General News about the Dutch Royal Family, Part 1 (September 2010 - )


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:previous: ugliest city? for a second I thought that was in the official announcement ;)
 
I thought a pre-warning may be handy for the non-Dutch members ;).

Tilburg was voted ugliest cities in a national poll a few years ago IIRC, though I am not sure how scientific the poll was. These last years the city has been doing its best to make it nicer. I am sure they will try to guide the royal family through the better-looking areas of the city.
 
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:previous: now Im intrigued and am looking at images of the city online :flowers:
 
The RVD released a statement from the King, Queen and former Queen Beatrix about the death of former prime minister Ruud Lubbers:

Ruud Lubbers heeft ons land en de internationale gemeenschap tientallen jaren in vele functies gediend. Als minister-president zette hij zich twaalf jaar lang energiek in voor economisch en sociaal herstel. Latere generaties konden daarop voortbouwen.
Wij gedenken Ruud Lubbers als een groot staatsman met een indrukwekkend verantwoordelijkheidsgevoel. Wij gedenken hem ook als een moedig en invoelend mens. Zijn familie wensen wij kracht toe in deze moeilijke dagen

The remember Lubbers as a great statesman and praise his sense of responsibility, courage and compassion.

Lubbers and Beatrix were said to have enjoyed an excellent working relationship. He was prime minister in a difficult period (the 80-ties) when even Princess Irene was politically active in protesting against the placement of NATO rockets in the Netherlands. Much to the embarrassement of her elder sister.

In 2013 he did make the faux pas of revealing a bit too much. He was invited by Queen Juliana to come to Soestdijk Palace. She told him: 'Mr Lubbers, I have known you for a long time. That is why I want to hear your judgement. I am so worried about my grandson'. She was concerned that the crown prince was not up to the job and lacked 'the right antenna'. The prime minister assured Juliana that he had children that were slightly older than the prince and added: 'there are a lot of possibilities in him. I have all confidence in him'.

In the same interview he revealed that when the crown prince wanted to present Maxima to his mother, he adviced Beatrix to 'finally be nice' to a girlfriend that was introduced to her and to judge later on. The Queen called him afterwards, saying that she had a lot to explain to prince Claus and 'the other boys', as they were surprised by her lack of criticism.
 
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I can't see how the Dutch RF stepped in at all... Princess Beatrix opened two exhibitions, and that is that.


The article is filled with mistakes. Huis Doorn was not bought from the mother of Audrey Hepburn but from Audrey's great-grandmother Baroness Wilhelmina Cornelia van Heemstra, nee Jkvr. de Beaufort, a dowager at the time.

The place certainly is not a ruin -I visited it this spring so I could see that for myself- and is not at risk of becoming one at this point. But obviously the state does not feel it is one of its obligations to maintain this museum at the same level as other state museums. Neither is it visited by a great number of people, which is a pity because it is a fascinating place.

It is run by very dedicated volunteers for the most part.

This part of the article is particulary strange:

She had used her blood ties to persuade Wilhelm not to invade the Netherlands during the war, in which the country remained neutral. Academic research is soon expected to definitively prove what much of the evidence suggests: that the Dutch queen later repaid Wilhelm by letting him cross the border to safety.

In other words: nothing is proven at all. Wilhelmina did not persuade Wilhelm and neither did she allow him to cross the border. She was highly surprised by his arrival at Eysden and later evaded him like the plague.
 
An interesting list & it must have been quite a bit of work. And poor Flevoland: no visit at all from the king or queen in 2018 ;).
 
Valentine's Day today and the Palace share some older pictures from the Royal Family:

"It's Valentine's Day! ❤️ Especially for today a few family photos from the archive #throwbackthursday. On the first photo from 2010: the Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima. The photo of the sisters , Princess Alexia, Princess Ariane and Princess Catharina-Amalia was made in 2008 by their father. On the last photo you see Queen Beatrix with her grandchildren Countess Luana and Countess Zaria in 2006."

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt27gu4HOEW/
 
Valentine's Day today and the Palace share some older pictures from the Royal Family:

"It's Valentine's Day! ❤️ Especially for today a few family photos from the archive #throwbackthursday. On the first photo from 2010: the Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima. The photo of the sisters , Princess Alexia, Princess Ariane and Princess Catharina-Amalia was made in 2008 by their father. On the last photo you see Queen Beatrix with her grandchildren Countess Luana and Countess Zaria in 2006."

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt27gu4HOEW/

Lovely old pictures.
 
Such wonderful photos. I always like old pictures like these as we can see how the royals have transformed over the years.
 
