In 2014, the world will remember the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War, which brought Europe to the brink of an abyss. This is a good opportunity to remember the exceptional fate of Queen Elizabeth of Belgium (1876-1965), great-grandmother of the new King of the Belgians Philip I, a multifaceted personality and the embodiment of the Belgian resistance in 1914.
Patrick Weber, who published the book “Elizabeth of Belgium. The Queen Between War and Peace, at the Pajot Publishing House, kindly answered the questions of the Noblesse et Royautés website.
Queen Elizabeth of the Belgians
Elizabeth of Belgium, wife of King Albert I, left a great mark on the history of the Belgian monarchy. An artist at heart, she was the Nurse Queen in the 1914-1918 war. How would you characterize the multifaceted personality of the third Queen of the Belgians?
I have always been fascinated by the fate of this extraordinary woman. What characterizes it is duality. She was a real representative of the House of Wittelsbach (Sissy's niece and goddaughter), unconventional, unexpected, and sometimes stubborn. At the same time, I found many testimonies about the worthy performance of her duties and the perfect sense of duty so characteristic of her. She was a very curious woman who used her position to help all the greatest minds of her time.
- Albert I and Elizabeth were able to form a royal tandem?
Yes, it was, perhaps, the first royal tandem in the history of the Belgian Dynasty. Although it was not a love marriage in the modern sense, they were able to learn to appreciate and love each other. With great sincerity and even passion, especially on the part of Elizabeth. Albert was more shy. For the first time, the Queen of the Belgians appeared in the foreground at public events, like her husband.
King Albert I of the Belgians with his wife Queen Elizabeth
- How did the Queen live in the war of 1914-1918, because her home country was Bavaria?
It was not an easy time for her. In truth, she never wavered between the two homelands. After becoming Queen of the Belgians, she felt like a Belgian to the core. It was deeply painful for her to hear about the "German barbarism" in her second homeland. In this regard, the memoirs of Princess Esmeralda of Belgium and Maria Gabriella of Savoy proved to be very useful.
- What did you base on when writing the book?
A good number of sources are good when working on a character like Queen Elizabeth. After all, Elizabeth wrote and photographed a lot. I remember one of these handwritten notes, in which it described the family of the Mayor of Saint-Nicolas, whom the Sovereigns met while fleeing to the coast. Even in the most tragic situations, Elizabeth remained a woman with a wonderful sense of humor and very witty.
- What was the degree of popularity of Queen Elizabeth and her consort the Knight King at the end of the 1914-1918 war?
Huge! The popularity of the Royal Family has never been so great. It can even be said that the Belgian Dynasty was at its peak of popularity in 1918-1934, until the death of King Albert I.
Elizabeth was born in Bavaria, in a family with a tragic fate (Ludwig II, Sissi, Sophia Charlotte, Duchess of Alencon), as well as fantastic artists and personalities. How did she adapt to the harsh life of the Royal Court of Belgium?
It was not easy ... She was not even depressed for long in the early years of her marriage. I must say that Leopold II badly accepted the choice of his nephew Albert. Albert then viewed her as a woman he could trust, with whom he felt a little attractive. But the old King was grateful that the couple gave the Heir to the Throne in the person of the future Leopold III.
- When was the cover photo of your book created?
I love this photo. She is full of elegance and restraint that embodies the image of Queen Elizabeth. It was made on August 4, 1911. The Queen walked under an umbrella along the beach in Ostend. I pictured it as a moment of calm amid the chaos of the First World War. Even this silhouette of Elizabeth is very recognizable. She was a truly amazing woman, and I am glad that the future Queen of the Belgians bears her name (we are talking about the eldest daughter of the reigning King Philip - S.P.).
Translated by Stanislav Pavlov.
Vitaly ROCHKO
In 1958, Queen Elizabeth of Belgium visited Moscow. By that time she was already 82 years old. The time of the visit was not chosen by chance. By nature, she was a very musical person, she loved to play the violin, talked with very famous musicians, tried to always be aware of what was happening in the world of culture. At this time, the first International P.I. Tchaikovsky. Elizabeth became his guest of honor. The young American pianist Van Cliburn brilliantly performed in the competition and took first place. Queen Elizabeth, much earlier than this event, herself was the founder of the International Competition for Violinists and Pianists, which was later named after her. The first laureate of the competition was David Oistrakh, then - Emil Gilels, Leonid Kogan.
Elizabeth of Belgium was respected in the civilized world for the fact that during the Second World War she performed a courageous act - she saved Jewish children, and not only children, from destruction. The State of Israel awarded her the honorary title Righteous Among the Nations. When the writer Boris Pasternak began to persecute, they were going to be expelled from the Writers' Union, the Belgian queen appealed to the Soviet leadership in his defense.
