Koningsdag 2014-2023


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Marengo said:
Altough I understand your point, what is the alternative? Is the country supposed to move the national holiday to suit the time table of a school in Wales? Or is the no 2 in line of the throne expected to skip this obligation, our national day?

Princess Alexia may have followed classes online, she may have received extra homework but that is for the school to decide. In a way she is working/learning more today than she would be at school.

In general and not directed at you: it seems bashing the princess - a minor- is popular on some corners of the internet these days. Had she been at school and not at this event, the same people would likely have been complaining that she was a spoiled brat because she did not attend. In my view this is done mostly to beatify somebody else by comparison. I do not find it very reasonable, fair or edifying.
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Thanks Marengo, I did not mean to bash her (she's a minor and the decision would lie with her parents anyway) but in the past the DRF had the strict policy, even for Amalia, that school comes first no matter the event. But as you mention it, the circumstances have changed due to corona and Alexia will have had the option to do online catch up.
 
Marengo said:
The city of Maastricht looked beautiful today and it seemed that there were a lot of people to celebrate the day. The mayor looked great and her speeches were clear and to the point. For some reason they allowed a hand full of republicans to protest next to the route.

Queen Maxima clearly took a step back to let her daughter(s) take more of the lime light. The focus was very much on the King. Amalia was able to talk with the reporters before her mother did.

The press was able to speak to the main royals.

- WA stated that he celebrated the day with mixed feelings due to the Russian war of agression in Ukraine. But perhaps it was a good reason to celebrate that we can celebrate in freedom and in safety. He also mentioned this in his speech. Prince Maurits and the mayor had simular remarks.

- About the polls the king emphasized that he has always said that polls don't mean much to him but that constructive criticism is useful. He added that criticism is essential in a democracy.

- Amalia was grateful for the privacy that she was allowed to have by te media and the public during this gap year. She did various internships that helped her develop emotionally, creatively and socially. She has enrolled in various universities but se does not know yet where she will be accepted. More information will be announced in a few weeks.

- Queen Maxima said that it is quiet at home, she is suffering of the empty nest syndrome, though it allows her to focus more on her work. And she has to learn how to treat her youngest daughter differently and give her more freedom. As she the benjamin the Queen is used to monitor things more tightly than perhaps is suitable for that age.

- Princess Alexia - who seems more sympathetic on camera than in pictures- emphasized how grateful she was that she had the opportunity to go to Wales to study. She praised the school and said she enjoyed it a lot. She was grateful to her parents as well to allow her to go there.

- Princess Ariane said that altough she misses her sisters she is happy that they still meet often.

The main job for most members of the RF and certainly for the Van Vollenhovens seems to be making selfies with members of the public.
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It was an alltogether fantastic gathering of people and they all responded au contraire to that useless poll...I loved that!!Maastricht yesterday was wonderfull,a warm bath,just what the family needed now.:flowers:
 
:previous:

Judging by the (over?) entusiastic comments on television much of the country needed it. The first big national event since COVID struck. I have seldom seen reporters, presentors, artists etc. this enthusiastic about the RF/King's Day, as if a burden was lifted of everybody's shoulders in some ways. In the last years many will have thought these kind of celebrations would be a thing of the past.

The focus seemed to be very much on the King, both in the live broadcast and at the discussion tables on television. The speech was picked up and received praise, as did his comments, his relaxed attitude and the fact that he aknowledged the presence of republican demonstrators. They clearly put some tought in finding some moments for Amalia. It was her and not her mother who struck the coin to commemorate the treaty of Maastricht for example. It was her and not her mother who spoke to the press right after the King.

The wider family apparently stayed in a Van der Valk hotel (!) in Stein the night before, so they would not have to wake up in the middle of the night to be in Maastricht on time.

It was noted that the government plane did not leave Schiphol airport in the afternoon to go to Greece. A good decision.
 
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Marengo said:
The city of Maastricht looked beautiful today and it seemed that there were a lot of people to celebrate the day. The mayor looked great and her speeches were clear and to the point. For some reason they allowed a hand full of republicans to protest next to the route.

