Today it was time for the Grand Duke to welcome Miroslava Němcová at the palais grand ducale. Since 2010 Misses Němcová is the speaker of the chamber of deputies of the parliament of the Czech Republic and currently visiting Luxembourg. A picture of Grand Duke Henri and his guests can be found over on the website of the cour.
Source: CGD
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Back To The Roots
On February 25th, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa will visit the German town of Weilburg to honour the Grand Duke's ancestors. Their are two ceremonial occasions for their visit to the small town in Hesse: on the one hand the 100th anniversary of the death of Grand Duke Wilhelm IV or Guillaume IV, it depends whether you prefer the German or French version of his name, and on the other hand the unveiling of a statue of Grand Duke Adolphe, Wilhelm's father.
[Caution, history lesson ahead!] As you may know, Henri is not only the Grand Duke of Luxembourg but also the titular Duke of Nassau. Since a couple of years the grand ducal family bears the last name de Nassau, before it was only Nassau. The branch of the House of Nassau the grand ducal family descends from is the Nassau-Weilburg line, though only through a female ancestor, namely Grand Duchess Charlotte.
As the name says it, the House of Nassau-Weilburg is named after the little Hessian town and members of the family ruled the Duchy of Nassau until 1866 when it was annexed by Prussia. In 1890 the former Dukes of Nassau became Grand Dukes of Luxembourg after Wilhelm III, who was both King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg as well as head of the House of Orange-Nassau, failed to produce a male heir. His daughter Wilhelma became Queen of the Netherlands while the Grand Duchy was inherited by the distantly related Nassau-Weilburg family, due to different succession laws in the two countries: a case of salic law in Luxembourg versus semi-salic law in the Netherlands, meaning that in Luxembourg only females could ascend when the male line was totally extinct which it wasn't at the time.
In fact the male line of the House of Nassau became extinct exactly one hundred years ago when Grand Duke Wilhelm IV died. He had six daughters, among them two future Grand Duchesses, Marie-Adélaïde and Charlotte. So that his daughters could inherit the throne, Wilhelm declared the only male heir Count Georg Nikolaus of Merenberg, son of Prince Nikolaus of Nassau and his morganatic wife Natalia Pushkina, the daughter of Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, and his family to be non-dynastic.
Thus, Marie-Adélaïde inherited the throne aged 17 when her father died in 1912, for four months her mother acted as a regent. She was the first ruler of Luxembourg since about 700 years who was actually born in the Grand Duchy. After the first world war, Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde abdicated as she was highly unpopular because she was perceived as pro-German. In 1919, her sister Charlotte ascended to the throne and the same year more than 77% of Luxembourgers voted for a continuation of the monarchy under Charlotte. In the following years and especially during the second world war she became highly popular among her subjects and remained so until her death in 1985.
Grand Duke Henri is the sixth Grand Duke of Luxembourg coming from the House of Nassau-Weilburg, he predessors are Grand Duke Adolphe, Grand Duke Wilhelm IV, Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde, his grandmother Grand Duchess Charlotte and his father Grand Duke Jean. In fact he is only a cognatic descendant of the House of Nassau-Weilburg while agnatically he descends from the House of Bourbon-Parma through his grandfather Prince Félix of Bourbon-Parma.
This sometimes leads to a bit of confusion and the family is often called House of Nassau arisen from Bourbon-Parma or something similar, though they are not solely Bourbon-Parmas as the constitution of the Grand Duchy states that the head of states come from the House of Nassau so they have to be Nassaus. [Enough history for today.]
To kick off their one day stay in Weilburg, the grand ducal couple will be welcomed in the marketplace by the mayor before they inspect a guard of honour of the vigilante group of Nassau. Afterwards the guests from Luxembourg will make their way to Weilburg castle to take part in a mass in the church of the castle for Grand Duke Wilkelm IV, who died on February 25th, 1912. Interestingly, the crypt of the castle church is a Luxembourgish exclave. Shortly after the official program will continue in front of the mining and city museum to unveil a statue of Grand Duke Adolphe, before it ends with a visit to the auditorium of the Komödienhaus.
Source: Mittelhessen.de, Me
[Caution, history lesson ahead!] As you may know, Henri is not only the Grand Duke of Luxembourg but also the titular Duke of Nassau. Since a couple of years the grand ducal family bears the last name de Nassau, before it was only Nassau. The branch of the House of Nassau the grand ducal family descends from is the Nassau-Weilburg line, though only through a female ancestor, namely Grand Duchess Charlotte.
As the name says it, the House of Nassau-Weilburg is named after the little Hessian town and members of the family ruled the Duchy of Nassau until 1866 when it was annexed by Prussia. In 1890 the former Dukes of Nassau became Grand Dukes of Luxembourg after Wilhelm III, who was both King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg as well as head of the House of Orange-Nassau, failed to produce a male heir. His daughter Wilhelma became Queen of the Netherlands while the Grand Duchy was inherited by the distantly related Nassau-Weilburg family, due to different succession laws in the two countries: a case of salic law in Luxembourg versus semi-salic law in the Netherlands, meaning that in Luxembourg only females could ascend when the male line was totally extinct which it wasn't at the time.
