Belgian National Day - 21 July, 1: 2009-2022


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For the first time he spoke about the Queen and about her Support. They are a team !

At Bozar Concet the King and the Queen.
Prince Laurent should attend the Dance at la Place du Jeu de Balle .
 
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Pity that the Duchess of Brabant did not accompany her parents to the Concert.
 
Stefan said:
Pity that the Duchess of Brabant did not accompany her parents to the Concert.
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I was hoping she would go all the same unannounced, but it was not the case. Such a pity!
 
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Astrid is in Gent.

Did Laurent attend one it the Te Deums?
 
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It was 42 (!) degrees two days ago so I imagine most of the city is happy with the reduced temperatures and even with the drizzle.

As is the tradition, Laurent was using his telephone before the military parade…

https://twitter.com/x/status/1550118888863543296

Edit: as was noted in the twitter account above -> it was the first national day in three years for Pss Claire. Great to see her there again.
 
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Has no lip reader ever managed to ascertain just why he has to use the phone right then?
 
cdm said:
Astrid is in Gent.

Did Laurent attend one it the Te Deums?
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Laurent attended the Te Deum and a reception in Luik:


** Pic 1 ** Pic 2 ** Pic 3 **


This evening the traditional Fete au Parc took place and King Philippe showed his musical talent ?


** rex gallery **


And afterwards the concert and fireworks 'Belgium Celebrates - Belgie viert feest - La Belgique fait la fete' event, at the Parc du Cinquantenaire took place:


** Pic ** rex gallery ** legion media gallery **
 
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Is there a reason why Elisabeth didn't attend the evening festivities?
 
:previous:

I‘ve read, but can‘t find it again, that she departed for Arlon to take part in the Royal Military Academy's annual summer camp.
 
leidi said:
Is there a reason why Elisabeth didn't attend the evening festivities?
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I was told (though I am not sure it is the truth) that she was already at the summer with Royal Military Academy and she was given the day off for the National Day. So as soon as the parade ended she had to go back to Arlon.
 
40.000 persons , never seen before , The Royal family was there but not Princess Eilsabeth. With emotions the King spoke shortly thanking all the Belgians . Great moment with firework at the end our Brabançonne ....Le Roi , la Loi et la Liberté !
 
iceflower and Marchesina are right, Wim Dehandschutter says it on his Twitter account about Elisabeth returning to Arlon and that she had the day off especially for National Day.
 
maria-olivia said:
40.000 persons , never seen before , The Royal family was there but not Princess Eilsabeth. With emotions the King spoke shortly thanking all the Belgians . Great moment with firework at the end our Brabançonne ....Le Roi , la Loi et la Liberté !
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I know serious regional tensions still exist, but it cannot be denied that Philippe, Mathilde and their superbly raised children have done an amazing job restoring the prestige of the Belgian monarchy.

I was a little worried when Philippe became king, but he has been nothing short of brilliant.

The elegant, stylish young Duchess of Brabant has become a wonderful asset as well.?

I wish King Baudouin could see it.
 
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Moonmaiden23 said:
I know serious regional tensions still exist, but it cannot be denied that Philippe, Mathilde and their superbly raised children have done an amazing job restoring the prestige of the Belgian monarchy.

I was a little worried when Philippe became king, but he has been nothing short of brilliant.

The elegant, stylish young Duchess of Brabant has become a wonderful asset as well.?

I wish King Baudouin could see it.
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That doesn't surprise me - since July 21, 2013 he can finally do what he's been training to do for so long.


King Baudouin does see it ;) from above. How Philippe handles himself is for a major part thanks to his uncle's input. And also a bit Mathilde's.
 
Minister of Court said:
The man’s a legend:lol:
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From my point of view a very disturbed and troubled "legend"...
At one point he almost fell asleep...!His wife managed to make him open his eyes again by talking to him.:ermm::whistling:

What is he actually doing in the rest of the year when he is not appearing at the Nationalday in his dapper navaluniform as if he was an active military man? Are Claire and Laurent performing royal duties such as Edward and Sophie Wessex in the UK, making diplomatic visits abroad etc.?
 
wartenberg7 said:
From my point of view a very disturbed and troubled "legend"...
At one point he almost fell asleep...!His wife managed to make him open his eyes again by talking to him.:ermm::whistling:

What is he actually doing in the rest of the year when he is not appearing at the Nationalday in his dapper navaluniform as if he was an active military man? Are Claire and Laurent performing royal duties such as Edward and Sophie Wessex in the UK, making diplomatic visits abroad etc.?
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No. The Prince keeps a low profile (and his brother is very happy when he remains as invisible as possible). What we see are engagements in connection with his foundation for the protection of animals. And that is a huge plus, as Prince Laurent's love for all creatures great and small is genuine and all his life long.
 
It was a lovely national day, but if I was the Minister of Defence, the Prime Minister, or one of the high and mighty in Belgian politics, I would be ashamed for the sorry state the Belgian armed forces presented itself.

