Marie-Antoinette and Diana, Princess of Wales

The two ladies were tragic in very different ways. 

Incidentally, I am considering posting on Diana and Queen Astrid, another pair of tragic royal women who are all too often falsely compared with one another.

Marie-José's Memoirs

In 1971, Queen Marie-José of Italy, daughter of King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, published her memoirs. In this work, entitled Albert et Elisabeth de Belgique, mes parents, she discusses her childhood and youth in Belgium prior to her marriage with Prince Umberto of Savoy in 1930. She focuses on her parents, beginning with their engagement in 1900 and ending with Albert's death in 1934. The style is clear, concise, sober, and sensitive. The book is a tribute to Albert and Elisabeth, widely admired for their heroism during World War I, and regarded by their daughter as model sovereigns. Yet it is also a fascinating portrayal of a lost time, and of a wide range of modern political, cultural, and scientific figures. The memoirs have been translated into Italian as Giovinezza di una Regina (Youth of a Queen).

Throughout the book, Marie-José emphasizes that her parents' mutual love and complementary qualities enabled them to support and assist each other in their difficult and challenging roles as King and Queen. Both are portrayed as highly intelligent and sensitive, but with contrasting temperaments: Albert, thoughtful, reflective, reserved, steady, philosophic; Elisabeth, lively, energetic, spontaneous, imaginative, impulsive, artistic. Yet, Marie-José shows, they strove to forge a strong union, enabling their characters to complement one another in an exceptionally harmonious manner. It would be rare, their daughter asserts, to find two people collaborating so felicitously for the good of their country, "and even, if one may say so, for the good of mankind."

This is how Marie-José describes her parents' marriage:

Between Albert of Belgium and Elisabeth in Bavaria, a deep love formed a bond of an exceptional quality, a bond which only grew stronger, equally so in the years that were happy and peaceful as in those which would be tragic and painful. I do not consider that I am committing an indiscretion by publishing extracts from (their) correspondence. I think, on the contrary, that they will contribute to illustrating the depth and purity of their love. 

The letters are, indeed, very touching, and I would like to cite a few here. The day after the engagement of Marie-José's parents in Neuilly, Albert, who had been obliged to leave Elisabeth for Brussels, wrote to her:

...May you be as happy as I wish. You will always be able to count on my infinite love, and my absolute loyalty. After leaving you...everything seemed so empty to me that even the crowded streets of Paris seemed to me to be a desert...

Elisabeth immediately replied:

It is 11:45 in the evening, and I feel so lonely and so sad without you! In the few days I have been with you, I have come to love you with all my heart! Truly, I love you so much! In a way that I never would have believed I could love someone. You are so good and kind to me that it touches me and makes me happy. You know that I cannot express sufficiently what I feel for you, but I think you understand me...

After a visit to Elisabeth's family in Bavaria during their engagement, Albert wrote to his future bride:

During this visit to Possenhofen, so pleasant, but all too brief, I have come to know you even better, and, above all, if I may confess it to you, I have been able to appreciate all the qualities of heart, intelligence, and kindness, with which my dear Lisa is filled, and which had conquered me from the first day I had seen her. You know that I, myself, do not have many qualities, but I can promise you, in all sincerity, to have one: that of trying to please you always, and also of trying to deserve to have a wife such as you...

To which Elisabeth responded:

When will the time come when there will be no more of these terrible separations? I was so happy to have been with you. Every hour we pass together, is, for me, that greatest pleasure that exists...Every time I see you again, I love you even more. How happy I will be the day I no longer have to leave you.

Albert and Elisabeth seem to have taken the motto of Belgium, "union makes for strength," as the motto of their marriage. As Albert wrote to Elisabeth:

Husband and wife must find the greatest happiness in being together. It must be the best company that is sought out, and equally so for the one and for the other...

In life, there are many difficulties, always, everywhere, and for everyone, but if one is firmly united in a family by a strong mutual love, one does not fear them and one is sure to find, at home, the true happiness of this earth...

Many years after Albert's untimely death in a climbing accident, Elisabeth confided to her daughter, Marie-José: "Ever since the cruel separation from your father, I have not been able to live a single day, without his memory being present to me, and everything I have done, I have done out of fidelity to his memory."

An inspiring story. 

