The Waringo Investigation into the Functioning of the Luxembourg Court 2019/2020


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I believe that Grand Duchess Maria Teresa is currently residing in Luxembourg.
In the videos have shared, we can see that it is in the Castle of Berg.
 
maria-olivia said:
All the videos have the same holiday background an not the Royal Palace of Luxembourg.
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Very interesting, clearly she is spending a reasonable amount of time away from Luxembourg.
 
:previous:
I've been seeing the latest photos and videos of Grand Duchess Maria Teresa better and I'm not really sure if it's Berg Castle or another Luxembourg residence or not.
 
Blog Real said:
:previous:
I've been seeing the latest photos and videos of Grand Duchess Maria Teresa better and I'm not really sure if it's Berg Castle or another Luxembourg residence or not.
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As best I can tell, the latest photos and videos of Maria Teresa are not filmed in Luxembourg, but in Biarritz.

In one of the earliest video recordings, there is a photo credit given to a photographer who is based in Biarritz. Each video that follows is taken in the same room with the same microphone clip.

The surroundings are very casual with white walls and light furnishings, nothing like photos I've seen of the interior of Castle Berg. MT refers to this as her "home office."

I can't really blame her if she is staying away from Luxembourg, as Prime Minister Bettel is doing his best to eliminate her position and influence. :sad:
 
Lindy said:
As best I can tell, the latest photos and videos of Maria Teresa are not filmed in Luxembourg, but in Biarritz.

In one of the earliest video recordings, there is a photo credit given to a photographer who is based in Biarritz. Each video that follows is taken in the same room with the same microphone clip.

The surroundings are very casual with white walls and light furnishings, nothing like photos I've seen of the interior of Castle Berg. MT refers to this as her "home office."

I can't really blame her if she is staying away from Luxembourg, as Prime Minister Bettel is doing his best to eliminate her position and influence. :sad:
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I think you are right. Why else would she decide to stand in front of a couch if she would have a large palace or castle to tape these videos? It doesn't look like any of the Luxembourgian palaces or castles we've seen so far. It makes you wonder how often Henri and MT see each other but I guess as MT was reportedly mostly living in Paris previously, the distance is just a little bit larger than before.

Especially the video from October 7 should have included the Grand Duchess if they wanted to keep up the appearances of the GDuchess being in Luxembourg with the GDuke. Him thanking the people, also in the name of the Grand Duchess, doesn't do much in that respect. I wouldn't be surprised if the last time she was in Luxembourg was mid September for her grandson's christening. She hasn't showed up since.

The first video (copyright by the Court and someone in Biarritz) was taped in a different room than the second and third. It seems the first video was taped in the room that can be seen in the background of the second and third video.
 
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I rather think that she is not at the castle. The videos and pictures don't make it 100% obvious that she is not at any of the Luxembourg properties but she's probably not because as has been pointed out, it's all done in same room/ 2 rooms. If we look at her pictures and video messages from earlier in the year, it's very obvious that those were taken/ filmed at the castle and she used different rooms (the library/ what looks like her castle office etc) for those.

I agree with Lindy that it is obvious that Prime Minister Bettel does not want her to be involved much at the court in Luxembourg, if at all. Whether rightfully or wrongfully so, I don't want to judge since I haven't read through the whole thread or gathered enough information for judgment elsewhere. But I think she has basically been stripped of her role as consort in the way that other royal ladies fulfill it. She retains the title as well as some minor duties such as a bit of charity work and accompanying her husband to certain functions, though those things are not really taking place at the moment.

It is hardly a full-time role for her, so I am not that surprised that she chooses to spend much of her time elsewhere. Biarritz is a lovely place and while farther than Paris, she can still take the train from Luxembourg (since I believe she doesn't like flying?) Additionally, she can hardly spend all of her time with her adult children in Paris.

I'm not sure she wants to hide it either, since she essentially invited the press, told them they had bought an apartment in Biarritz and that it basically served as her escape, as well as saying that her husband still had many duties in Luxembourg. Perhaps, if they end up retiring there when Henri abdicates in the future, they'll buy a house but since it seems to be just her most of the time, it makes sense that they opted for an apartment. It sounds a little lonely, especially during corona times, but apparently her situation in Luxembourg felt worse to her...
 
"There is talk of a verbal altercation between GD Maria Teresa and one of her employees. The facts have been established, according to the State Ministry.

In the Ministry of State, the General Secretary of the Government Council, Jacques Flies, is dealing with the file. He is also a representative of the government in the coordination committee of the Maison du Grand-Duc. For him, what happened was "unacceptable".

Because of this, the employee who was treated badly was transferred to another position in order to protect her. Another employee asked to be transferred and was granted this, according to the country, but no more information has yet been released.

It is not known whether the positions of the Grand Duke's wife will be filled again. The court was reorganized in the suite of the Waringo report and a Maison du Grand-Duc was created. Since then, the employees of the court have the same protection as employees of the state."


https://www.rtl.lu/news/national/a/2002511.html
 
That doesn't bode well. Do I understand it correctly that this is a recent incident?
 
i thought that Maria T had given up most of her duties and was not working with staff very much. So how come this has happeend if its a new incident
 
Is this a new incident? I thought the Grand Duchess no longer held court functions.
 