In fact the male line of the House of Nassau became extinct exactly one hundred years ago when Grand Duke Wilhelm IV died. He had six daughters, among them two future Grand Duchesses, Marie-Adélaïde and Charlotte. So that his daughters could inherit the throne, Wilhelm declared the only male heir Count Georg Nikolaus of Merenberg, son of Prince Nikolaus of Nassau and his morganatic wife Natalia Pushkina, the daughter of Russian poet Alexander Pushkin, and his family to be non-dynastic.
Thus, Marie-Adélaïde inherited the throne aged 17 when her father died in 1912, for four months her mother acted as a regent. She was the first ruler of Luxembourg since about 700 years who was actually born in the Grand Duchy. After the first world war, Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde abdicated as she was highly unpopular because she was perceived as pro-German. In 1919, her sister Charlotte ascended to the throne and the same year more than 77% of Luxembourgers voted for a continuation of the monarchy under Charlotte. In the following years and especially during the second world war she became highly popular among her subjects and remained so until her death in 1985.
Grand Duke Henri is the sixth Grand Duke of Luxembourg coming from the House of Nassau-Weilburg, he predessors are Grand Duke Adolphe, Grand Duke Wilhelm IV, Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde, his grandmother Grand Duchess Charlotte and his father Grand Duke Jean. In fact he is only a cognatic descendant of the House of Nassau-Weilburg while agnatically he descends from the House of Bourbon-Parma through his grandfather Prince Félix of Bourbon-Parma.
This sometimes leads to a bit of confusion and the family is often called House of Nassau arisen from Bourbon-Parma or something similar, though they are not solely Bourbon-Parmas as the constitution of the Grand Duchy states that the head of states come from the House of Nassau so they have to be Nassaus. [Enough history for today.]
To kick off their one day stay in Weilburg, the grand ducal couple will be welcomed in the marketplace by the mayor before they inspect a guard of honour of the vigilante group of Nassau. Afterwards the guests from Luxembourg will make their way to Weilburg castle to take part in a mass in the church of the castle for Grand Duke Wilkelm IV, who died on February 25th, 1912. Interestingly, the crypt of the castle church is a Luxembourgish exclave. Shortly after the official program will continue in front of the mining and city museum to unveil a statue of Grand Duke Adolphe, before it ends with a visit to the auditorium of the Komödienhaus.
Source: Mittelhessen.de, Me
Ukrainian Parliament Chairman Visiting
Today, Grand Duke Henri received the president of the Verkhovna Rada or simply the Ukrainian parliament Volodymyr Mikhailovich Lytvyn at the palais. Mr Lytvin is currently on a working visit the Grand Duchy. The cour has a picture of the two gentlemen.
Source: CGD
Source: CGD
Friday, February 10, 2012
Grand Duchess Visits Prison
Together with Luxembourg's Minister for Justice François Biltgen, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa visited the Centre pénitentiaire in Givenich, an open prison in the east of the country. Some of the detainees only sleep in the prison while they spend the day at their regular work, while others work on the former estate. The prison aims to help people to rehabilitate into society.
Articles about the visit including pictures can be found at Tageblatt, Wort, Lëtzebuerger Journal, MyWort and Wort, while RTL has a video.
Source: Tageblatt
Articles about the visit including pictures can be found at Tageblatt, Wort, Lëtzebuerger Journal, MyWort and Wort, while RTL has a video.
Source: Tageblatt
Incoming Dutch State Visit
Last October it became known that the Dutch Queen is planning a state visit to the Grand Duchy, today the cour has released the exact dates. Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands will pay a visit to Luxembourg between March 20th and 22nd, the exact programme has not been revealed yet.
It will probably be a walk down the memory lane for the Queen as for the very first state visit in her new position she went to? You guessed it, Luxembourg! Together with her late husband Prince Claus she visited the Grand Duchy in 1981. Apart from King Albert of the Belgians, Queen Beatrix was the only foreign head of state present for the enthronement of Grand Duke Henri, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg form the famous Benelux states.
Source: RTL
It will probably be a walk down the memory lane for the Queen as for the very first state visit in her new position she went to? You guessed it, Luxembourg! Together with her late husband Prince Claus she visited the Grand Duchy in 1981. Apart from King Albert of the Belgians, Queen Beatrix was the only foreign head of state present for the enthronement of Grand Duke Henri, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg form the famous Benelux states.
Source: RTL
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Second Day Of Economy Days
Looking good as ever, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume attended the second day of the "Economy Days 2012", a conference focusing on the business prospects of Luxembourg and its neighbouring regions. Today's event revolved around a speech by Luxembourg's new minister for the economy and foreign trade Etienne Schneider which was his first official speech in his new commission.
The always awesome Manuel Dias has many photographs of today as well as yesterday, Wort another one plus an article of today.Videos can be found over at RTL, the first one starting at 0:23 and the second one starting at 07:36 and a few seconds more at 09:29.
Source: RTL
The always awesome Manuel Dias has many photographs of today as well as yesterday, Wort another one plus an article of today.Videos can be found over at RTL, the first one starting at 0:23 and the second one starting at 07:36 and a few seconds more at 09:29.