(The quotes in the original French may be found here)

Birthday of Princess Astrid

Today is the birthday of Princess Astrid of Belgium, the second child and only daughter of reigning King Albert II and Queen Paola of the Belgians. She was born June 5, 1962, and named after her grandmother, the legendary Queen Astrid. After completing high school in Brussels, she spent a year in Leiden studying art history. She later attended the Institute of European Studies, in Geneva, and also studied in the United States, in Michigan.  

On September 22, 1984, Princess Astrid married Lorenz, Archduke of Austria-d'Este. In 1995, a royal decree made Astrid's husband a Prince of Belgium. The couple have five children, ranging from ages 23 to 6: Amedeo, Maria Laura, Joachim, Luisa Maria, and Laetitia Maria. 

Princess Astrid devotes her time to a number of medical, humanitarian, and social causes. From 1994-2007, she served as Chairwoman of the Belgian Red Cross. She is also the Honorary Chairwoman of the Queen Elisabeth Medical Foundation and the European Organization on Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). Particularly concerned with the plight of victims of violence (whether in peace or in war), she is intensely engaged in the struggle to ban antipersonnel mines and cluster munition. She also supports various initiatives assisting disadvantaged groups. 

Since 1996, Princess Astrid has been a member of the Belgian Senate, as senator by right (a privilege of the royal princes). In 1997, she joined the Belgian Armed Forces; she is now a Colonel in the Medical Unit. 

I join all others in wishing Princess Astrid a very happy birthday!

Josephine-Charlotte, Princess of Belgium, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg

Princess Josephine-Charlotte was the eldest child and only daughter of King Leopold III and Queen Astrid of Belgium. She was the sister of Belgian kings Baudouin I and Albert II. While expecting her daughter, Astrid had been reading a biography of the Empress Josephine, the consort of Napoleon Bonaparte. She must have found Josephine very appealing, as she decided to name the little Princess, born October 11, 1927, after this distinguished lady. Josephine was also the name of one of the child's great-aunts, the dearest sister of King Albert I. Astrid was a devoted mother to her "little Jo."

This love was one of the reasons for Astrid's conversion to Catholicism. As a Swedish-born Princess, she had been raised as a Lutheran, but, upon marrying Leopold, had agreed to educate their children as Catholics. As little Josephine-Charlotte began to ask religious questions, it seemed increasingly wrong to her mother that they should not share the same Faith. Astrid pondered the issue deeply, seeking instruction in Catholicism, partly to enable her to better instruct her daughter, partly to satisfy her own need to find the true religion. In 1930, Astrid became a convinced Catholic, confiding to a close friend, the Swedish noblewoman Anna Sparre: "My soul has found peace."

Josephine-Charlotte would lose her mother tragically in a car accident in 1935. Only ten days earlier, Astrid, filled with strange premonitions, had asked Anna to "look after" her 8-year-old daughter, if she herself should die prematurely. At Astrid's funeral, Anna remembered these words and tenderly embraced the little Princess, a small, bewildered figure in white amidst a sea of black. Despite her distress, however, Josephine-Charlotte responded courageously to the situation, trying to take care of her younger brothers, Baudouin and Albert.

More tragedies would follow: the Second World War, the Nazi occupation of Belgium, the royal family's deportation to Germany, the post-war Royal Question. During the family's imprisonment in Germany (and later, Austria), conditions were harsh and food was scanty; the Princess was driven to gnawing wild dandelions. After the war, King Leopold III was falsely accused of collaboration with the Nazis, and prevented, in consequence, from returning to Belgium. A commission of inquiry exonerated him of all charges, but political agitation continued to delay his return. A cruel and vulgar campaign of calumny was launched against the King and his second wife, Princess Lilian (married in 1941). It must have been a very painful period for Josephine-Charlotte, deeply attached to her father and step-mother.

During the Royal Question, the King and his family lived in Prégny, Switzerland. Josephine-Charlotte studied at the Ecole Supérieure des Jeunes Filles, in Geneva, and later took courses in child psychology with the world-renowned Professor Piaget. In 1949, she returned to Belgium, to raise support for her father. She also voted in the plebiscite held in 1950 to end the Royal Question. On both occasions, her arrival sparked an outpouring of royalist fervor; the King's supporters welcomed her with cries of "Vive la princesse!"  and "Léopold!" The King won a majority in the popular consultation, and was able to return to Belgium. Continued agitation, however, would finally force his abdication in 1951. He was succeeded by his son, the 21-year-old Prince Baudouin.