Not sure whether this is the best thread but Netty Royal created some nice overviews of the announced engagements in 2018 by the Dutch royals.

Interesting how Prince Pieter-Christiaan appears much more active than his siblings and sisters-in-law.

In 2013 he did make the faux pas of revealing a bit too much. He was invited by Queen Juliana to come to Soestdijk Palace. She told him: 'Mr Lubbers, I have known you for a long time. That is why I want to hear your judgement. I am so worried about my grandson'. She was concerned that the crown prince was not up to the job and lacked 'the right antenna'. The prime minister assured Juliana that he had children that were slightly older than the prince and added: 'there are a lot of possibilities in him. I have all confidence in him'.

In the same interview he revealed that when the crown prince wanted to present Maxima to his mother, he adviced Beatrix to 'finally be nice' to a girlfriend that was introduced to her and to judge later on. The Queen called him afterwards, saying that she had a lot to explain to prince Claus and 'the other boys', as they were surprised by her lack of criticism.

Very interesting! The queens must have placed great faith in him to request his advice on private matters.
 
Tha Palace wish us Happy Spring with an old picture taken by Prince Claus of little Prince Willem Alexander fifty years ago!!

https://www.instagram.com/p/BvjJXPinDFY/

Rick Evers‏ @RickEversRoyal
Zo te zien viert koning Willem-Alexander de Paasdagen in het buitenland. De standaard wappert niet op Paleis Huis ten Bosch. Beatrix vierde Pasen altijd in het Italiaanse Tavarnelle.


"It looks like King Willem-Alexander is celebrating Easter over abroad. The standard does not fly at Huis ten Bosch Palace. Beatrix always celebrated Easter in the Italian town of Tavarnelle."


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D4cbm9KXkAM5w5H.jpg
 
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The Second Chamber of the States-General (the lower House of Parliament) urges the Government to review the automatism of exchanging Orders during State Visits.

Reason: the Sultan of Brunei has been made a Knight Grand-Cross in the Order of the Netherlands' Lion. In the meantime the Sultan has endorsed Sharia Law in Brunei, which means the chopping of hands, the stoning of gay men and women, the caning of men and women blamed for adultery, etc.

The Second Chamber finds it "utmost undesirable" that the Sultan has a Dutch Order while his policy contradicts everything the Dutch stand for: human rights, individual freedom, tolerance, etc.

The Chancellery of the Netherlands' Orders has answered that it is only possible to revoke an Order when the bearer has been convicted with at minimum one year of imprisonment. So according the current statutes of the various Netherlands' Orders, it is not possible to take action against the Sultan.

Some parties have made an appeal to the King and Princess Beatrix to send their Brunei Orders back to the Sultan. The exchange of Orders during State Visits happens under responsibility of the Cabinet. So it are not the King or Princess Beatrix to decide on this. That is up to the Cabinet. The Second Chamber asks the Cabinet to review the pure automatism of handing out an Order without even reviewing any merit to reveive such.

The three Dutch State Orders (under ministerial responsibility) :
- de Militaire Willems-Orde
- de Orde van de Nederlandsche Leeuw
- de Orde van Oranje-Nassau

The two Dutch royal Orders (to the King's own pleasure) :
- Orde in de Gouden Leeuw van het Huis Nassau
- Huisorde van Oranje
 
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The Second Chamber of the States-General (the lower House of Parliament) urges the Government to review the automatism of exchanging Orders during State Visits.

Reason: the Sultan of Brunei has been made a Knight Grand-Cross in the Order of the Netherlands' Lion. In the meantime the Sultan has endorsed Sharia Law in Brunei, which means the chopping of hands, the stoning of gay men and women, the caning of men and women blamed for adultery, etc.

The Second Chamber finds it "utmost undesirable" that the Sultan has a Dutch Order while his policy contradicts everything the Dutch stand for: human rights, individual freedom, tolerance, etc.

The Chancellery of the Netherlands' Orders has answered that it is only possible to revoke an Order when the bearer has been convicted with at minimum one year of imprisonment. So according the current statutes of the various Netherlands' Orders, it is not possible to take action against the Sultan.

Some parties have made an appeal to the King and Princess Beatrix to send their Brunei Orders back to the Sultan. The exchange of Orders during State Visits happens under responsibility of the Cabinet. So it are not the King or Princess Beatrix to decide on this. That is up to the Cabinet. The Second Chamber asks the Cabinet to review the pure automatism of handing out an Order without even reviewing any merit to reveive such.

