Whodunit Wednesday - Kings and queens, princes and princesses

Royals. It’s something Europe is certainly well-known for. Although in the US people might be most familiar with the British royal family (William and Kate), there are plenty of people here who are enamored of their own royals and those around them. In Belgium and the Netherlands this is no different. 

Belgium has only been a monarchy since 1831 when King Leopold took the throne as its first king. This Leopold could have become King of England (he was married first to Charlotte, heir to the British throne), turned down being king of Greece and in the end became king of Belgium where he oversaw the first railway line on continental Europe in 1835. 

It was Leopold II who is better known in Belgium. This is not so much because of his amazing accomplishments, but because of how poorly he treated people in his conquests of the Congo. Following Leopold comes some very interesting history with Albert (the first), a third Leopold, Baudouin and a second Albert. The current king of Belgium is Philippe. His wife is Mathilde. But most people these days are keeping a close eye on their daughter, princess Elisabeth. She, in her time, will be the next royal and the first Queen of Belgium, if all goes normally. 

In the Netherlands, they know what it means to have a Queen. Although they started out with a king, the first of three Willems came in 1815, by 1907 the monarch was Wilhelmina. And so the Netherlands entered into quite a long period of queens. Wilhelmina was followed by Juliana who was followed by her daughter Beatrix. In the Netherlands they had understood early on that it was okay to have the oldest child become the monarch, even if the oldest was a girl. 

In 2013, Beatrix stepped down to allow her son, Willem Alexander to become King. His wife, Maxima, came from Argentina and quickly became a favorite of the people, even if Willem Alexander was not. This couple has three daughters, with Amalia being the eldest. So the Netherlands is preparing to welcome another queen when the time comes, although Amalia is only 19 at the time. 

It is normal here to speak of royals, kingdoms, kings and queens and being a child of the king. This month King Willem Alexander of the Netherlands will be spending his birthday celebration on April 27 in Maastricht. Many people will want to be able to see or be seen with him and his wife, Maxima and daughter Amalia. We ourselves are most thrilled to be known as children of the King of kings.