Monday, January 9, 2012

Fleeting Visit to France *

First of all, I hope that all of you arrived safe and sound in the new year!

Today, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa kicked off their working year with a visit to the Centre Pompidou-Metz in Metz, France. They arrived inthe morning and were welcomed at the museum for modern and contemporary arts by the French Minister of Culture and Communication Frédéric Mitterand. After touring the museum, the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess went to Scy-Chazelles to visit the Maison Robert Schuman, the former home of the famous politician Robert Schuman.

Schuman was a Luxembourgish-born French statesman and is seen as a founding father of the Europeen Union as he was very active in shaping a post-war Europe. Schuman was born as the son of a French-born father who became German when Alsace-Lorraine was annexed by the German Empire and a Luxembourgish mother who became German by marriage. He grew up in the Grand Duchy and Luxembourgish was his first language and he never lost his distinctive accent when speaking French, albeit he later got French citizenship when Alzac-Lorraine became a part of France again after the first world war. He later became a member of the French Resistance and went on to become French Minister of Finance, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and President of the European Parliamentary Assembly.

Wort has an article including a gallery of visuals of the visit. More pictures can be found at Le Républicain Lorrain, Isopix and another article at Tout Metz. A video is available over at RTL and another picture on the website of the cour.


Sources: Le Républicain Lorrain, Wikipedia

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