Belgian Introductory Visit to the UK: March 13, 2014

[maria-olivia]

The relationship between the Royal Houses of Windsor and Belgium are not bad.
King Albert Ii is one of the two Monarchs still alive who attended HM Coronation in 1953.

[Marchesina]

Originally Posted by *Mara*

These visits will take place in the next weeks. They are going to Spain on March 25th and there will be visits to Sweden and Norway. The journalist said Philippe wants to finish these trips ahead of the elections in May.

Good! Thank you

[Marchesina]

Originally Posted by maria-olivia

The relationship between the Royal Houses of Windsor and Belgium are not bad.
King Albert Ii is one of the two Monarchs still alive who attended HM Coronation in 1953.

I heard there had been some frictions a long time ago (little OT to explain): King Baudouin refused to break protocol and attend the funeral of King George VI in London and Windsor. Belgian protocol had it that the King could only attend a funeral in a foreign country if he had already formally visited that country. Since the King was only reigning since July 1951 and he had not yet visited the United Kingdom he refused the invitation to attend the funeral and sent his brother instead. This froze the very good relation which had existed between the British and the Belgian sovereigns and was confirmed when the British Royal Family didn't attend the wedding of Albert and Paola. In return, and as most European royal families did, the Belgian Court sent no representative to the wedding of Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong Jones.
However, HM Queen Elizabeth II did send representation to the royal wedding of King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola. Nevertheless, it might be understood as a little revenge from the British Court, since the Queen sent precisely Princess Margaret and Anthony Armstrong Jones in their first foreign representation.

But I assume by know all this is considered dead and gone, since Queen Elizabeth personally attended King Baudouin's funeral and at the time it has been considered an exceptional event, given that she usually sends minor members of the RF to this sort of things.

[wartenberg7]

Originally Posted by Marchesina

but they didn't! the only monarch they visited was their cousin the Grand Duke of Luxembourg and of course WA and Maxima. I thought they were planning other visits

Yes, of course you´re right! I mixed them up with the dutch royal couple. And I was confused about the journalist using the "future tense" these visits were still to come...
Sorry!

[wartenberg7]

Originally Posted by maria-olivia

The relationship between the Royal Houses of Windsor and Belgium are not bad.
King Albert Ii is one of the two Monarchs still alive who attended HM Coronation in 1953.

Yes, I´m sure they have a good relationship.
But still I don´t understand why King Albert and Paola never made a state visit to Britain since the last belgian one to the UK was 30 years (!) ago when they succeeded to the throne in 1993 (now 51 years!).
Full state visits to fellow monarchs or neighbouring countries have been one of the first things done by a new King or Queen in the first years of his/ her reign up to this century (don´t know if these 1-day-introduction-visits are meant to replace these state visits or if this is just a belgian and dutch special feature?!). So the then King and Queen of the Belgians made full state visits to all the other "collegues" in europe with the only exception of Britain.
And King Albert was the only european monarch never made a Knight of the Garter (normally an honour automatically bestowed on a King or Queen Regnant sooner or later).

[Stefan]

[QUOTE=wartenberg7;1648741]Yes, I´m sure they have a good relationship.
But still I don´t understand why King Albert and Paola never made a state visit to Britain since the last belgian one to the UK was 30 years (!) ago when they succeeded to the throne in 1993 (now 51 years!).
Full state visits to fellow monarchs or neighbouring countries have been one of the first things done by a new King or Queen in the first years of his/ her reign up to this century (don´t know if these 1-day-introduction-visits are meant to replace these state visits or if this just a belgian and dutch special feature?!). So the then King and Queen of the Belgians made full state visits to all the other "collegues" in europe with the only exception of Britain.[QUOTE]
I have wondered about that too. For examplöe the norwegian Royal co0pule paid a full State Visit and an official Visit in 2005 who was like a State Visit in a ll but name and King Harald only reignes 2 years longe then King Albert II. did. Of course it is the government who decides about State Visits but i think the Queen has also a bit influence who is invited or to which country a State Visit is paid.

[maria-olivia]

I never understood either !
King Albert and Queen Paola did not attend State Visits , and no State Visits since years!
With our new King we will have again glittering Events !

[wartenberg7]

I have wondered about that too. For examplöe the norwegian Royal co0pule paid a full State Visit and an official Visit in 2005 who was like a State Visit in a ll but name and King Harald only reignes 2 years longe then King Albert II. did. Of course it is the government who decides about State Visits but i think the Queen has also a bit influence who is invited or to which country a State Visit is paid.[/QUOTE]



In that particular case the belgian King and Queen would have come to Britain first (being invited by the brit. Queen first) before she could go to Belgium herself AFTER that because it was she who ascended a throne long before King Albert.
Talking about this official visit in 2005 by King Harald, Queen Sonja and the CP couple it was E II R, as hostess, who made it look like a state visit (Downing Street has no saying in which frame a banquet at Buck. Palace is being held or how HM greets her guest, if coaches are used or not etc.).
The 2005-visit was, in fact, the Norweg. Royal couple´s second visit to Britain in this grand style as there was a state visit to Scotland in 1994.

[*Mara*]

And it is in contrast to Philippe's approach. He also introduced Mathilde to Queen Elizabeth a few months after their wedding. Elizabeth received them at Buckingham Palace and Andrew, Edward and Sophie were in attendance also. It's quite interesting to see this different way to handle things; Philippe seems to put more energy into the good relations with the British royals.

[HereditaryPrincess]

Originally Posted by Lumutqueen

It was a joke hence the . It's not a state visit either.

Actually, your post didn't contain the smiley:

Originally Posted by Lumutqueen

That is kind of odd, but she seemed to curtsey to Mathilde as an after thought. Perhaps forgetting who they are?

I love how The Queen goes "Now look we've got Richard and Birgitte and (correction) Edward"

You also sounded quite serious to me, which is why I didn't realize you were joking. I also knew that this wasn't a state visit, after having read the title of the thread. I must've been thinking of state visits at the time. I don't have the ability to edit my post now, since I've been offline too long.

[stephanievl]

Didn't the queen had a good friendship with King Baudouin?

If I am not mistaken his funeral was the only one Queen Elizabeth attended outside of Britain.

[HereditaryPrincess]

One of the editors of Noblesse & Royatues has some photos of the visit on her blog. I wasn't sure if I was allowed to post the photos here as she has a copyright notice, so I've posted the link to this article instead, which has a link to her blog:

Le roi et la reine des Belges à Londres : photos comme si vous y étiez | Noblesse & Royautés