The only music band worth that name is the Musique Royale des Guides while the Air and Naval Forces have small brass bands of 35 musicians (the first one a more concertante orchestra than a marching band).

The only proper ceremonial uniformed units were the École Royale Militaire in their splendid uniforms and the Royal Escort.

The mounted Royal Escort used to have 132 horses in full setting, but since cutbacks it has been halved. But their uniforms and lances with the tricolores urgently needs an update. The wear and tear was showing.

The King can not help it. Maybe it was not even in the characters of Baudouin, Albert II and Philippe to slam with their fist on the table and demand a proper and dignified appearance of the armed forces, for the prestige of the nation.

But if I was the Minister of Defense, I would have summoned the general staff and demanded a proper military ceremonial and protocol for the Défilé in 2023!

Come on, one round of kerosine for a F16 already pays new parade uniforms for an escadron!
 
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Duc_et_Pair said:
No. The Prince keeps a low profile (and his brother is very happy when he remains as invisible as possible). What we see are engagements in connection with his foundation for the protection of animals. And that is a huge plus, as Prince Laurent's love for all creatures great and small is genuine and all his life long.
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As a huge animal lover myself I appreciate that. But is that enough to justify a priviliged royal life these days...?! I fully understand The King´s relieve about his younger brother´s low profiled role - but is that a life for a grown up, elderly man?! When I watch the Prince he occurse to me like a loose canon and one wonders what happens next (after using the mobile phone during a state occasion, pretending to sleep or remaining seated while everyone else stands during a march past of a military contingent...)
Obviously Laurent has not enough to do and a real purpose in life is absent. His obvious way to compensate his lack of selfesteem (or revenge for this meaningless existence of a third born Royal ?!) seems to provocate and embarrass his "working" family members, especially his elder brother...
 
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Philippe is the only one who has stuck by Laurent through just about everything, so Laurent would be incredibly stupid to try biting that hand now.

I doubt he is honestly trying to do wrong by Philippe; he just can't behave properly. It's not like he ever has, and to be honest, using his phone is tame compared to much of what he used to do. I imagine the family is happy he's relatively calm these days.

He's good to the animals and he seemingly has a nice family. It could be worse. (It has been worse.)
 
I think Philippe is just delighted when Laurent stays quiet and isn't embarrassing the RF as seems to happen on most of his public duties that he is probably okay with Laurent getting an official allowance and not doing all that much.

Loved seeing the King, Queen and family together.
 
Prinsara said:
Philippe is the only one who has stuck by Laurent through just about everything, so Laurent would be incredibly stupid to try biting that hand now.

I doubt he is honestly trying to do wrong by Philippe; he just can't behave properly. It's not like he ever has, and to be honest, using his phone is tame compared to much of what he used to do. I imagine the family is happy he's relatively calm these days.

He's good to the animals and he seemingly has a nice family. It could be worse. (It has been worse.)
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Well, I don´t know a lot about his even worse antics from the past, but using a mobile phone as a royal Prince during a parade at the nation´s most important day of the year is, to put it mildly, most ignorant and an outrageous thing to do! This guy really needs a call down! Just imagine Prince William answering a mobile call during the Queen´s birthday parade on horseback...!? Even seeing one of the Princesses at one of the windows inside Horse Guards Parade building having a call would cause a major scandal, and not only in the UK.
 
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wartenberg7 said:
Well, I don´t know a lot about his even worse antics from the past, but using a mobile phone as a royal Prince during a parade at the nation´s most important day of the year is, to put it mildly, most ignorant and an outrageous thing to do! This guy really needs a call down! Just imagine Prince William answering a mobile call during the Queen´s birthday parade on horseback...!? Even seeing one of the Princesses at one of the windows inside Horse Guards Parade building having a call would cause a major scandal, and not only in the UK.
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And I'm sure if you aren't familiar with Belgian royal history and you expect "the cursed prince" Laurent to behave like a typical royal adult, it seems egregious. If you want to look at a few other threads to see the things he's done, it will stop seeming so.

And no, they can't disinvite him from the parade — it would cause even more problems. Laurent has ensured that no one takes him seriously. Better he's amusing people than worse. I feel for poor Princess Claire that it happens on one of the few times she goes out in public, but no one thinks she can do anything about it, either.
 
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As others have said, using his cell phone is pretty tame for Laurent. He wasn't undermining Belgium's foreign policy or anything potentially irreversible.

I do think he has long-term mental health problems, and I feel for both him and his family. It's always a pleasure to see Claire at events. I'm more than content to see Laurant use his phone if it means we can have Claire attend.

I think Philippe has had to endure many things from his family (parents and brother). but it says a lot about who is that he has always done so with grace. I enjoy watching most of the royal families, but I have a special amount of esteem and respect for Philippe and Matilda. They have created a wonderful family unit.
 
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