Being an unusually kind person by nature, the queen bequeathed her Stradivarius violin, grand piano, writing table, etc. to the outstanding violinist David Oistrakh. She sincerely admired his talent. By the way, having studied Russian, Queen Elizabeth wrote letters to him only in Russian. She presented Oistrakh with a hand-embroidered handkerchief, which the violinists put between the chin and the violin (in a note she wrote: “Place the handkerchiefs between the chin and the violin”).
After the death of David Oistrakh, his son - violinist and conductor Igor Oistrakh - turned to the Glinka Central Museum of Musical Culture with a request to open a memorial office there and place the Queen's gifts in it. For eighteen years he received the same answer: there is no free room for this. And only in 1992, thanks to the personal intervention of Mstislav Rostropovich, the problem was solved - the room was found.
Despite her advanced age, the queen strove during her stay in Moscow to see as much as possible, see, and communicate with cultural figures. Somehow, she had a desire to visit a Moscow maternity hospital and see what the conditions were: Elizaveta was the daughter of a doctor. She was brought to the hospital, which was located near the metro station, which is now called Alekseevskaya. Going into one of the chambers, the queen approached the young woman in labor, congratulated her on the birth of her daughter and asked what name she decided to give her child. The quick-witted mother replied: "I will call her Elizabeth, in your honor!"
The queen immediately, turning to an employee of the Belgian embassy, \u200b\u200bgave instructions to deliver the furniture set to the young mother. This is where the problems started! The fact is that the woman in labor did not have her own home, but huddled in a hostel. The authorities had to urgently provide her with a separate apartment, and even such a size that the furniture set presented by the queen could fit there. Poor workers of the executive committee! A wave of indignant and angry people on the waiting list who had been waiting for at least some housing for years!
Elizaveta was a wise woman, but even she could not imagine that her desire to do a good deed would lead to a conflict with our Soviet reality. And royal gifts sometimes create problems ...
Vitaly ROCHKO, Russia
While the king of the Belgians descends in a straight male line from the German dynasty, his ancestry includes many rulers who ruled the territory of Belgium until 1831.
Through his grandmother, Queen Astrid, the King is a descendant of William I, King of the Netherlands, who ruled Belgium from 1815 to 1830, and Josephine de Beauharnais, wife of Emperor Napoleon I, who ruled the Belgian lands at the very beginning of the 19th century.
The king's ancestors also include representatives of the famous Habsburg dynasty, such as Empress Maria Theresa (18th century) and Emperor Charles V, born in Ghent in 1500. The latter was the grandson of Mary of Burgundy (born in Brussels in 1457, died in Bruges in 1482) ), heiress of the Duchy of Burgundy, the Duchies of Brabant and Limburg, and the countries of Flanders, Hainaut and Namur. Thanks to their connections with the Dukes of Burgundy, all medieval dynasties made a huge contribution to the history of Belgium and to the ancestry of the king of the Belgians.
In 1795 he was appointed by the Russian tsar as colonel of the Izmailovsky regiment of the imperial guard. Seven years later, he became a general in the Russian army. The emperor wanted to make him an adjutant. Leopold refused. Then he will take part in the campaign against Napoleon.
In 1815, Leopold received British citizenship, was made a field marshal, and married Princess Charlotte, heiress to the British throne. A year later, she will give birth to a stillborn child and die herself.
On July 21, 1831, he took the oath of office as the first King of the Belgians and devoted most of his reign to strengthening the young state.
Who represents the Belgian royal family today
King Philip
His Majesty King Philip was born in Brussels on April 15, 1960. He is the eldest son of King Albert II and Queen Paola and grandson of King Leopold III and Queen Astrid.
The king was educated bilingual (Dutch and French) in Belgian public elementary and secondary schools and later at the Belgian Royal Military Academy. Inspired by a passion for flying and space adventure since childhood, he chose to join the Air Force, where he qualified as a fighter pilot. After completing his military training, he left Belgium to pursue his studies abroad. After one semester at Trinity College, Oxford (United Kingdom), he spent two years at Stanford University in the United States, graduating with a master's degree in political science.
Returning to Belgium in 1985, he began to get acquainted with the political, social and economic life of Belgium. This gave him a deep understanding of the country and its work.
The death of King Baudouin in 1993 marked a turning point in the prince's life. After his father, King Albert II, ascended the throne, Philip became heir to the throne at the age of 33.
Prince Philip took up the honorary post of Chairman of the Belgian Foreign Trade Agency. In this capacity, he led 85 economic missions abroad over the next 20 years. He built bridges between Belgian and foreign companies, as well as between Belgian companies.
Another of Prince Philip's main concerns is the sustainable development of Belgium. From 1993 to 2013, he was honorary chairman of the Federal Council for Sustainable Development, which brings together economic, social, environmental, and academic institutions from across the country to make recommendations to the federal government.
Following the abdication of King Albert's father, Prince Philip took the oath of office before the United Houses of Parliament on July 21, 2013, and became the seventh King of the Belgians.
