Grand Duke Henri announces abdication date: October 3, 2025


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Is not seventy years old considered a young age for a sovereign to abdicate?
I don't think there is a minimum age really, but it does trivialize abdication, especially when the monarch, as in this case, appears to be in perfectly good health. Abdication is reduced to retirement basically.
 
I can't see what is more trivial about retirement at a sensible age over clinging onto the crown while other people can do a better job TBH.
The retirement age was established while keeping in mind diminishing health and strengths. I think it is very sensible people make place for others who are in their prime and will be better able to do the job. If the function of monarch can be easily done by octogenarians and nonagenarians one may wonder if perhaps it indeed is a simple job that is terribly overpaid.
 
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I can't see what is more trivial about retirement at a sensible age over clinging onto the crown while other people can do a better job TBH.
The retirement age was established while keeping in mind diminishing health and strengths. I think it is very sensible people make place for others who are in their prime and will be better able to do the job. If the function of monarch can be easily done by octogenarians and nonagenarians one may wonder if perhaps it indeed is a simple job that is terribly overpaid.
That is exactly what the definition of "trivial" is, i.e., according to the dictionary "commonplace, ordinary". It makes being a monarch a job like any other, from which you retire when you turn 70 as Henri is doing.

Being trivial doesn't mean it is not sensible, although in practice Henri could probably stay as GD much longer. He is not an octogenarian yet and is actually still quite far from that, which was the OP's point to which I was replying.
 
Henri could in theory have easily done 5 more years IMO- then Guillaume and Stephanie’s children would be school aged. I feel like if it weren’t for the issues with MT and an apparent difficult relationship between Henri and officials he may have gone on for longer. Instead, given all had gone on and the apparent fragility of many working relationships it is better he goes now. Its Gui and Stephanie and their boys who are hard done to by it IMO.
 
I do support the idea of an abdication, having a head of state who is 80+ or 90+ is not sensible while keeping a the heir waiting until they are 60 or 70+!

In my opinion it gives a refreshing look to the monarchy with a young monarch vs an old monarch who increasingly struggles to do his duties as times goes by!
I don’t get the idea of being a monarch while having small children is bad as QEII, QMII and Carl Gustav were all monarchs while being under 35 with young children who were under the age of 6 and in Carl Gustav case it was even before he got married!
The idea of avoiding royal duties with reason giving that they are focusing on raising the children only started when people started to criticize the Wales’s for being work shy and I think it’s pretty bad excuse!
 
I agree abdication is a good option in many ways. Personally I'm not ready for it to be common place here in the UK just yet but I respect other countries having their own tradition of it.

Hm I would respectfully say looking at family relations in those three cases you mentioned may be a good advert in some people's eyes for why being a sovereign at a young age with young children doesn't work. In my humble opinion one of the main benefits of abdication must surely be being able to choose the "perfect" time to leave and hand over. Again, in my own opinion I would say where it is possible to do so that "perfect" time would including waiting until all the soon to be sovereign's children are at least in full time schooling. Henri is seemingly in good health (though he did have a hear issue a while back I recall) so another few years seems possible. That said, is there ever a "perfect" time? Maybe the date was agreed long long ago and Gui and Steph had one last push to have another child before it.

Henri will I'm sure have done the right thing for the right reasons, or certainly what he believes are the right reasons. Without knowing all the facts it inevitable we will have questions about it. This is always one of the outcomes of abdication - people always want to know why and why now.
 
as far as I can recall its a signing and swearing an oath from the throne and then a walkabout maybe? Rather like the ceremony for Gui becoming Lieutenant Representative. Last time for Henri I think the other BeNeLux sovereigns attended- Belgians and Dutch.
Yes, in 2000 Albert, Paola and Beatrix attended Henri's accession, so it's likely that Philippe, Mathilde, W-A and Maxima will be invited at Guillaume's.

Henri could in theory have easily done 5 more years IMO- then Guillaume and Stephanie’s children would be school aged. I feel like if it weren’t for the issues with MT and an apparent difficult relationship between Henri and officials he may have gone on for longer. Instead, given all had gone on and the apparent fragility of many working relationships it is better he goes now. Its Gui and Stephanie and their boys who are hard done to by it IMO.
That could be. I'm personally absolutely in favour of abdications, and it was a given that Henri would abdicate someday, as per the Lux tradition, but I also think that the issues between MT and the government these past years might have had an influence on the date of Henri's retirement
 
Jean's abdication was in October 2000. There were other celebrations held in April 2001 for which other European royal houses were invited. Henri's accession had to be postponed from September 2000 to October 2000 because of his brother Guillaume's serious car accident. I wonder if this time around the actual abdication/accession and celebrations with other royals will take place together.
 
