On Friday, September 9, 2016, Their Majesties King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium accompanied their children — Princess Elisabeth, Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel, and Princess Elenor — and His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco attended the opening of 40th Edition of the Memorial Van Damme held at the Stade Roi Baudouin in Brussels.
According to the Belgian royal court the event is “…dedicated to the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games 2016. [The Memorial Van Damme] is part of the circuit of the IAAF Diamond League.”
On the morning of Thursday, September 8, 2016, Their Majesties King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium hosted the 13th Summit for Heads of German Speaking States at the Kloster Heidberg in Eupen, Belgium. Those in attendance at today’s meeting included His Royal Highness Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, His Serene Highness Hereditary Prince Alois of Liechtenstein, the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mr. Joachim Gauck, the President of the Swiss Confederation, Mr. Johann Schneider-Ammann along with government officials from Belgium, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Germany, and Luxembourg.
Discussions during the meeting focused on the “…economic challenges in each country, but also the means used to fight against terrorism…” according to the Belgian newspaper, La Meuse.
Meanwhile, Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of Belgium along with Her Serene Hereditary Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein, Ms. Daniela Schadt (partner of Presdient. Joachim Gauck), and Mrs. Katharina Schneider-Ammann (wife of President Johann Schneider-Ammann) visited the Belgischen Rundfunk- und Fernsehzentrum der Deutschsprachigen Gemeinschaft (BRF) and the Musée de la Poterie in Raeren.
In the afternoon, Their Majesties accompanied by their guests attending the summit attended a conference held at the German Community Parliament in Eupen. The day ended with a tour of the Zentrum fur Forderpadagogik also located in Eupen.
On Wednesday, September 7, 2016, His Majesty King Philippe of Belgium hosted a reception at Château de Laeken in Brussels for members participating in the 13th Summit for Heads of German Speaking States.
Guests attendance at this afternoon’s reception included His Royal Highness Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, His Serene Highness Hereditary Prince Alois of Liechtenstein, and the President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mr. Joachim Gauck to name a few.
On Tuesday, August 9, 2016, Their Majesties King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium met with various police officers from the Charleroi Police Department in Charleroi, Belgium.
According to AFP News, last Saturday “…two policewomen were stabbed. The attacker screamed ‘Allahu Akbar’. He was hit by a police bullet. One of the officers suffered severe injuries to the face, the other one is lightly injured. The attacker was transported to the hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries and died.”
On the afternoon of Thursday, January 14, 2016, Their Majesties King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium hosted a reception at the Palais Royal in Brussels for members of NATO and SHAPE.
On the afternoon of Tuesday, January 12, 2016, Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of Belgium met with Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan at the Palais Royal in Brussels.
The purpose of the Her Majesty Queen Rania’s visit was to discuss the Syrian crisis as well as mobilizing international support for Jordan’s education system.
In a statement released by Her Majesty Queen Rania’s press office today’s meeting specifically focused on:
“…showcasing the struggles Jordanian citizens face in cities that are densely populated by Syrians. She highlighted the impact the crisis has had on Jordan’s resources, infrastructure, and especially schools, which have enrolled 150,000 Syrian students. This has affected the quality of education at schools that have been forced to run double shifts, with teachers under pressure to handle larger numbers of students in each class.
Her Majesty’s meetings are part of Jordan’s extensive efforts at all levels, ahead of the Syria’s Donor Conference in London on February 4 where, education will be a key theme.”
Click here to watch a video news report of Her Majesty Queen Rania’s meeting with the Prime Minister of Belgium, Mr. Charles Michel, and the President of the European Commission, Mr. Jean-Claude Junker.
On Friday, January 8, 2016, Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of Belgium arrived at the Musée d’Ixelles in Brussels to view the exhibition, Nervia/Laethem-Saint-Martin: Traits d’union.
This special exhibition showcases two Belgian arts groups that played an important role on the Belgian artistic scene during the interwar period: The Laethem group in the northern countries which included amongst others, Gustave Van de Woestyne and Valerius de Saedeleer and, in south, towards the Hainaut axis, Nervia, with Anto Carte and Léon Navez. These artists favoured a serene atmosphere and warm palette. Their works are brought together for the first time and reveal the numerous areas of convergence as well as the differences between the two groups.
Curated by Ms. Catherine Verleysen from the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Gand and Mr. Michel De Reymaeker from the Musée des Beaux-arts Mons, developed the exhibition which emphasizes the similarities – of inspiration, form and technique – between the painters of Laethem-Saint-Martin and the Nervia group. They aimed to evoke a kinship rather than point out differences.
As such, they require the viewer to call upon some traditional knowledge such as chronology, remembering the old days, different influences and generations. But beyond this, they require a desire to see, to observe and to be freed from constraint in order to better understand the image.
Nervia/Laethem-Saint-Martin: Traits d’union will be open to the public until January 17, 2016 at the Musée d’Ixelles.
The Royal Correspondent 