In 1953, Josephine-Charlotte married Prince Jean, heir to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. Although politically motivated, it was a happy match. The couple had five children: Princess Marie-Astrid, Prince Henri (currently the reigning Grand Duke of Luxembourg), Prince Jean, Princess Margaretha, and Prince Guillaume. In 1964, Prince Jean and his wife succeeded to the throne of Luxembourg. Josephine-Charlotte was a conscientious and popular Grand Duchess, particularly interested in youth, family, and health issues. From 1959 to 1970, she was President of the Red Cross of the Luxembourg Youth. In 1964, she became President of the Luxembourg Red Cross. In her spare time, she enjoyed the arts, gardening, hunting, fishing, skiing, and water-sports. A very accomplished and athletic lady!

On January 10, 2005, after a long battle with lung cancer, Grand Duchess Josephine-Charlotte died at Fischbach Castle. She is survived by her husband, children, and grandchildren.

May she rest in peace.

Albert I & the Sacred Heart

In honor of June, the month dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, I wanted to re-post this.

I have often mentioned the piety of Albert I, King of the Belgians. There is a remarkable account of Albert's meeting with the famous preacher of devotion and reparation to the Sacred Heart, Father Mateo Crawley-Boevey, during the priest's visit to Belgium in 1922. This is how Father Mateo described his audience with the King in Brussels:

At the door of his office, H.M. King Albert, smiling, said as he offered me his hand:

"What joy you bring me, Reverend Father, by coming all the way to me. Thank you for this visit."

And, without giving me the time to utter a word:

"I know you have something good to say to me; sit down here in this armchair."

And as he said this, he himself placed the chair opposite his own, near his desk.

"Sire," I said, "Your Majesty is reversing the roles, and overwhelms me by thanking me for having been so bold as to come. It is I who, from the depths of my heart, thank Your Majesty for the undeserved honor of this meeting."

"Oh!" replied the King. "I know that, for some time now, you have been preaching in Belgium, and that people have been crowding to hear your sermons...I have learned that you often lead the crowds, who come to hear you, in prayer for the King. You did it recently, here, at St. Gudule, and I am very grateful to you. And now, tell me a bit about your mission and what you are preaching everywhere."

Father Mateo began by offering the King a medal of the Sacred Heart, which Albert accepted and admired. Then the priest asked:

"And if it is not indiscreet, may I ask Your Majesty to pray with me for Belgium and the royal family?"

"Oh! Very willingly," replied the King, "Begin, Father, I will unite myself to you with all my heart."

The priest then blessed the medal, which had been placed on the King's desk, and knelt, before the image, on the ground. The King knelt at his side and joined his hands in prayer. The priest explained:

"Sire, I will recite a prayer to the Heart of Jesus the King, and I ask, very respectfully, that Your Majesty repeat it with great faith."

Father Mateo then began:

"Heart of Jesus, You are the Lord of lords and the King of kings, I adore You..."

The King, his head bowed, repeated after the priest. In deep meditation, they prayed for about ten minutes:

"Heart of Jesus, Belgium belongs to You, save it!"

"Heart of Jesus, the royal family belongs to You, bless it!"

"Mercy, oh King of kings, for the rulers who outrage You!"

"Mercy, oh King of nations, for the peoples who deny You!"

After the prayer was finished, Albert took the priest's hands and told him:

"Thank you, thank you, I shall never forget the emotion of this hour."

Father Mateo assumed he would now be taking his leave of the King. But Albert was not ready to let him go:

"Sit down, Reverend Father, for you have not yet said what you had to say to me...Speak."

The King was determined to hear a little sermon. So Father Mateo offered him some pious thoughts. Albert listened intently.

When, after three quarters of an hour, the priest rose to take his leave, the King said:

"I will let you go, Father, but you must promise me two things: come back to see me when you return to Belgium, and pray for me, for my family, and for Belgium."

Even at the door, the King was still insisting:

"Pray for me, and come back."

(Recorded in Albert 1er, insolite, 1984, a dossier compiled by Jo and Hervé Gerard, pp. 244-245; original French here)

I think that this account illustrates admirably, not only Albert's deep piety, but also his courtesy, warmth, simplicity, and kindness. It is easy to see why he was so loved, both in Belgium and abroad.