The three Dutch State Orders (under ministerial responsibility) :
- de Militaire Willems-Orde
- de Orde van de Nederlandsche Leeuw
- de Orde van Oranje-Nassau

The two Dutch royal Orders (to the King's own pleasure) :
- Orde in de Gouden Leeuw van het Huis Nassau
- Huisorde van Oranje

Wouldn't ending the automatism of orders worsen the problem? To grant an order on merit would surely be perceived as an endorsement of the bearer, even more than an order automatically gained.
 
Wouldn't ending the automatism of orders worsen the problem? To grant an order on merit would surely be perceived as an endorsement of the bearer, even more than an order automatically gained.

That is true. Maybe the policy will become: no any exchange of Orders at all. With a probable exception for the King, as head of the Royal House and the royal dynasty, handing out royal (not state) Orders to members of befriended royal families.

But this would have caused problems as well in the Brunei case: with a royal (and not a state) Order also there would be an appeal on the King to revoke the Order given to the Sultan.

So maybe we will end up with only exchanging Orders to royal families from countries having comparable societies with respect for human rights and freedoms (European and Japanese monarchies).

Even an Order to a member of the Jordanian royal family has been criticized: in 2018 Prince Zeid bin Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein of Jordan, then the outgoing UN High Commissioner for Human Rights was given a Dutch Order on nomination of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. The Prince however was embroiled in a conflict about his apparently inadequate handling of accusations of abuse by French troops during an UN mission. The minister pushed this Order for the Prince, to the chagrin of the Second Chamber. (Orders require no parliamentary debate or approval).
 
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Today the Volkskrant claims that in June there was a rehearsal for a funeral of a member of the royal house. There was no direct reason to do so. There was a 2-day meeting in Noordeinde palace with 100 invitees. The planning received the name CP100. The first day there was a general meeting in the ballroom of the palace. The second day the attendees split up in smaller working groups.

The article notes that Princess Margriet and Prof Pieter van Vollenhoven have stated earlier that they preferred to be burried in Apeldoorn and not in Delft.

https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-ac...ende-in-stilte-voor-nieuwe-uitvaart~b440ce8c/
 
Today the Volkskrant claims that in June there was a rehearsal for a funeral of a member of the royal house. There was no direct reason to do so. There was a 2-day meeting in Noordeinde palace with 100 invitees. The planning received the name CP100. The first day there was a general meeting in the ballroom of the palace. The second day the attendees split up in smaller working groups.

The article notes that Princess Margriet and Prof Pieter van Vollenhoven have stated earlier that they preferred to be burried in Apeldoorn and not in Delft.

https://www.volkskrant.nl/nieuws-ac...ende-in-stilte-voor-nieuwe-uitvaart~b440ce8c/


I understand the long route from The Hague to Delft is kept.
My counsel would be: scrap it. Until Queen Wilhelmina in 1962, the space between The Hague and Delft was open. The royal procession advanced through fields and pastures green. Now you see a ceremonial royal procession advancing alongside suburban extensions, under viaducts, over tram rails, etc. (See picture: https://www.haagsefotos.nl/wp-content/gallery/uitvaart-prins-claus/uitv-claus-01.jpg )



My suggestion would be: a lying-in-state at the Old Church in Delft (instead of at Noordeinde Palace). The royal hearse can be a car with a motorcade.


On the funeral day the royal procession then could be from the Old Church to the New Church, all the way in beautiful and pittoresque Delft.
 
:previous: It's nice to see that WA and Maxima are introducing their children to other royal families, even if no longer ruling. It seems the two families are fairly close as Maxima has her arm around one of Padmanabh Singh's children.
 
:previous: It's nice to see that WA and Maxima are introducing their children to other royal families, even if no longer ruling. It seems the two families are fairly close as Maxima has her arm around one of Padmanabh Singh's children.

Oh yes,both families know eachother for years,they are close friends!!
Years ago the entire family celebrated new years eve in India.Beatrix
was still queen,and it was the first family trip with Máxima,WA's girlfriend at the time.
The eldest son of the family is "Pancho".He stands behind Alexia.
 
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Lovely pictures and very happy to see princess Margriet and Mr. van Vollenhove included.
 
Princess Beatrix reportedly refused to pose for new downloadable portraits on the website: she thought the current portraits on the website (made in 2018) were perfectly fine.

Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien will have new portraits soon.

Princess Margriet and Professor Van Vollenhoven were asked because their portraits on the website were a bit older.

The King and Queen Máxima probably were asked because there was no portrait on the webside with a bearded King.
 
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