Praying to St. Anne

This is not a picture of any of the Belgian royals, but rather of two of the greatest princesses whom they count among their relatives.   This large stained glass window was given to the Basilica of Sainte-Anne d’Auray by Henri, Comte de Chambord, the last heir to the elder line of the Bourbons. The window depicts Henri's mother, Caroline of Naples, Duchesse de Berry, and his aunt, Marie-Thérèse-Charlotte, Duchesse d'Angoulême, the daughter of Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. The two women are shown praying to St. Anne, the patron saint of Brittany.  Marie-Thérèse and Caroline were the cousin and niece, respectively, of Marie-Amélie of Naples, Duchesse d'Orléans, later known as Queen of the French, as the wife of Louis-Philippe. Marie-Amélie was the mother of Louise-Marie, the first Queen of the Belgians, and the foremother of all the Belgian kings after Leopold I. 

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Preparing for a Queen's Funeral

The first days of September, 1935 were a sad time for the peoples and royal families of Belgium and Sweden. The little heir to the Belgian throne, Prince Baudouin, had lost his loving mother, Queen Astrid, in a car accident, barely more than a week before his fifth birthday.  Together with his father, King Leopold III, his older sister, Princess Josephine-Charlotte, his younger brother, Prince Albert, his Swedish grandparents, Prince Carl and Princess Ingeborg, and his other maternal relatives, Baudouin had suffered a devastating bereavement which would cast a pall over his whole family for decades.

Meanwhile, the Belgian people were reeling from the cruel, senseless loss of their idolized young Queen, who had been so full of life, charm, beauty, goodness and promise.  In her memoirs, Astrid's intimate friend, Countess Anna Sparre, describes the scenes of intense, reverent mourning in Belgium. Spontaneously, the people filed past pictures of the late Queen, carrying flowers and candles, kneeling to pray for her soul, for her stricken husband and children.

Anna also mentions the grief in Sweden at the loss of this beloved daughter and princess, as illustrated by the women's magazine pictured above. Anna herself had learned abruptly of her friend's death during a chance conversation. After innocently mentioning Astrid, with whom she had recently spent a pleasant alpine vacation, she was stunned to hear of the tragedy. Initially, Anna could not believe the news, insisting that there must be some mistake, but the signs of mourning outside soon showed that the painful tidings were all too true. Like the people of Brussels, the men and women of Stockholm wept openly in the streets. Astrid's mother was prostrated with grief.

Anna's memoirs also give us an insight into the way those touched by Astrid's death tried to cope with her loss by comforting one another. Anna attended the funeral of Queen Astrid as the personal guest of King Leopold. Although she dreaded meeting him after the tragedy, Anna did her best to console the heartbroken widower, himself physically injured from the accident. Anna gives many touching details of their first meeting and conversation after her arrival in Brussels.  Concerned that he build up his strength for the fatiguing day ahead, she helped to serve his breakfast on the morning of the funeral, while her own hands trembled...For her part, Anna received kindness from Leopold's aunt, the Duchess of Vendôme, who asked to hear her memories of Astrid as a child.

The prayer card at the top of this post perhaps best sums up Astrid's legacy, with the following quote from the Apocalypse: Blessed are those who die in the Lord, for their works follow them!

Bust of Queen Astrid

A refined and delicate sculpture which captures the Queen's sensitive personality quite well, I think.

Queen Astrid Vase

Here is an interesting vase etched with something called the Queen Astrid Pattern.  I could not find much information about the history of this floral design, but apparently it dates from the late 1920s and early 1930s.

Villa Haslihorn

Here are some photographs of the vacation home of King Leopold III and Queen Astrid near Lake Lucerne.  It was during an excursion from Villa Haslihorn that the royal couple suffered the terrible car accident that claimed Astrid's life on August 29, 1935.  In her memoirs, Astrid mon amie (Luc Pire Editions, 2005), the Queen's friend, Anna Sparre, quotes some passages from the last letter, dated August 23, and finished August 24, that Astrid sent to her, from Villa Haslihorn (pp. 184-186).  Anna only received the letter on August 30, the day after Astrid's death, and found it surreal to read, all the while knowing that the person who had written it, in such a lively way, was no more. Years later, however, it would be a consolation to Anna to re-read Astrid's account of the happy days which would prove to be her last.  To Anna, it felt like meeting, once again, "my own friend, alive, so faithful and full of goodness" (p. 184.)