Queen Maxima clearly took a step back to let her daughter(s) take more of the lime light. The focus was very much on the King. Amalia was able to talk with the reporters before her mother did.

The press was able to speak to the main royals.

- Amalia was grateful for the privacy that she was allowed to have by te media and the public during this gap year. She did various internships that helped her develop emotionally, creatively and socially. She has enrolled in various universities but se does not know yet where she will be accepted. More information will be announced in a few weeks.
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I am a bit surprised about her answer of enrolling in various universities as the 1 May deadline that she seems to be referring to is for subjects without a numerus fixus, so if I am not mistaken, she should be able to study at the university of her choice unless her degree program has some kind of selection process.
 
Very nice! I am surprised they are not going to the north this year. But Rotterdam was Queen Beatrix' most enthusiastic Queensday and for the introduction tour of Máxima it was also the city where most spectators turned up.
 
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Let's make an overview of the provinces visited so far by the king and his family for king's day:

2013: Inauguration in Amsterdam
2014: Noord-Holland (De Rijp & Amstelveen) (pushed back one year - because of the abdication and inauguration in 2013)
2015: Zuid-Holland (Dordrecht)
2016: Overijssel (Zwolle)
2017: Noord-Brabant (Tilburg)
2018: Groningen (Groningen)
2019: Utrecht (Amersfoort)
2020: cancelled
2021: Noord-Brabant (Eindhoven)
2022: Limburg (Maastricht)
2023: Zuid-Holland (Rotterdam)

So, they are indeed very much sticking to the south for the third time in a row - and also visiting a province they've been before. I hope they start visiting the remaining provinces in the coming years. As there are quite a few remaining provinces even though this is the second time they are visiting a province for the second time.

Remaining provinces:
- Zeeland (south/west)
- Gelderland (middle/east)
- Flevoland (middle)
- Drenthe (north/east)
- Friesland (north)

So far, the Northeast has only had a visit to Groningen.

Most likely cities for each of these provinces imho - taking into account that Willem-Alexander picks the larger cities with a 'regional role' and not the smaller ones nor villages like his mother did:
- Zeeland: Middelburg (capital) - has been visited by queen Beatrix; Vlissingen could be an alternative
- Gelderland: several options - I guess they prefer to steer clear of Apeldoorn because of the attack that took place, so either Arnhem (capital) or nearby Nijmegen would be my guess - neither has been visited by queen Beatrix
- Flevoland: Lelystad (capital), Emmeloord or Almere - the latter two were visited by queen Beatrix
- Drenthe: Assen (capital) or Emmen - neither have been visited
- Friesland: Leeuwarden (capital) or Drachten - neither has been visited, all visits to Friesland were in the northern and western part of Friesland, so it's about time they visit the south-east of the province.

And once they are done with these provinces, I'd recommend Enschede as main city in 'Twente' (part of Overijssel) - as that area hasn't had a visit either.
 
Looking forward to the 2023 celebrations in Rotterdam!
 
A nice surprise to se both of them there.

It will be an interesting Kings Day. Beatrix Queens Day is to the city is the first one I remember. The King last week said in the podcast that he supports the footbal club Ajax from Amsterdam -and added that Máxima supports the Rotterdam club Feyenoord. Not very handy with just a few weeks to go to this day, considering the worst footbal hooligans of the country live in this city.
 
No Alexia or Prince Constantijn?

Everyone looks great!
 
Alisa said:
No Alexia or Prince Constantijn?

Everyone looks great!
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Alexia is going to school in Wales... So, I would have been very surprised if she would have taken time off from school to attend a concert (King's day itself is different as that is the one event a year that she has been attending since her father became king).
 
Somebody said:
Let's make an overview of the provinces visited so far by the king and his family for king's day:

2013: Inauguration in Amsterdam
2014: Noord-Holland (De Rijp & Amstelveen) (pushed back one year - because of the abdication and inauguration in 2013)
2015: Zuid-Holland (Dordrecht)
2016: Overijssel (Zwolle)
2017: Noord-Brabant (Tilburg)
2018: Groningen (Groningen)
2019: Utrecht (Amersfoort)
2020: cancelled
2021: Noord-Brabant (Eindhoven)
2022: Limburg (Maastricht)
2023: Zuid-Holland (Rotterdam)

So, they are indeed very much sticking to the south for the third time in a row - and also visiting a province they've been before. I hope they start visiting the remaining provinces in the coming years. As there are quite a few remaining provinces even though this is the second time they are visiting a province for the second time.

