King Leopold III of The Belgians (1901-1983)

[CyrilVladisla]

Originally Posted by maria-olivia

JR76, This is a picture I never saw. Thank you so much.
No Belgian member of the family , they were on exile in 1947 until 1950. It is strange that even Queen Astrid Children were not alowed to leave the Country.

Why were the Royal Children not allowed to leave Belgium?

[GitaDeK]

Originally Posted by Marengo

Free of copyrights, from Columbia encyclopedia:

Leopold III, king of the Belgians 1901–83, king of the Belgians (1934–51), son and successor of Albert I. In 1936, Leopold announced a fundamental change in foreign policy; Belgium abandoned its military alliance with France in favor of a return to neutrality. In May, 1940, Germany—which in 1937 had guaranteed Belgian neutrality—invaded the Low Countries. Leopold led the Belgian army in resisting the invaders. After the defense became hopeless, Leopold, over the opposition of his cabinet, surrendered unconditionally (May 28), thus provoking accusations of treason. A prisoner of war at his castle at Laken, Leopold refused to exercise an active rule under German tutelage. After his first wife, Astrid, was killed in an automobile accident while Leopold was at the wheel, he married (1941) a commoner, whom he later created princess of Réthy. Removed (1944) to Germany, Leopold was freed by Allied troops in 1945. His return to Belgium was a burning political issue. The Liberal and leftist parties accused him of cooperation with Nazi Germany and of fascist sympathies, and his main support came from the Catholic Conservatives. In 1945, Leopold was barred from returning without the permission of the parliament. He spent his exile mostly in Switzerland while his brother, Prince Charles, acted as regent. A referendum held in 1950 favored the king’s return by a slight majority. However, Leopold’s arrival in Belgium was followed by such unrest that he transferred the royal powers to his eldest son, Baudouin. In July, 1951, Leopold formally abdicated.

Treated very unfairly, I may add. A decent, good man.

[Mbruno]

Originally Posted by GitaDeK

Treated very unfairly, I may add. A decent, good man.

The issue with Leopold III was not so much surrendering to Germany per se, as Belgium's military position was indeed hopeless and nobody could realistically expect him to do what his father had done in World War I. His biggest fault was actually to surrender and remain in Belgium contrary to the advice of the government, which would be unconstitutional and, in my opinion, disqualified him from staying on the throne.

[maria-olivia]

You are right Mbrunu. How many travels the Belgian Ministers did to Switzerland and the answer was always "no" . Bad personal Advisers.

[CyrilVladisla]

King Leopold III took his son Prince Alexander for a motorcycle ride in 1954.
http://www.gettyimages.com/license/171268453

[maria-olivia]

Noblesse et Royautés wrote :
King Leopold III Bugatti 59 from 1934 is sold 10, 7 millions euros. A record !

[An Ard Ri]

I wonder who sold it?

[Myway]

Leopold III was a car enthusiast who owned quite a lot of them, e.g. he had a deal with General Motors and was provided a Chevrolet Corvette every year. This is the reason for me to ask here for support. I own a '65 Corvette for which there are rumors to have once been his car. All my different routes to proof this have yielded nothing. I contacted Belgium DIV since I have a license plate that was registered on the Royal Palace as well as several pictures showing different Corvettes with this license plate. Unfortunately, the record at the DIV only lists one car for this license plate. So it appears to be incomplete. The Royal List doesn't have any information in this regard, too. My car - if it was his - is believed to have been driven around Villa Leopolda back then, too. There was once a TV documentation "Historie"on VHT about Leopold III and there is a footage contained showing Leopold III in a '65 Corvette accompanied by Lilian. I have attached picture excerpts of this footage. I would be very grateful for:

• any information when and where the footage was taken
• if and perhaps where I can search for color pictures taken there to identify the actual color of the car
• if there is an expert who might have detailed information on Leopold IIIs cars (the Belgium driver and author Paul Frere had collected such information before he deceased)
• any other 60ies pictures showing Leopold III in a sports car.
• anything else that might be helpful.

Thanks in advance.

Oliver

[maria-olivia]

That will help his daughter Marie Christine in money need.

After Queen Astrid passed away he was never seen at the Scandinavian Royal Events.
He saw Princess Ingeborg only at the Wedding of Josephine Charlotte.

[Blog Real]

King Leopold III reviews military parade in Brussels 1940.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eEsQ97ZLXQo

[CyrilVladisla]

Prince Leopold (King Leopold III) owned a 1928 Bugatti Type 43 car.
http://www.robbreport.com/motors/car...uction-2941680