Queen Juliana (1909-2004) and Prince Bernhard (1911-2004)

[CyrilVladisla]

Prince Bernhard congratulated Alberto Ascari who had won the Dutch Grand Prix in 1953.
http://www.alamy.com/jun-09-1953-pri...e69283846.html

[CyrilVladisla]

Prince Bernhard inspected Dutch Airmen in 1940.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvU7KFgkgH4

[Marengo]

Gossip magazine 'Privé' has 'been able to get their hands on all 64 pages of the last will of Prince Bernhard and will publish all details in their next edition.

https://www.telegraaf.nl/video/23943...hard-uitgelekt

[SLV]

Awful.
Leave the man and especially his daughters (all of them) alone.
There is nothing to gain from publishing this.

[Alisa]

I for one would be interested in reading that. He was such an interesting and controversial figure. It would be interesting to see what he possessed and who they were bequeathed to.

[Duc_et_Pair]

Originally Posted by Marengo

Gossip magazine 'Privé' has 'been able to get their hands on all 64 pages of the last will of Prince Bernhard and will publish all details in their next edition.

https://www.telegraaf.nl/video/23943...hard-uitgelekt

By my knowledge in Dutch law a testator has the right to arrange strict entrance to the testament. Only the Notary (an offical with a public function) has entrance to the document, after all he has to control the strict execution of the testament.


Will Privé be liable for publishing a testament without permission of the testator and the beneficiants?

[Duc_et_Pair]

Originally Posted by Alisa

I for one would be interested in reading that. He was such an interesting and controversial figure. It would be interesting to see what he possessed and who they were bequeathed to.

In general we know that his six daughters (Princess Beatrix, Princess Irene, Princess Margriet, the late Princess Christina, the American Alicia Hala de Bielefeld and the French Alexia Lejeune-Grinda) all received an equal share.

Probably there were some other beneficiaries. I believe it is not usual to name amounts of money in relation to first-grade beneficiaries as they have legal right on an equal share which is the sum of all properties.

[Skippy]

I have seen it. That is to say, the magazine. I flipped through it.

Apparently his daughters did not get an equal share, and he has used favouritism in his will. He seemingly was very concerned for how he would enter the history books.
Alexia and Alicia supposedly did not get along.

[Marengo]

H. Jacobs of Royal blog gave his view on the situation:

https://gpdhome.typepad.com/nieuwsbe...rekken-co.html

He mentions that Prince Bernhard had 1000s of little statues of elephants. King Willem-Alexander inherited Bernhard's favorite, a bronze elephant that B. always took along on his travels. The statue was stored in a leather box. Each weak a fresh carnation was put in this box, a tradition that the King has continued.

The magazine also laid their hands on a codicil to the testament where his possessions were devided. Apparently the prince left a set of cufflinks to the Duke of Edinburgh.

Hélène Grinda, the mother of Alexia Grinda, received the the jewellery items that were worn by Bernhard. His personal secretary Cocky Gilles received 48 bottles of Pommery champagne. She died however 2 years after the prince.

[Duc_et_Pair]

Originally Posted by Marengo

H. Jacobs of Royal blog gave his view on the situation:

https://gpdhome.typepad.com/nieuwsbe...rekken-co.html

He mentions that Prince Bernhard had 1000s of little statues of elephants. King Willem-Alexander inherited Bernhard's favorite, a bronze elephant that B. always took along on his travels. The statue was stored in a leather box. Each weak a fresh carnation was put in this box, a tradition that the King has continued.

The magazine also laid their hands on a codicil to the testament where his possessions were devided. Apparently the prince left a set of cufflinks to the Duke of Edinburgh.

Hélène Grinda, the mother of Alexia Grinda, received the the jewellery items that were worn by Bernhard. His personal secretary Cocky Gilles received 48 bottles of Pommery champagne. She died however 2 years after the prince.

As I understand it, the story is more about a codicil, about personal belongings. "Cufflink 15 to my grandson Bernardo, cufflink 45 to my grandson Maurits, cufflink 70 to the Duke of Edinburgh, cufflink 120 to my son-in-law Claus."


It is not true that Hélène Lejeune-Grinda received more. As spouse Queen Juliana already had everything and a first choice in properties.

[An Ard Ri]

I often wondered how Princess Armgard got on with Princess Wilhelmina and queen Juliana after her conversion to Catholicism in 1951?

[Mbruno]

Originally Posted by An Ard Ri

I often wondered how Princess Armgard got on with Princess Wilhelmina and queen Juliana after her conversion to Catholicism in 1951?