In her letter, Astrid refers to her Swedish maid, Maja, Leopold's valet, Joseph, the children's governess, Mlle. Landsman, and Anna's husband and daughter, Clas and Christina. Anna had been vacationing with the royal couple, but had just returned home to Sweden.  Leopold had been called back to Brussels, where the youngest of the royal children, Prince Albert, had been left behind. The King, however, would soon be returning for the rest of his vacation with his wife and two oldest children, Josephine-Charlotte and Baudouin.  The children would be sent back to Brussels ahead of their parents, who had then planned a series of excursions into the mountains. The first of these trips had been set for August 25, but was delayed until August 29, to give the children more time with their father. In Astrid's letter to Anna, one feels the Queen's great charm, affection and joie de vivre, tinged with a hint of nervousness, loneliness and melancholy.  As Anna's departure had neared, Astrid had been gripped by forebodings of a coming tragedy.  Even this seemingly cheerful note strikes me as slightly bittersweet.

"What a good time we had together, and for once, we had a chance to deepen things, so that we could be quiet, when it became difficult up there in the clouds...

It was so sad, yesterday, when you left... All at once, I went through all the Swedish papers which Maja had brought, reading them one after another, so as not to have to think, because thinking only complicates things. At eight o'clock, Maja came in with breakfast; you cannot imagine how kindly she had prepared all sorts of delicious things... 

Later the children got up, they dressed themselves up in my clothes, and, at half past nine, Joseph, the children and I made an excursion by boat from Lucerne.  An outing of almost two hours, splendid in this fine weather.  Arrived at our destination, we took the cable up a good long way, just to the point where the view of the peaks and the lakes is the most beautiful.  There we played and had lunch. On the menu was chicken, which the children ate with their fingers. You can imagine their chatter.  You will understand what a lovely moment it was.  At five we were back in Lucerne, where Mlle. L. was waiting for the children, to take them home. Guess what I did next: I went to the hairdresser and had my hair washed.  I feel completely different. Did you have a chance to go to the hairdresser in Berlin? 

When I returned home, around seven, the children were already asleep.  All by myself, I nibbled something before sitting down in the living room, where I listened to records and read the paper. I received a telegram from Leopold: he said that baby was doing wonderfully. How kind of him to tell me! 

At half past nine, he telephoned to say that baby was sweeter than ever and that he was walking. I long so much to be with him! 

It was terribly hot in Brussels, over thirty degrees at the time of our conversation. His voice was cheerful and happy, but he already wanted to be here... 

Mlle. L. told me that the evening of Leopold's departure, she had gone to see if the children were sleeping.  Joe was crying in her little bed.  Do you know why? Yes, because her papa had gone.  'All the other children are with their papa more often than I am,' she said to me. 'Me, I never see my papa.'  That too, I told Leopold on the telephone. 'In that case, we will not leave before the 29th,' he replied.  Sweet, eh?  

Today, it is very fine weather again. At half past seven, the children and I took the motor-boat to Lido. There is a very good swimming instructor there. 'Now you can learn to swim,' I said, but they did not want to.  So we sat down at the edge of the water to watch how he did it with the other children and Joe suddenly said she wanted to learn to swim, too. What fun she had! Of course, Baudouin said he wanted to take lessons, too. You should have seen how cute he was. The teacher declared that Joe would learn in five days.  She was delighted, because she would be able to swim when her father arrived. Afterwards, we went to lunch.  

At this moment, Baudouin is sleeping, Joe and I are on the terrace, stretched out on deck chairs.  Joe is "reading" and I am writing to you, my papers are on my knees.  I hope you will be able to decipher my writing.  Now you know everything we have done.  Joe and I will soon be going into town to deposit Leopold's films there... 