Personally i am no fan of abdications, unless it is for health reasons (you only need one eye to see that that’s not the reason why Henri goes) or the monarch having made himself/herself constitutionally impossible on the throne and is a threat to the survival of the dynasty by his/her behaviour (like for Leopold III of Belgium and J C of Spain)

With the long history of well known open conflicts between Grand Duchess M-T on one side and her staff members and the politicians on the other side, and the seemingly increasing number of open conflicts between Henri himself and the elected politicians, i strongly suspect that the reason for this quite early abdication is somewhere closer to the point of Henri having made himself impossible on the throne for much longer…

Any head of state in any country who can no longer cooperate satisfyingly with the elected officials, rarely stays on for long… Either voluntarily or by force
 
While Henri met be relatively young at the time of his abdication, Guillaume is of a similar age as his grandfather when he ascended the throne and only 1 1/2 years younger than his father at that time.

Jean: 43 years and 10 months
Henri: 45 years and 6 months
Guillaume: 43 years and 11 months
 
While Henri met be relatively young at the time of his abdication, Guillaume is of a similar age as his grandfather when he ascended the throne and only 1 1/2 years younger than his father at that time.

Jean: 43 years and 10 months
Henri: 45 years and 6 months
Guillaume: 43 years and 11 months
Indeed. But if you compare the age of abdication and length of reign it is different
Charlotte: reign 45 years and 10 months, age to abdicate 68
Jean: reign 35 years and 10 months, age of abdication 79
 
There isn't really a set age, but I'd have expected him to wait until Guillaume and Stephanie's children were a bit older. But presumably they've discussed it all.
 
I agree, and defo suspect it has all been well discussed beforehand. I’m still personally of the belief that the date has been agreed upon by the government and Henri- I can well imagine the government making the point the 25th anniversary of his reign is a good time to step back. And clearly Gui would be part of any discussions and agreements.
 
While i'm not against the idea of abdication, if the monarch chooses it, my feeling is that we'll get more and more to monarchs who see themselves as well-paid civil servants who do a job during office hours...and if we go there, why not appoint a real civil servant as head of state
 
well yes, if it becomes seen as no less than a job and not a sacred duty eventually someone may as well do that job who isn’t a sovereign. That though is perhaps for a different thread where abdication can be discussed more widely.
 
Great surprise in his Country and 4 days before his jubilé of 25 years Reign. (7/10 )
His Reign is not those of Grand Duke Jean and Grand Duchess Charlotte Reigns.
 
Posts about the Prince of Wales and his work ethic have been deleted from this thread about the abdication of Grand Duke Henri.
 
It would be very interesting to know what people in Luxembourg think about Henri's reign and his now abdication (accepting that of course it was fully expected).
 
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Interesting article in Luxembourg paper "L'Essentiel" about the procedure of the abdication by the press and communication team of the Court

 
I wonder who picked to the date of October 3rd? It makes no sense at all when the 7th is the significant date for Henri! And then saying we will celebrate the jubilee anyway!
 
It strikes as quite arrogant to me. Very poorly thought out. Really, why not hold on and abdicate a few days later. Interesting that the celebrations will be during the usual National Day events so it may just be more celebrating Henri’s reign but any link to 25years is erroneous. I suspect if Luxembourgers react anything like us on here it will be changed to just a celebration of his reign. Again, the whole point of abdicating it being able to pick when to step aside, why pick4 days before your 25th jubilee, but then try and still celebrate it. Very very odd.
 
Interesting article in Luxembourg paper "L'Essentiel" about the procedure of the abdication by the press and communication team of the Court

It mainly cites MT's friend and Nicholas former colleague Stéphane Bern. And a so-called monarchy expert stating that 'a sovereign used to be able to rule for 70 years' is not worth his money. How old does he think that monarchs used to be when they died? Elizabeth's rule of 70 years was the exception not the rule!
 
It was a weird choice of day indeed… At first, we are led to belive that the 25:th anniversary was not important - and then we are told it is going to be celebrated on the national day, when there will be other big celebrations anyway…

It wouldn’t surprise me if there is another conflict going on between the G D and the government… The government may have said that ”no we are not going to pay for a lavish silver jubilee in the year of your abdication - that money will be spent on your son and daughter-in-law” to wich the G D may have replied ”fine - then i go before the silver jubilée so we don’t have to have with each other to do for one day more than neccessary”…

I have no idea if that is the case but that’s how it comes off to me
 
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