Remaining provinces:
- Zeeland (south/west)
- Gelderland (middle/east)
- Flevoland (middle)
- Drenthe (north/east)
- Friesland (north)

So far, the Northeast has only had a visit to Groningen.

Most likely cities for each of these provinces imho - taking into account that Willem-Alexander picks the larger cities with a 'regional role' and not the smaller ones nor villages like his mother did:
- Zeeland: Middelburg (capital) - has been visited by queen Beatrix; Vlissingen could be an alternative
- Gelderland: several options - I guess they prefer to steer clear of Apeldoorn because of the attack that took place, so either Arnhem (capital) or nearby Nijmegen would be my guess - neither has been visited by queen Beatrix
- Flevoland: Lelystad (capital), Emmeloord or Almere - the latter two were visited by queen Beatrix
- Drenthe: Assen (capital) or Emmen - neither have been visited
- Friesland: Leeuwarden (capital) or Drachten - neither has been visited, all visits to Friesland were in the northern and western part of Friesland, so it's about time they visit the south-east of the province.

And once they are done with these provinces, I'd recommend Enschede as main city in 'Twente' (part of Overijssel) - as that area hasn't had a visit either.
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Wasn't there some controversy recently when a report found most of the royal engagements were within a set area? It this year's city within that area?
 
tommy100 said:
Wasn't there some controversy recently when a report found most of the royal engagements were within a set area? It this year's city within that area?
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That would be in the Randstad, roughly the area between Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and the coast. Rotterdam is indeed part of that area. The visit was announced before the criticism from some quarters was made. As half of the population, the capital, the seat of government, the court, the palaces and the financial center is there it is logical that most activities are there too. The King goes to the province often enough.
 
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Marengo said:
That would be in the Randstad, roughly the area between Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and the coast. Rotterdam is indeed part of that area. The visit was announced before the criticism from some quarters was made. As half of the population, the capital, the seat of government, the court, the palaces and the financial center is there it is logical that most activities are there too. The King goes to the province often enough.
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Less than half of the population lives in the Randstad (between 7-8 million out of 17.6 million people (40-45%); depending on how you define its borders). So, while it is indeed likely that a large portion of the activities take place in these areas (especially those limited to one of the palaces), I do think they could visit the north and east more often and especially have made more of an effort for at least festivities like King's day not to take place in Noord-Brabant and Zuid-Holland twice in less than 10 years with several provinces yet having to host.
 
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Some faits divers:

As every city and village in the Netherlands is preparing for the national day, many will kick of with a 'King's night' of parties and such. As every year café 'de blaffende vis' (the barking fish) in the Jordaan in Amsterdam decorated its facade with a special and fun image, which is well known in the city. Unlike previous years where they usually picked a mild joke-Máxima as Miley Cyrus on a wrecking ball and such- they chose to adress something more serious this year. Pss Amalia with the first lyrics of a song of Amsterdam singer Ramses Shaffy, whcih says 'Laat me' (let me be) while she is cycling with a bag of the university of Amsterdam.

https://www.parool.nl/koningsdag/ca...versiering-een-feestelijk-statement~b04b5ca6/

Ladies magazine Linda., a project of television presenter Linda de Mol, made a special edition of the magazine title 'Leve de kroonprinses' (Long live the crown princess). The presenter said that she was surprised how 'normal' people found the extrordinary threats to the life of the princess and she wanted to make this gesture as an extra token of support. On the day itself they will try to make the hashtag #LoveAmalia trending on Dutch social media.

https://www.linda.nl/nieuws/media/kroonprinses-amalia-themanummer/

RTVRijnmond focusses on the security measures. It is a nightmare to secure this event and a very costly one too. That is one of the reasons why things were changed in comparison to the day during Beatrix: one town less, a shorter route and more things on easily secured squares. This year there is even more reason for concern, considering the threat to the life of the crown princess. The police does not want to comment if members of the family will be wearing bullet proof vests. Concrete roadblocks are visible everywhere, to prevent another attack on the RF as in Apeldoorn in 2009.

https://www.rijnmond.nl/nieuws/1661...aas-rotterdam-staat-op-scherp-voor-koningsdag
 
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The King's Day 2023 has started!