Source: RTL
Back In Luxembourg
The Hereditary Grand Duke is back from his Belgian adventures and on duty again in the Grand Duchy. Yesterday he attended the first day of a two day conference titled "Economy Days 2012". The conference focuses on promoting and developing business and economy in Luxembourg and the Greater Region, a term used to describe Luxembourg and the neighbouring Saarland, Lorraine, Rhineland-Palatinate, Wallonia, as well as the French Community and the German-speaking Community of Belgium. On the first day Claude Wiseler, Minister of Sustainable Development and Infrastructure, gave a speech about land use planning and sector plans.
For pictures of the event, have a look at Tageblatt and the website of the cour.
Guillaume will also be present for the second day of the conference.
Sources: Tageblatt, SaarLorLux
For pictures of the event, have a look at Tageblatt and the website of the cour.
Guillaume will also be present for the second day of the conference.
Sources: Tageblatt, SaarLorLux
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Prince Jean Attends Conference
Rare royal sighting alarm! Every once in a while we do find information about members of the grand ducal family who usually fly under the press radar. As you may know Prince Jean is the president of the CCBL, the Chamber of Commerce of Belgium and Luxembourg in France, and this capacity he attened the Soirée des Voeux 2012, an event marking the beginning of the new year, on January 24th.
In fact the CCBL brought out an even rarer royal sighting about six months ago. Venture over to the website of the chamber of commerce and have a look at the pictures of June 6th and in case you are an attentive observer, you have noticed by now that Prince Constantin accompanied his father for the summer soiree. What a delight! Who can we petition to make this happen more often? And while we are at it, can Connie please bring Wenceslas? And Carl? And I wouldn't mind Marie-Gabrielle either!
Source: CCBL
In fact the CCBL brought out an even rarer royal sighting about six months ago. Venture over to the website of the chamber of commerce and have a look at the pictures of June 6th and in case you are an attentive observer, you have noticed by now that Prince Constantin accompanied his father for the summer soiree. What a delight! Who can we petition to make this happen more often? And while we are at it, can Connie please bring Wenceslas? And Carl? And I wouldn't mind Marie-Gabrielle either!
Source: CCBL
Grand Duchess Out And About *
Time to catch up on the latest events of Grand Duchess Maria Teresa...
On February 1st, the Grand Duchess held an audience at the palais to honour Fikirte Dereje, an orphaned student originating from Africa currently living in a children's home in Luxembourg. Still a young woman, Fikirte Dereje had to flee twice in her life due to political reasons. Together with her family she fled from Eritrea to Ethiopia, later at the age of twelve she had to leave her new country, during her second flight she lost her family. With the help of artist René Wiroth, she produced a scultpture picturing her missing mother, which was financed by the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grand-Duchesse. During the audience it was presented to the public.
For more information have a look at the website of the cour grand ducale, they also have pictures as does the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grand-Duchesse and Manuel Dias.
Yesterday evening Grand Duchess Maria Teresa attended a conference titled "Stop aux Mutilations Génitales Féminines" focusing on the issue of the horrible practice of female genital mutilation. Organised by the Foundation Follereau Luxembourg, the event was also attended by the author of the book "Desert Flower", human rights activist and former Somali supermodel Waris Dirie. Wort has an article including a picture of the conference, as do the Lëtzebuerger Journal and the cour.
Source: Cour grand ducale, FFL
On February 1st, the Grand Duchess held an audience at the palais to honour Fikirte Dereje, an orphaned student originating from Africa currently living in a children's home in Luxembourg. Still a young woman, Fikirte Dereje had to flee twice in her life due to political reasons. Together with her family she fled from Eritrea to Ethiopia, later at the age of twelve she had to leave her new country, during her second flight she lost her family. With the help of artist René Wiroth, she produced a scultpture picturing her missing mother, which was financed by the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grand-Duchesse. During the audience it was presented to the public.
For more information have a look at the website of the cour grand ducale, they also have pictures as does the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grand-Duchesse and Manuel Dias.
Yesterday evening Grand Duchess Maria Teresa attended a conference titled "Stop aux Mutilations Génitales Féminines" focusing on the issue of the horrible practice of female genital mutilation. Organised by the Foundation Follereau Luxembourg, the event was also attended by the author of the book "Desert Flower", human rights activist and former Somali supermodel Waris Dirie. Wort has an article including a picture of the conference, as do the Lëtzebuerger Journal and the cour.
Source: Cour grand ducale, FFL
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
News From Belgium
The Hereditary Grand Duke is still busy in Brussels. Today, he met the president of the European Council Herman van Rompuy prior to a working session at the EU headquarters. I don't know why they met (well, because of Guillaume's internship but no specific info) or what they talked about but they definitely had fun while doing so. And just because I can't find any information, I'll just assail you with visuals, so have a look at Getty Images, Daylife, Newscom (typing in "Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume 1 February 2012" will do the trick), Isopix, APA Picturedesk, Belga and if that's not enough, RTL has a video.
Source: Daylife
Source: Daylife
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