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List of Belgian monarchs

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Sculptural busts of the first five Belgian monarchs in the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces

This is a list of Belgian monarchs from 1831 when the first Belgian king, Leopold I, ascended the throne, after Belgium seceded from the Kingdom of the Netherlands during the Belgian Revolution of 1830.

Under the Belgian Constitution, the Belgian monarch is styled "King of the Belgians" (French: Roi des Belges, Dutch: Koning der Belgen, German: König der Belgier) rather than "King of Belgium" in order to reflect the monarchy's constitutional and popular function.

Since 1831, there have been seven Kings of the Belgians and two regents.

List

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Name Portrait Birth and death Reign started Reign ended Marriages Succession right
Erasme Louis, Baron Surlet de Chokier
Regent
27 November 1769
Liège
(Prince-Bishopric of Liège)

7 August 1839
Gingelom
(aged 69)
25 February 1831 21 July 1831
(146 days)
Chosen by the National Congress
Leopold I
16 December 1790
Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld
(Holy Roman Empire)

10 December 1865
Laeken
(aged 74)
21 July 1831 10 December 1865
(34 years, 142 days)
(1) Charlotte of Wales
∞ 2 May 1816
[1 child (stillborn)]
(2) Louise of Orléans
∞ 9 August 1832
[4 children]
Elected by the National Congress
Leopold II
9 April 1835
Brussels

17 December 1909
Laeken
(aged 74)
17 December 1865[1] 17 December 1909
(44 years, 0 days)
Marie-Henriette of Austria
∞ 22 August 1853
[4 children]
Son of
Leopold I
Albert I
8 April 1875
Brussels

17 February 1934
Marche-les-Dames
(aged 58)
23 December 1909[1] 17 February 1934
(24 years, 56 days)
Elisabeth of Bavaria
∞ 2 October 1900
[3 children]
Nephew of
Leopold II /
Grandson of
Leopold I
Leopold III
3 November 1901
Brussels

25 September 1983
Woluwe-Saint-Lambert
(aged 81)
23 February 1934[1] 16 July 1951[2]
(abdicated)
(17 years, 143 days)
(1) Astrid of Sweden
∞ 4 November 1926
[3 children]
(2) Lilian Baels
∞ 6 December 1941
[3 children]
Son of
Albert I
Charles /
Karel

prince regent for Leopold III
10 October 1903
Brussels

1 June 1983
Raversijde
(aged 79)
21 September 1944 20 July 1950
(5 years, 302 days)
Unmarried
[childless]
Son of
Albert I /
Brother of
Leopold III
Baudouin /
Boudewijn
7 September 1930
Laeken

31 July 1993
Motril (Spain)
(aged 62)
17 July 1951 31 July 1993[3]
(42 years, 13 days)
Fabiola of Mora and Aragón
∞ 15 December 1960
[childless]
Son of
Leopold III
Albert II
6 June 1934
Laeken
9 August 1993[1] 21 July 2013
(abdicated)
(19 years, 346 days)
Paola of Calabria
∞ 2 July 1959
[3 children]
Son of
Leopold III /
Brother of
Baudouin
Philippe /
Filip
15 April 1960
Laeken
21 July 2013 Incumbent
(11 years, 98 days)
Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz
∞ 4 December 1999
[4 children]
Son of
Albert II

Timeline

[edit]
Philippe of BelgiumAlbert II of BelgiumBaudouin of BelgiumPrince Charles, Count of FlandersLeopold III of BelgiumAlbert I of BelgiumLeopold II of BelgiumLeopold I of BelgiumErasme Louis Surlet de Chokier

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Under Article 90 of the Belgian Constitution, from the death of a monarch until the swearing in of their successor or a regent, the monarch's constitutional powers are in the hands of the Council of Ministers (interregnum); this accounts for the difference of dates between the end of one reign and the beginning of the following one.
  2. ^ The constitutional powers of the king were exercised by the Council of Ministers from 28 May 1940 until 21 September 1944, followed by Prince Charles as a regent until 20 July 1950, and then from 11 August 1950 until 17 July 1951 by his successor under the title of Royal Prince. See Christian Behrendt and Martin Vrancken, "L'article 93 de la Constitution belge et l'impossibilité de régner du roi : une disposition dépassée par son histoire", in L'Europe au présent ! Liber amicorum Melchior Wathelet.
  3. ^ From 3 until 5 April 1990, the constitutional powers of the king were exercised by the Council of Ministers during the constitutional crisis around the Belgian Abortion Act (see the external source in the previous footnote).
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