King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, Princess Catharina-Amalia and Princess Ariane posed for the family's traditional photo in front of their home. Princess Alexia doesn't attend this year, but another cute little family member agreed to be on the photo ;)


** Photo **


And here are the first galleries of today:


** gettyimages gallery ** ppe gallery ** rex gallery ** gtresnews gallery ** anp gallery **


** dm article: It's a family affair! Queen Máxima of the Netherlands is a vision in green as her lookalike daughters..**

 
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That's one of nicer family photos and thankfully a lot less celebrity looking than previous ones.
 
Princess Alexia is having exams at her school in Wales and is not attending this year's edition. The Queen told the NOS that Alexia has to study, but that she called three times this morning and that she would have loved to be there, especially in Rotterdam.

There seems to be a very large crowd this year.
 
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This year there seems to be more security as well as distance between the royal family and the general public. Not surprising given the security situation of the princess of Orange.

The NOS has a liveblog including short videos.

Adda said:
I think Prince Maurits and Princess Marilène are having fun...:D:lol:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1651539101231742976
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And a cameo appearance by Floris and Aimée :flowers:

And around that same time: the king, queen, prince Constantijn and princess Laurentien dancing.

And a short interview with the king, queen and their daughters. If I am not mistaken, this is the first time Ariane is interviewed. Her voice is relatively low and imho she does sound a bit upper class.

When asked what it's like for her that her sister is more often at home now, she states: "As sisters and as family we are always in everything there for each other" (literal translation - meaning we always support each other in everything).

5 min video: King's day highlights

https://nos.nl/collectie/13929/video/2473046-dit-was-koningsdag-in-rotterdam
 
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They are lovely girls. And no instagramesque tilted necks on the group photo this year either ;). The king seems properly combed.

The crowds were large, so large that the city of Rotterdam asked people NOT to come any more. Lots of young people too. Rotterdam was a great choice for his 10th anniversary.

- The Queen received a scarf of the Rottedam football club Feyenoord and she kept it on for a short time. In a podcast the King revealed that the Queen supported the Rotterdam club while he was supporting the one from Amsterdam.

- There seemed to be a wish to include other elements in the programme. The king spoke to victims of the child care benifits scandal. I am sure Constantijn and Laurentien did too as behind the screens they have been very involved with helping them. The King spoke with anti-monarchists and he spoke with a group of people of Rotterdam that pleaded with him to apologise for the colonial past of the country during the abolition of slavery commemerance/celebration day on July 1st -Keti Koti-, where the king will be present. A representative said that the apologies of the government last year had been a great step forward and that she was looking forward to the king's presence. The King asked for patience as a research is still under way.
 
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Marengo said:
They are lovely girls. And no instagramesque tilted necks on the group photo this year either ;). The king seems properly combed.

The crowds were large, so large that the city of Rotterdam asked people NOT to come any more. Lots of young people too. Rotterdam was a great choice for his 10th anniversary.

- The Queen received a scarf of the Rottedam football club Feyenoord and she kept it on for a short time. In a podcast the King revealed that the Queen supported the Rotterdam club while he was supporting the one from Amsterdam.

- There seemed to be a wish to include other elements in the programme. The king spoke to victims of the child care benifits scandal. I am sure Constantijn and Laurentien did too as behind the screens they have been very involved with helping them. The King spoke with anti-monarchists and he spoke with a group of people of Rotterdam that pleaded with him to apologise for the colonial past of the country during the abolition of slavery commemerance/celebration day on July 1st -Keti Koti-, where the king will be present. A representative said that the apologies of the government last year had been a great step forward and that she was looking forward to the king's presence. The King asked for patience as a research is still under way.
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The crowds were unbelievable. What a massive turnout.
 
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