A wonderful State visit in Germany

From 3 December 2023 till 7 December 2023, King Philippe and
Queen Mathilde of the Belgians made an official State Visit to their
neighbours Germany. The royals were invited by President
Frank-Walter Steinmeier.




This was the program:

Day 1
Berlin: welcome ceremony by President Frank-Walter
Steinmeier and First Lady Elke Büdenbender at the Bellevue Palace.

Later they went to the Brandenburger Tor, the symbol of German
division during the Cold War, the Brandenburg Gate is now a
national symbol of peace and unity.

Finally that day the German President organised a state banquet. 
At the banquet Queen Mathilde wore the tiara, yes bling!, of the
9 Provinces. There were several famous guests too: 

* Hubertus, Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and
his wife Kelly. 

* Domenico Tedesco, German-Italian football manager who is
currently the head coach of the Belgium national team.

* Belgian actor Filip Peeters, who has been expanding his career
in Germany since 2000.





Day 2
Berlin: Philippe gets to see a piece of the moon at the German
Aerospace Center in Berlin at the  Deutsches Zentrum für Luft-
und Raumfahrt, DLR.

* Meeting of King Philippe with Olaf Scholz, Federal Chancellor
(“Bundeskanzler”) of Germany.

* Philippe & Mathilde invite the German President and his wife
to a concert to thank them for their invitation to this State Visit.
This took place at the Funkhaus Berlin.


Day 3
Dresden: Philippe, Mathilde, German President Steinmeier and First Lady
on the Augustbrücke.

Philippe and Mathilde visit the Dresden Christmas market
(Weihnachtsmarkt) with German President Steinmeier and First Lady.


Family ties


As you know King Philippe of Belgium, has German family ties.
King Leopold I of Belgium was born as Prince Leopold of Saxe Coburg
and Gotha. 

Among the ancestors of King Philippe we find Duke Frederick Eugene
and Duchess Sophie Dorothee of Württemberg too. Through Sophia of
Nassau who became Queen of Sweden (Sabine Hammerbacher).

But there are more German ties. Queen Elisabeth of Belgium was
born Duchess Elisabeth of Bavaria.


👉 On 5 December 2023, the German president and his wife have
received the Belgian Order of Leopold, which is the oldest and highest
honor in Belgium. 


A big Thank you


A big Thank You for @ChristinsQueens. She braved the cold for taking
pictures and videos as well in Berlin from this wonderful State visit.

Delphine

When King Philippe and Queen Mathilde returned home to Belgium there 
was a huge riot concerning Princess Delphine, the King's half sister.

She wrote a letter to Prime Minister De Croo; she requests to be given
the same rights as her half-brother Laurent and -sister Astrid.

"She has been concerned about her role in official events for months,”
her lawyer writes. 

"I received that letter," De Croo confirms. "I will also answer that,
but I can actually say it now: Princess Delphine is not
discriminated at all."

"The events she is talking about are events to which people who
have an official position in our country are invited. Such as some
members of the royal family. 

Princess Delphine is a member of the royal family, but has no
official position. She has no assignment and is not accountable to
parliament and the government. That is very clear."






Source pictures and video: @ChristinsQueens



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