Queen Juliana didn't strike me as a strict. hardcore Protestant. Her approach to religion seemed to be quite eccumenical. Queen/Princess Wilhelmina's position is a different matter though.

[Somebody]

Learned something new today. Through prince Bernhard the Dutch royal family is related to the most senior Habsburgs:

Ernst, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1842-1904) - Countess Adelaide of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1870-1948) - Georg, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen (1892-1946) - Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen (1925-2010) - the 7 Habsburg-siblings including the current head Karl von Habsburg

Ernst, Count of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1842-1904) - Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1872–1934) - Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1911-2004) - Queen/Princess Beatrix and her sisters

So, queen Beatrix and her sisters shared great-grandparents with Archduchess Regina, born as princess of Saxe-Meiningen; and therefore were second cousins. Karl and his siblings are third cousins of Willem-Alexander and his brother and cousins.

[Marengo]

Some information in Trouw, by historian Jurryt van Vooren.

In 1948 Prince Bernhard (sr) was involved with the Zandvoort racing circuit -now owned by his grandson and namesake. The prince was involved in preventing a 'building stop' that threatened the opening date of August 7th 1948.

Through the prince Benrhard veteran association the ministeries of Internal affairs and of Finance were succesfully pressured. The opening eventually went ahead as planned. As a reward Prince Bernhards foundation received 20.000 guilders (100.000 Euros in todays money) from the city, which was financed by an increase of the price of the entry tickets.

The building stop was an issue between the state and the town of Zandvoort. During the war the racing circuit was demolished by the Germans and replaced by the Atlantic Wall. After the war there were shortages of everything, including houses and building materials. the ministery of reconstruction and housing found it irrisponsible to use bricks for a racing circuit rather than housing. The conflict escalated op to the point that The Hague stopped the constructions of roads to the racing circuit.

The prince Bernhard foundation pointed out that car races were a in multi-sided national interest. The historian points out that after the war the prince was virtually unassailable. Most likely the mere mention of the name of the prince was enough to convince civil servants and ministers to change course.

https://www.trouw.nl/sport/prins-ber...geld~b0847b61/

[Prinsara]

He really knew all the best people. https://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/ne...-photo/3328152

[Duc_et_Pair]

Originally Posted by Prinsara

He really knew all the best people. https://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/ne...-photo/3328152

The Prince managed to get Zaïre (Congo) to establish Salonga Nature Reserve. A nature park bigger in size than the former colonizator Belgium and holding the second largest tropical rainforest in the world.

The Prince, founder and President of the World Wildlife Fund, had a major involvement in this. President Mobutu Sese Seko was awarded the Order of the Golden Arch. This Order was created by the Prince to award meritorious people in nature preservation and protection. However it was no State Order, no House Order and the Prince was no fons honorum, his prestige was so big that this Order was established.

For an example: at Prince Bernhard's funeral, the Duke of Edinburgh and other guests wore the Golden Arch as a honour to this WWF-giant.

[CyrilVladisla]

Prince Bernhard at the Soestdijk Palace stables
http://www.icp.org/browse/archive/ob...bles-baarn-the

[An Ard Ri]

Originally Posted by Duc_et_Pair

The Prince, founder and President of the World Wildlife Fund, had a major involvement in this. President Mobutu Sese Seko was awarded the Order of the Golden Arch. This Order was created by the Prince to award meritorious people in nature preservation and protection. However it was no State Order, no House Order and the Prince was no fons honorum, his prestige was so big that this Order was established.

For an example: at Prince Bernhard's funeral, the Duke of Edinburgh and other guests wore the Golden Arch as a honour to this WWF-giant.

I take it that the Order of the Golden Ark is no longer bestowed?

[Duc_et_Pair]

Originally Posted by An Ard Ri

I take it that the Order of the Golden Ark is no longer bestowed?

In 2002 Prince Bernhard bestowed the Golden Ark to:


Claude Martin (Switzerland), World Wildlife Fund

Annette Lanjouw (Netherlands), The International Gorilla Conservation Project

Anna A. Lushchekima (Russia), The Siberian Tiger Conservation Project

John G. Robinson (USA), International Conservation programs of the Wildlife Conservation Society

Miguel Cifuentes Arias (Costa Rica), Parque Nacional Galápagos

Wouter Veening (Netherlands), Institute for Environmental Security



Since then the Order has a dormant state.


Picture: President Kenneth Kaunda (Zambia) receives the Golden Ark at Soestdijk Palace