The Netherlands’ Crown Prince Willem Alexander and Princess Maxima marked a decade of marriage Thursday. Though the couple celebrated privately, many Dutch reflected on the royal wedding that took place on 02-02-02.
When it was announced that the heir to the Dutch throne was marrying Argentinian born Maxima Zorreguieta, there was immediate controversy. Maxima’s father, Jorge, was a Minister of Agriculture for the Argentina junta, or dictatorship. Though not a member of the actual junta, it still was controversial for his daughter to marry the heir to the Dutch throne. Parliament prevented Mr. Zorreguieta from going to his daughter’s wedding, something that of course saddened Maxima.
But she did have something to smile about. The Dutch had already accepted her as their future Queen due to her zest for life and bright smile. Prior to her wedding, she was toured Holland with Willem Alexander as an introduction to the Dutch people.
Since then, Willem Alexander and Maxima have become the parents of three daughters – Princess Catharina-Amalia 8 years old, Princess Alexia, 6 years and Princess Ariane, 4 years. The couple represent their country along with Queen Beatrix.
Below are two videos – one of the wedding ceremony, the other of the balcony scene and its many kisses!
With the 42nd World Economic Forum taking place in Davos, Switzerland, many of the world’s who’s who are gathering there to discuss ways to make the world a better place. Among them are a few of Europe’s royals – the Norwegian Crown Princely couple, Belgium’s Princess Mathilde and Dutch Princess Mabel.
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Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit are in Davos mainly to promote Haakon’s Young Global Leaders (YGL), which he has been involved in since it’s beginnings in 2005. But Mette-Marit took the time to chat with the press and explain to them why she recently set up her own Twitter account.
“I think Twitter is a fantastic opportunity to spread information about the exciting projects taking place around the world, especially driven by young people,” she said.
The Crown Prince does not yet have his own Twitter account, but said he might start one. “I think I’m quite active as I am. We’ll see if I get my own account. We have the joint account. Maybe I have my own later if I want.”
In addition, Mette-Marit praised Microsoft founder Bill Gates for donating nearly $1 billion to the GAVI Alliance, which gives vaccines to people in sub-Saharan Africa.
“We’re very concerned about global health. And now, Bill Gates once again placed a very good focus on this health care,” said Mette-Marit.
She also mentioned how exciting Davos can be as it draws people from all over the world to participate. “It was incredibly exciting to hear their perspectives on the world situation today. And I could have the opportunity to give them advice on how to use the World Economic Forum to promote their projects.”
Meanwhile, Princess Mathilde of Belgium is at Davos. She sat alongside the Norwegian royals during Angela Merkel’s speech Wednesday.
Also at Davos is Princess Mabel, the wife of Holland’s Prince Friso. She also has a Twitter account and has been tweeting her experiences at WEF. Among them, listening to U.N. Secretary General Ban ki-Moon point out that thousands of women still die in childbirth worldwide. Mabel voiced her dismay over that, saying “These are unacceptable, unnecessary deaths.”
On Saturday, the Dutch crown princely couple took their three daughters to the Jumping Amsterdam, a horse jumping show. It was a rare opportunity for royal fans to see all three of the princesses beyond a photo session with the media.
Catharina-Amalia, age 8, Alexia, 6 years old and 4 year old Ariane cheered for horses during the competition. Amalia, who is second in line to the Dutch throne, was very expressive, showcasing that while she may resemble her father, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, she has the facial expressions of her mother, Princess Maxima.
Both parents also displayed much attention to their three children. At one point, Willem Alexander was seen hugging his eldest, while Maxima kept the other two close by. Keep in mind, with their duties taking them abroad sometimes, family moments like this one probably don’t come very often for these Dutch royals.
It was announced Monday that the future King and Queen of the Netherlands have sold their controversial villa in Mozambique.
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Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima spent two years trying to sell the vacation spot, which they never used. They struggled to sell it because of the troubled real estate market.
The villa was sold on January 11th to Machangulo SA which runs the development where it is located. The exact pricing was not revealed.
There was plenty of controversy surrounding this vacation spot. Many accused the couple of being like colonialists because their villa would be in an impoverished southern African country where the local population would not have benefited from it. Furthermore, there were accusations of environmental damage.
With the selling of this villa, the royals now, according to Prime Minister Mark Rutte, have “nothing more to do with the project in Mozambique”.
The Dutch royal trio went on a three day state visit to the Sultanate of Oman. Originally scheduled last year, the trip was put off for this year due to the Arab Spring protests in the country.
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Sultan Qaboos bin Saeed greeted Queen Beatrix, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima on Tuesday at Al Alam Palace in Muscat. National anthems of Oman and the Netherlands were played, followed by a 21 gun salute welcoming the Dutch royals.
Their Majesties then went indoors for bilateral talks, followed by a lunch at the Beit al Zhubair museum.
In the evening, there was a state banquet hosted by the Sultan in honor of the Dutch royals. They also exchanged orders. The Sultan bestowed the Order of Al Said on the Queen while she conferred the Order of the Netherlands Lion to him.
Even Willem Alexander and Maxima received orders. The Dutch heir was bestowed the Great Order of Renaissance while his wife got the the Sultan Qaboos Order.
The next day saw the royals go to the Port of Sohar, where they were given a tour of its eco-friendly, industrial projects. They also went to the Sohar Free Zone, where they saw joint Omani-Dutch projects.
Next came Nakhl Fort, where the visiting royals were greeted by music and the children of the Omani Women’s Association of Nakhl with flowers and Omani and Dutch flags. The Queen, the Crown Prince and Princess were briefed about the fort by the students, and then later were shown Omani crafts.