May his soul rest in peace.

Founder of a Dynasty

Here, we see the first King of the Belgians, Leopold I (1790-1865). Born Leopold Georg Christian Friedrich, Prince of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfield (later, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha), he was the youngest son of Franz Frederik Anton, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfield and Countess Augusta Reuss-Ebersdorf.  At the age of five, Leopold was appointed honorary Colonel of the Ismailovski Regiment of the Imperial Guards; at 12, he became a General. When, in 1806, Napoleon occupied Coburg, Leopold traveled to Paris, and became well-known at the Imperial court. Napoleon, in fact, wanted to make him an aide-de-camp, but Leopold declined the offer. He pursued a career in the Russian army, in the service of Tsar Alexander I, and distinguished himself in the war against Napoleon. Handsome, intelligent, and accomplished, Leopold rose rapidly to high rank.

In 1815, Leopold moved to England. He acquired British nationality and became a Field Marshal in the British army. In 1816, he married Princess Charlotte, daughter of the Prince Regent (the future George IV), and heir to the British throne. Leopold was preparing himself for the role later played by Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria. (Albert and Victoria were actually his nephew and niece). Leopold's happy and promising marriage, however, ended tragically, the following year, when Princess Charlotte died in childbirth, along with her infant son. Charlotte was deeply mourned by her husband and people.

Despite this disappointment, fortune would favor Leopold. In 1830, he was offered the throne of Greece, but refused to accept. The following year, he was offered, and accepted, the Belgian crown. At the Congress of Vienna, the Belgian provinces, formerly ruled by the Austrian Habsburgs, had been joined with the Dutch provinces, in a united Kingdom of the Netherlands headed by the House of Orange. For different reasons, however, Catholics and Liberals in Belgium developed grievances against the heavy-handed and fiercely Calvinist King William I. In 1830, a pragmatic alliance of the (normally mutually hostile) Catholics and Liberals had overthrown Dutch rule. The emerging Kingdom of Belgium was now seeking a Sovereign. Prince Leopold was considered exceptionally capable, and his British connections were highly desirable. (Great Britain was one of Belgium's main supporters in her struggle for independence, and, of course, later, during World War I). Thus, although a Protestant prince, Leopold became the first King of a predominantly Catholic country. He swore his accession oath on July 21, 1831; this date has been commemorated, ever since, by the celebration of Belgium's National Day. 

Soon after his accession, Leopold confronted a Dutch invasion, aiming at the re-conquest of Belgium. Leopold personally commanded his forces, setting a precedent for future Belgian kings Albert I and Leopold III. Unimpressed by his followers, Leopold remarked, with the caustic irony of the Saxe-Coburgs: "Half of the army betrayed me, the other half fled" (quoted by Queen Marie-José of Italy in her memoirs, Albert et Elisabeth de Belgique, mes parents, 1971). Nonetheless, he made himself loved by sharing the life of his troops. With the aid of the Great Powers, Belgium maintained her independence, but was compelled to make territorial and economic concessions to the Netherlands. The Treaty of London, in 1839, guaranteed Belgium's status as a sovereign and neutral state.

In 1832, Leopold married Princess Louise Marie of Orléans (1812-1850), daughter of King Louis-Philippe of France. The couple had three surviving children: Leopold (1835-1909), future King Leopold II of the Belgians, Philippe (1837-1905), Count of Flanders, father of King Albert I of the Belgians, and Charlotte (1840-1927), later Empress Carlota of Mexico. Despite the Orléans' association with liberalism, freemasonry and revolution, Louise-Marie (pictured below) was a devout Catholic. The royal children were also raised in the Catholic Faith. 

Leopold devoted the rest of his reign to consolidating the young state and quietly furthering its development. He managed to maintain a balance between the Catholic and Liberal parties. In 1835, he saw the culmination of one of his long-nurtured projects: the inauguration of the Brussels-Malines railway line, the first in continental Europe. In 1842, in the face of rising industrialism in Belgium (a process he encouraged), the King attempted to introduce legislation regulating the labor of women and children. Unfortunately, however, his enlightened ideas did not find fertile ground. In 1848, a republican revolution dethroned Leopold's father-in-law, Louis-Philippe, but the upheavals spared Belgium, largely due to Leopold's skillful diplomacy. He was widely admired for his political wisdom; a number of European monarchs, including his niece, Queen Victoria of England, sought his advice. His prudence and tact won him the title "Nestor of Europe." 