Did Christina like the little house we bought her in Bolzano? I hope that she and Clas are doing well. You too, you must have been happy to return to Adelsnäs. Write to me very soon.  Tell me everything! I think so often of you..."

Sisi in Rubies

From Elena Maria Vidal comes this image of Queen Elisabeth's stunning aunt and namesake, wearing jewels which had formerly belonged to Marie-Antoinette. 

Lilian's Voice

Nicolas Delvaulx, already responsible for a wonderful documentary on King Leopold III, also released a film on his second wife, Princess Lilian, last year.  Once again, he collaborated closely with the royal couple's youngest daughter, Esmeralda, in the making of the film. Here is a brief clip, in French, with footage of Leopold and Lilian at Argenteuil. For the first time, we are even allowed to hear Lilian's full, deep voice. The entire documentary may be able to be watched here, although it is not available to viewers in all countries at all times.

Catholic Princesses

This page has some beautiful photographs of the Confirmation and First Communion of Princess Marie-Christine in 1962 and of her younger sister, Princess Marie-Esméralda, in 1964.  Bishop Fulton Sheen officiated on both occasions.  Apparently, he was a friend of the girls' parents, King Leopold III and Princess Lilian. Still, I am not sure why a Belgian bishop was not chosen for the purpose.

Paola's Wedding

In honor of the new King Philippe of the Belgians, it might be a suitable moment to revisit the beautiful and emotional wedding of his parents.  This month marks the anniversary of their marriage. Whatever their lapses and failings may have been along the way, their union has survived and grown stronger through many sad times.  The Australian Women's Weekly offers a vivid portrait of the Italian princess, Paola Ruffo di Calabria, who became the wife of Prince Albert of Liège in July 1959.  The two young people had hoped to marry in the Vatican, with John XXIII officiating, since they had first met during the festivities surrounding his coronation, less than a year earlier.  For political reasons, however, the plan proved too controversial to realize.  In Amours royales et princières, Patrick Weber describes the criticism of the Belgian royal family, accused of being too entangled with the Roman Catholic Church.  As a result, Albert and Paola renounced the idea of a Vatican wedding, and the marriage took place in Brussels, at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula.  The Australian article includes images of the exquisite young bride, moved to tears as she pronounced her nuptial vows during the religious ceremony.  It also shows the bridegroom's grandmother, Queen Elisabeth, steadying a nervous Princess Paola at the civil ceremony.  Only 21 years old at the time, Paola was a shy, tender, sensitive young woman, who must have suffered severely during the long period of estrangement from her husband. 

At the time of the wedding, of course, all the marital troubles were in the future, and Belgians simply rejoiced in the passionate romance of King Baudouin's winsome younger brother and the stunning, delicate Italian beauty.  The cheer of the marriage celebrations was a welcome change from decades of grimness, beginning with the deaths of King Albert I and Queen Astrid, and continuing through World War II, the Nazi occupation, the Royal Question, the abdication of King Leopold III, and the endless, festering controversy over his role at the palace after his son's accession to the throne. King Baudouin would not marry Doña Fabiola, his popular Spanish queen, for over another year, making Paola the first Southern European bride to join the Belgian royal family.  Previously, the Belgian princes had chosen consorts from countries further to the north, as illustrated by Louise-Marie of France, Marie-Henriette of Austria, Elisabeth of Bavaria, and Astrid of Sweden. The marriage of Albert and Paola would give Belgium an Italian queen; as an interesting mirror image, the marriage of Albert's aunt, Princess Marie-José, to Prince Umberto of Savoy, had already given Italy a Belgian queen. Despite the discord, and rumored infidelity, that would plague the marriage of Albert and Paola in the years to come, the prince would ultimately be shown to have been wise in his choice of spouse. As the sixth Queen of the Belgians, reconciled to her husband, and dedicated to her children and grandchildren, Paola would prove to be a mature, tasteful, gracious, steady and supportive matriarch of the royal family.  Following Albert's abdication, it is to be hoped that she will enjoy many peaceful and happy years. 

Long Live the King!

Leve de Koning!

Vive le Roi! 

Lang lebe der König!

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