Thursday morning concluded the state visit for the Dutch royals. They met with Sultan Qaboos again in Muscat who bid them farewell.
Sources: Gulf News, Times of Oman, Omani News Agency
On Sunday, the Dutch royal trio – Queen Beatrix, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Maxima – began their two day state visit to the United Arab Emirates. They arrived the previous night, but began their agenda Sunday.
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The royals were greeted at the Mushrif Palace in Abu Dhabi by Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the UAE. There was a 21 gun salute in honor of the Queen, her son and daughter in law.
An exchange of honors took place between the Sheikh and Her Majesty. His Highness the Sheikh gave Beatrix the Order of Zayed, one of the United Arab Emirates’ highest civil decorations given to kings and heads of state. In return the Queen gave him one of the Netherlands’ highest orders.
Also on Sunday, the Dutch royals toured the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. The Queen donned a long black dress and wore a blue scarf over her hat while Princess Maxima wore a caftan and a headscarf. This caused a bit of a uproar back in the Netherlands.
“Not to have worn one during a visit to a mosque wasn’t an option. In that case, the invitation to visit to the mosque, one of the most important in the United Arab Emirates, would have to have been refused,” explained Foreign Minister Ufi Rosenthal.
However, the Freedom Party (PVV) led by Geert Wilders, complained that Beatrix was legitimizing Islam’s oppression of women. In response, Green Left MP Tofik Dibi, called Wilders’ comments a waste of time.
For Monday, the royals the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and met with officials and senior managements of companies that specialize in oil and petroleum. Since the Netherlands have their own oil industry – Shell – this was an obvious part of their agenda.
The Dutch trio then went to Masdar, where they met with Sheikha Lubna Al Qasimi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade, for a round table discussion on tightening Dutch-UAE relations.
“This meeting builds on an historic relationship,” said the Sheikha. “Trade was always considered the most important factor for relations between the Netherlands and the UAE, and these ties continue to become stronger today. In fact, most people would be surprised to know that the Netherlands’ ties with the Arab world date back more than three centuries.”
That concluded the Dutch state visit to the UAE. Tuesday will see the same trio go to Oman for another state visit.
This visit was historic for Queen Beatrix. This was her 50th state visit since her ascension to the throne in 1980.
Sources: Khaleej Times, Radio Netherlands, WAM, Dutch News
In the presence of his family, the Netherlands’ Prince Constantijn gave out the annual Prince Claus Award, which is named after his late father. The Award is given to 11 cultural pioneers in developing countries, more specifically those who inspire change and make a difference.
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During the ceremony, Constantijn, the youngest son of Queen Beatrix, spoke about his father and how his upbringing influenced him.
“After he had lived under two dictatorships in Germany and the Dominican Republic, he was convinced that people feel obliged to show civil courage,” said the Prince at the presentation at the Royal Palace in Amsterdam.
“[P]eople really can make a difference by showing civil courage. This was a kind of mantra for my father.”
“In remembering him, we celebrate today: the courage to speak up, to perform, and express. The Prince Claus Awards provide a stage to acknowledge the exceptional work of organisations and people who make a real difference. They contribute to culture, and through culture. In doing so, they offer – in their own small or grand manner – new pathways for hope and development,” concluded Constantijn.
This year, the main winner of the Prince Claus award was Ntone Edjabe. Born in Cameroon, studied in Nigeria and now lives in South Africa, he is the founder of Chimurenga (Struggle for Freedom) magazine. It is a culture, art and politics publication seen all over Africa. The magazine also focuses on breaking African taboos. Edjabe took home a prize money worth €100,000.
Ten others from countries such as Zimbabwe, Tibet/China, and Kazakhstan have received a prize of €25,000 for their commitment to culture and development.
This Thursday saw Crown Prince Willem Alexander of the Netherlands inaugurated a Fujifilm Factory in the town of Tilburg.
His Royal Highness officiated the opening not by cutting a ribbon, but by stepping his foot into green clay along with CEO Shigetaka Komori. The two did this to demonstrate that the new factory is 100 percent CO2 neutral.
The plant cost 100 million euros and is the most modern factory for production of offset plates.
Dutch Princess Laurentien was in the Hague Friday to attend a symposium which marked the the 65th anniversary of The Dutch National Association of General Practitioners.
She met with director Steven van Eijck and he gave her the first copy of the toolkit, “Dealing with Low Literacy in General Practice”. It was natural for Laurentien to receive this since she is dedicated to combating illiteracy in Europe.
The toolkit teaches how and identify those suffering from illiteracy. It also teaches how to work and communicate with them.
The Dutch National Association of General Practitioners developed this book with the Reading and Writing Foundation, of which Princess Laurentien is chairperson of.
On Tuesday, the royals of the Netherlands welcomed President Amadou Toumani Touré of Mali to their country. The president and his wife, Lobbo Traore, are on a three day state visit. It comes within days of news of a Dutchman being kidnapped in Mali.
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President Touré mentioned the kidnapping in his speech during the state banquet at the Royal Palace Noordeinde at The Hague. He told the Dutch people that he is “terribly sorry that this happened”. He also promised to help the situation.
Her Majesty Queen Beatrix thanked Touré for his apology, saying “I appreciate very much that you personally spoken in response to your horror over the terrible incident.”
She added, “We all hope for a good outcome.”
The Dutch national, who’s name is unknown, was abducted at a restaurant in Timbuktu along with two others, a Swede and a South African.
Before the state banquet, the President and his wife were received by Queen Beatrix during a welcoming ceremony. Later on, Touré met with members of Parliament and even gave a speech discussing the economic developments of Mali.
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