On December 10, 1865, after successfully establishing Belgium as a sovereign nation, and founding a new royal dynasty, Leopold died. He remained firmly Protestant to the end; despite the earnest appeals of his entourage, he refused, on his deathbed, to convert to Catholicism. He was succeeded by his son, King Leopold II of the Belgians. 

King Leopold I with Queen Louise-Marie and their children

Pentecost

Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Pentecost, commemorating the Descent of the Holy Ghost upon the Apostles, fifty days after the Resurrection of Christ. 

And when the days of the Pentecost were accomplished, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them parted tongues as it were of fire, and it sat upon every one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with divers tongues, according as the Holy Ghost game them to speak. Now there were dwelling at Jerusalem, Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. 

And when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded in mind, because every man heard them speak in his own tongue. And they were all amazed, and wondered, saying: Behold, are not all these, that speak, Galileans? And how have we heard, every man our own tongue wherein we were born? ...

...And they were all astonished, and wondered, saying to one another: What meaneth this? But others mocking, said: These men are full of new wine. But Peter standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke to them: Ye men of Judea, and all you that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known to you, and with your ears receive my words. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.

But this is that which was spoken of by the prophet Joel: And it shall come to pass, in the last days (saith the Lord), I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. And upon my servants indeed, and upon my handmaids will I pour out in those days of my spirit, and they shall prophesy. And I will shew wonders in the heaven above, and signs on the earth beneath: blood and fire, and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and manifest day of the Lord shall come. 

And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved. Ye men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you, by miracles, and wonders, and signs, which God didst in the midst of you, as you also know: This same being delivered up, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you by the hands of wicked men have crucified and slain. Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the sorrows of hell, as it was impossible that he should be holden by it. For David saith concerning him: I foresaw the Lord before my face, because he is at my right hand, that I may not be moved.

For this my heart hath been glad, and my tongue hath rejoiced, moreover my flesh also shall rest in hope. Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, nor suffer thy Holy One to see corruption. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life: thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance. Ye men, brethren, let me freely speak to you of the patriarch David; that he died, and was buried; and his sepulchre is with us to the present day. Whereas therefore he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him an oath, that of the fruit of his loins one should sit upon his throne.

Foreseeing this, he spoke of the resurrection of Christ. For neither was he left in hell, neither did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised again, whereof all we are witnesses. Being exalted therefore by the right hand of God, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath poured forth this which you see and hear...

Therefore let all the house of Israel know most certainly, that God hath made both Lord and Christ, this same Jesus, whom you have crucified. Now when they had heard these things, they had compunction in their heart, and said to Peter, and to the rest of the apostles: What shall we do, men and brethren? But Peter said to them: Do penance, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost...

They therefore that received his word, were baptized; and there were added in that day about three thousand souls. And they were persevering in the doctrine of the apostles, and in the communication of the breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles in Jerusalem, and there was great fear in all...

And continuing daily with one accord...and breaking bread from house to house, they took their meat in gladness and simplicity of heart; praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord increased daily together such as should be saved. 

(The Acts of the Apostles, ch. 2, Douay-Rheims Bible)

(Image: Pentecost by El Greco, ca. 1600. Courtesy of Olga's Gallery)

The Belgian Capitulation, 1940

On May 28, 1940, after 18 days of courageous fighting, the Belgian army was compelled to surrender to the invading Nazis. King Leopold III became a prisoner of war. He issued the following Order of the Day to his officers and men:

Officers, Non-commissioned Officers, and Men,

Plunged unexpectedly into a war of unparalleled violence, you have fought to defend your country, step by step. 

Exhausted by an uninterrupted struggle against an enemy far superior in numbers and strength, we have been forced to surrender. 

History will relate that our Army did its duty to the full. Our Honor is safe. 

This violent fighting, these sleepless nights, cannot have been in vain. I enjoin you not to be discouraged, but to conduct yourselves with dignity. May your attitude and your discipline win the esteem of the foreigner.

I shall not leave you in your misfortune, and I shall take care to watch over you and your families. 

Tomorrow, we will set to work, with the firm intention of raising our country from its ruins. 

