.
All is ready for the entire Royal Family.
Queen Mathilde Coat of Arms will be later for Queen Elisabeth.

As I understand it, when Elisabeth becomes Queen, she will inherit the coat of arms used at the moment by King Philippe (Article 1 of the Royal Decree of 2019). King Leopold II's Royal Decree of 1880 made this clearer, giving this coat of arms to "Nous et Nos successeurs" (Us and Our successors), though of course women at the time could not be successors.

For now, Princess Elisabeth's arms have already been given an upgrade to (nearly) the same status as the arms of a male Crown Prince under the July 2019 decree.

The coat of arms of HI&RH Prince Lorenz,Archduke of Austria-Este.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipe...um_(Spanish_Order_of_the_Civil_Merit).svg.png

Interestingly, from the time he became Prince of Belgium, Lorenz (and his wife and children) substituted HRH for HI&RH.

Here is a recent example: https://www.monarchie.be/nl/agenda/feest-in-het-park-van-brussel

Considering that one of the reasons the latest decree was issued was to adapt the arms of the Royal Family to be in keeping with gender equality, I wonder if he is or will be allowed to use his wife's arms in addition, in the same way as the consort of a prince.

Máxima renounced nothing. Like Mathilde, or Fabiola, or Paola did not renounce anything. They just have another style, title, name and form of address since their marriage.

It is true that Máxima's children do not have the surname Zorreguieta. But they also no longer have their father's name Von Amsberg... The Government has given a reason, but this is about the Belgians, so better in another thread.

Interesting; I will inquire about it in the Netherlands forum.