Yes, I am confused if this is a new incident or a new detail on the previous incidents. All I can say is that I am grateful the HGD's seem to be very down-to-earth, folksy, and kind people.
 
Yikes, I thought the Maria Teresa's role were differentiated between traditional/official Grand Duchess (state visits, etc.) and personal (Stand Speak Rise Up, etc.) after the reorganization.

I haven't followed MT's activities closely and with the pandemic canceling/scaling down activities + her fear of flying, I can't gauge her redefined role very well... Obviously, not well given this latest incident.

What does this mean for Stephanie? If MT has damaged the role completely, Stephanie (and later consorts) may not have any official capacity when the heir becomes grand duke/duchess.
 
I guess she is still able to use official residences which I assume have some official staff - maybe it was one of these employee? How sad she hasn't learnt.
 
Just now we have been seeing more of the Grand Duchess in Luxembourg recently. I imagine we will be seeing lots of photos of MT in Biarritz these next months ;). A pity that these personal issues have apparently not been adressed.
 
Denville said:
Maria Teresa seems to be far from kind to her staff
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I was referring to the HGD couple who luckily seem nothing like their mother/MiL. I agree with another poster, I fear MT has made things very difficult for when Stephanie becomes the first lady of the grand duchy.
 
She already hinted at an abdication in the not-so-distant future, so things like this might speed it up.
 
I think, due to these controversies, an abdication may be in the near future. I hope this does not jeopardize the future reign of Guillaume and Stéphanie.
 
I guess every-or most European monarchies have their messy dramas...Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, Denmark, Norway..Spain..did I miss anyone?:whistling:
 
Moonmaiden23 said:
I guess every-or most European monarchies have their messy dramas...Britain, Luxembourg, Monaco, Denmark, Norway..Spain..did I miss anyone?:whistling:
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Belgium. Don't forget Belgium and the love child business ?

I'm honestly just waiting for something in Sweden to blow up. And how are the Liechtensteins doing these days? Any brewing scandals there? Hmm, probably not ?
 
Somebody said:
She already hinted at an abdication in the not-so-distant future, so things like this might speed it up.
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Abdication? The G&S still have a very young family to raise. I hope they can get at least another 10 years.

Correct me if I wrong but these issues are all with the Grand Duchess and not the Grand Duke. Perhaps she can retire from her role and let the Grand Duke keep reigning.

It is a pity that Princess Alexandra will marry soon. She would have made a wonderful "First Lady".
 
An article has now appeared in English, on the website of RTL Luxembourg:

The case is being handled by Jacques Flies, Secretary General of the Government Council and government representative on the Coordination Committee of the Maison du Grand-Duc. Flies has stated that what has occurred is "unacceptable" in his opinion.

For this reason, the employee who was mistreated was transferred to another position for her own protection.

According to d'Lëtzebuerger Land, another employee requested a transfer, which was granted, but there is no further information concerning this incident. It is also unclear whether new staff will fill the vacant positions with the Grand Duke's wife.
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Entire article here.

Again, no date was given but I gather it must be rather recent.

Edit:

According to Wort, the PM was informed in November by the court marshall, so it must be relatively recent.

Le ministre d'État, Xavier Bettel (DP), s'est entretenu début novembre avec le maréchal de la Cour .
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Article in French here.
 
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Alisa said:
Abdication? The G&S still have a very young family to raise. I hope they can get at least another 10 years.

Correct me if I wrong but these issues are all with the Grand Duchess and not the Grand Duke. Perhaps she can retire from her role and let the Grand Duke keep reigning.

It is a pity that Princess Alexandra will marry soon. She would have made a wonderful "First Lady".
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But that was what had already happened, that the G Duchess had mainly given up her role, and her staff were handled by someone else, and she lived in France mostly.
 
No abdication now , the Heditary Grand Dukes have to look after her Son an her new born.
Alexandra would hever have been a Grand Duchess. She lives in Paris .
 
To be fair, these days when an employer ventilates disapproval or discontent, or gives a reprimand, then an "easily offended" employee can go to the counselor and lay down a complaint.

I do not justify the Grand-Duchess because I am allergic to woke people but I do not condem her either: we have no idea what did happen.

But in older times, when an employer says to an employee: "I am not at all satisfied. You have to step up your game, that execution was really poor" then this was accepted. Nowadays an employee runs to the counselor: "I have been most unfairly treated by my boss. It is un-ac-cep-ta-ble!"

What makes the situation a bit complicated: at many Courts (and also in Luxembourg) the staff is in the service of the State, paid by the State and detached at the residences of the head-of-state. So the real employer is the State, the staff at the residences then formally is "seconded staff" working for a "contractor' (La Maison du Grand-Duc). This creates a distance with the persons they work for: "Who are you, to command me like that? I am not your employee!" (which is factually true).
 
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maria-olivia said:
No abdication now , the Heditary Grand Dukes have to look after her Son an her new born.
Alexandra would hever have been a Grand Duchess. She lives in Paris .
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Grand Duchess would not be. She could replace her mother in some representational functions. Even married can do it, but I doubt it will happen.
 
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