(French original cited by Col. Rémy in Le 18e jour: la tragédie de Léopold III, roi des Belges; translation based on that of Roger Keyes in Outrageous Fortune)

Tragedy & the Queen

The life of Italy's last queen, Marie-José, daughter of King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth of Belgium, was marked by many tragedies. She experienced two world wars, an unhappy marriage, political turmoil, and exile. From 1934-1944, she lost her father, King Albert, and her sisters-in-law, Queen Astrid of Belgium and Princess Mafalda of Savoy; in 1992, she lost her grandson, Rafael, and, in 1999, her son-in-law, Luis Reyna Corvalan. All died in an untimely and tragic manner.

Marie-José's first, and probably most traumatic, personal tragedy was the death of her father, King Albert I on February 17, 1934. The terrible news reached Marie-José the next morning. She and her husband, Prince Umberto, were enjoying a pleasant conversation over breakfast; the couple were exceptionally happy, as Marie-José, after four years of marriage, was finally expecting her first child. Suddenly, Umberto was called to the telephone. When he returned, grave and pale, he told Marie-José that her father had suffered a serious mountaineering accident. He did not, at first, dare to tell her that Albert had actually been killed. Faced, however, with her anxious, insistent questioning, Umberto finally let his wife know, with great tenderness, that all hope was lost (Regolo, p. 140). "Struck by the suddenness of the shock," Marie-José would later write, "I could not take in the extent of my misfortune. Immobility was intolerable to me, I kept walking up and down. Umberto remained at my side, trying to comfort me." Yet she was too shocked to attend to his words, or even to weep.

To many, it seemed incredible that King Albert, one of the most prudent and accomplished alpinists of his generation, a man who had conquered high peaks, should have been killed climbing the modest "Cliff of the Good God," at Marche-les-Dames. In her memoirs, Marie-José recalled her reaction: "A mountaineering accident in Belgium- how was this possible?" The inquest concluded that a rock grasped by the King had unexpectedly given way, hurling him into the void, and that he had shattered his skull against the rocks below.

Albert's death was a terrible human tragedy - the grisly destruction of a noble man. It was also a political tragedy. The Belgian royal house lost one of its most gifted and prestigious members. Only six years later, political figures would unleash a storm of calumny against Albert's son, the younger, less well-known, less experienced, and more vulnerable Leopold III, eventually forcing his abdication and permanently weakening the Belgian monarchy. Since the monarchy was one of the chief unifying strengths of the country, this seriously harmed Belgium.

While Marie-José surely appreciated the political aspects of Albert's death, she lost, above all, a father she had, from childhood, deeply loved and admired. Their relationship had been close; in addition to a tender family affection, they had shared a profound intellectual friendship rooted in common historical, political, and philosophical interests. For these reasons, the blow was especially cruel.

Another tragic aspect of the situation was the proliferation of malevolent (and surprisingly persistent) rumors concerning Albert's death. Suspicions of foul play rapidly arose, and these were turned against the dead King and his grieving family. The unfortunate lack of clarity in the judicial inquest gave rise to insinuations that the royal family had prevented a thorough investigation in order to suppress a damaging truth. What might this be? A host of theories sprang up. Some insidiously attacked Leopold, by contending, for instance, that Hitler had arranged Albert's assassination because he judged his son more pliable. Others subtly undermined, or openly assaulted, Albert's own reputation. For example, some claimed he had committed suicide in a fit of depression. Others suggested that the French secret service had murdered him, suspecting him of disloyalty to his French allies. Still others, without any proof, claimed he was a multiple adulterer, killed by a jealous rival.

Marie-José must have been deeply pained by the rumors, which repeatedly flared up through the decades. Leopold, for his part, was certainly annoyed, although he admitted, and regretted, the inadequacies of the inquest into his father's death (Verwilghen, p. 286). In her memoirs, Marie-José recalls the grief and indignation of her aunt, Princess Henriette, when scandalous stories were spread about Albert's (and Henriette's) older brother, Baudouin, following his own untimely death. "How could they launch... these tragic and painful lies?" Henriette had written. Marie-José must have been similarly outraged by the attacks upon her father's reputation.

In any case, they were certainly outrageous. No mere propagandist, but, rather, the heroic and saintly Abbot of Orval, an intimate of King Albert, praised him, in the highest terms, as a good head of the family, devoted to inculcating, in his children, integrity and abnegation, as a noble head of state, deeply concerned for justice, and, most importantly, as a great Christian, who strove, at all times, to maintain a clear conscience. To launch treacherous, cruel and vulgar attacks against such a man, especially after he had died so tragically, seems horrible.

Sadly, Albert's death was followed, on August 29, 1935, by that of his daughter-in-law, Queen Astrid, in a car accident in Switzerland. On a mountain road in Küssnacht, Leopold lost control of the vehicle, which plunged down a ravine. Both Leopold and Astrid were hurled out of the car, and the Queen's skull was shattered, just as King Albert's had been. Astrid's death, like Albert's, weighed heavily on the history of the Belgian monarchy. Again, the royal house lost one of its most beloved members. During her life, Astrid's popularity had been a tremendous asset to her husband; after her death, propagandists would manipulate her image to discredit him.

Her sister-in-law's tragic death, occurring so soon after that of her father, was certainly a terrible blow to Marie-José. She later told the touching story of her visit to the Italian mystic, Padre Pio, shortly before World War II. Still grieving over the loss of her father and sister-in-law, Marie-José was comforted by her meeting with Padre Pio. They spoke at length about Albert and Astrid, and the priest, "as if he could see them," said: "They are close to God" (Regolo, pp. 172-173).

Astrid was not the only sister-in-law Marie-José would lose tragically. During the fascist period, Umberto's sister, the lovely and kind-hearted Princess Mafalda, had been married to Prince Philip of Hesse, who served as an intermediary between Mussolini and Hitler (although it is said that he also aided Jewish friends to escape to the Netherlands). Mafalda, for her part, incurred Hitler's enmity by attempting to defend the Jews. During World War II, after Italy joined the Allies, Hitler took revenge on the unfortunate Princess. Deported to the Buchenwald concentration camp and fatally wounded in an air-raid, she died in August, 1944. Her family were devastated, and Marie-José was deeply grieved; Mafalda had been her dearest friend in the House of Savoy."What a cruel destiny!" she later recalled, "Poor Mafalda!" (Regolo p. 145)

Marie-José's old age was marked by more family sorrows. On April 24, 1992, she lost her favorite grandson, Rafael, who fell to his death under mysterious circumstances. The son of her youngest daughter, Maria Beatrice, and her husband, the Argentinian diplomat, Luis Reyna Corvalan, Rafael was a talented, intellectual young man, studying at the University of Boston. Marie-José and Rafael had enjoyed an exceptionally close relationship; they shared deep philosophical interests. "He was a unique boy, extraordinarily sensitive", the Queen sadly remembered, "like my father, he had an innate sense of the religious and the transcendent. Why did everything have to end? He was so young" (Regolo p. 186). According to Maria Beatrice, "(my mother) suffered greatly over my son's death...Perhaps, only when her father... died, did she suffer in the same way. With both, she had a deep, visceral bond. And, by a tragic destiny, my grandfather, too...died falling from a great height" (Regolo, p. 185).

On February 17, 1999 ( by a sad coincidence, the 65th anniversary of King Albert's death), Luis Reyna Corvalan was murdered in the family's Mexican villa. The killing was brutal and obscene; the circumstances were unclear. "It is a very sad moment for our family," Marie-José remarked, "I remember Luis as a kind and sensitive man; I hope he is happy, in the other life." Of her daughter, Maria Beatrice (affectionately called "Titti" in the family), who was shattered by her double loss, Marie-José remarked that the "three crosses" in her name were harbingers of sorrow.

Marie-José, too, bore many crosses; and, by all accounts, with great dignity and fortitude. May she, and her tragically lost loved ones, rest in peace.

References:

Marie-José, Queen, Consort of Umberto II, King of Italy. Albert et Elisabeth de Belgique, mes parents. 1971.

Mallieux, René. Le Roi Albert Alpiniste. 1956.

Regolo, Luciano. La regina incompresa: tutto il racconto della vita di Maria José di Savoia. 2002.

Sparre, Anna. Astrid mon amie. 2005.

Vanwelkenhuyzen, Jean. Les gâchis des années 30: 1933-1937. 2008.

Verwilghen, Michel. Le mythe d'Argenteuil: demeure d'un couple royal. 2006.

Weber, Patrick. Amours royales et princières: mariages, liaisons, passions, et trahisons de la cour de Belgique. 2006.

Prayer Request

Please pray for a relative of mine, who seems to be dying.  

God bless.