In 1999, he married Matilda d'Udekem d'Acoz. King Philip and Queen Matilda combine family life with ceremonial and official duties. They personally supervise the upbringing of their four children, Elizabeth, Gabrielle, Emmanuelle and Eleanor. Children are given multilingual education and the opportunity to attend school in Holland.
In their free time, the King and Queen enjoy reading and playing sports.
Queen Matilda
Her Majesty the Queen was born in Uccle on January 20, 1973. She is the daughter of the Earl and Countess Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz.
She married Prince Philip on December 4, 1999 and had four children: daughter Elizabeth (2001), now Duchess of Brabant, two sons Gabrielle (2003) and Emmanuelle (2005) and another daughter Eleanor (2008). As a mother of four children, the Queen attaches great importance to her family.
The queen assists the king in fulfilling his functions as head of state. These include numerous visits to institutions, community contacts, ceremonies in Belgium and abroad, state visits, promoting Belgium's image abroad, with representatives of various groups of society, and countless trips throughout the country.
In addition to her activities with the King, the Queen also devotes time to matters that are close to her heart. She regularly visits social institutions and medical centers. These contacts help her stay in touch with people and their needs and wants. The Queen attaches great importance to close contact with the population.
The Queen also deals with a range of social issues, including education, the status of women in society and literacy.
The Queen is the Honorary President of the Missing and Sexually Exploited Children Foundation. The well-being of children is fundamental to her and she is committed to fighting child abduction and all forms of sexual abuse.
The Queen has a wide interest in art and dance. She loves modern as well as classical music and plays the piano. She also loves literature. She is an avid cyclist, tennis player and swimmer, and enjoys nature and outdoor activities.
Elisabeth, Princess of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant, was born in Anderlecht on October 25, 2001.
As the first born child of the king and queen, Princess Elizabeth is the first in the line of succession to the throne. When her father ascended the throne on July 21, 2013, Elizabeth became Duchess of Brabant.
Elizabeth attends high school in Brussels. She also speaks French and English and is studying German.
On September 7, 2011, Elizabeth officially opened the new Princess Elizabeth Children's Hospital, part of the University Hospital of Ghent. It also gave its name to the Antarctic Research Station.
Elizabeth lives with her parents, her brothers Gabriel and Emmanuel, and her sister Eleanor, at Laeken Royal Palace.
Elizabeth loves sports. She plays tennis, skiing and snorkeling. She also loves hiking, activities in contact with nature.
She took piano lessons for several years. Her musical tastes include various types of music. She loves to cook and is always looking for new recipes. Friendship is very important to her. She spends a lot of time with her friends. Reading is still a pleasure for her, as it is an important source of discovery and inspiration.
She helps children with learning difficulties, the elderly and the homeless.
Gabriel, Prince of Belgium, was born in Anderlecht on 20 August 2003. Prince Gabriel is the second child of Their Majesties the King and Queen.
The prince attends a Dutch language high school in Brussels. French and English are also part of his education.
Prince Gabriel lives with his parents, sisters Elisabeth and Eleanor and brother Emmanuel at Laeken Royal Palace.
Prince Gabriel plays the piano. He is engaged in the following sports: Football, Cycling, Tennis, Swimming, Skiing, Sailing. He is also a member of the ice hockey club.
Emmanuel, Prince of Belgium, was born in Anderlecht on 4 October 2005, the third child of Their Majesties the King and Queen.
Prince Emmanuel attends a Dutch language primary school in Leuven. French and English are also part of his education.
Prince Emmanuel lives with his parents, sisters Elizabeth and Eleanor and brother Gabriel at the Laeken Royal Palace.
Prince Emmanuel loves nature. He is engaged in cycling, swimming, skiing and sailing. He also plays the flute.
Princess Eleanor plays the violin and loves to read. She is a very creative person and loves to paint. He is engaged in cycling, swimming, skiing and sailing.
0 July 19, 2013, 16:40This Sunday in Belgium, the coronation of Prince Philip will take place - he will ascend the throne instead of his father, King Albert II, who due to his age and health condition (as well as the desire to "give way to the younger generation"). The prince's wife, Princess Matilda, will soon become queen. Let's get to know her better.
Matilda is a real aristocrat: her father is the Belgian Count Patrick Henri d "Udekem d" Akoz, her mother is the Polish Countess Anna Komorowska. The full name of the future queen sounds like this: Matilda Maria Christina Ghislain d "Udekem d" Akoz. Agree - having said it quickly several times, you can tighten your diction. However, Matilda herself is not afraid of problems with diction, because she is a speech therapist by profession; in addition, in 2002 she received her degree in psychology.
Matilda met her future husband on the tennis court, but for the first three years their romance was carefully hidden from the press. Today, the current princess is preparing to become the first Belgian queen born in Belgium itself (for example, Philip's mother, Queen Paola, is of Italian descent, and his grandmother, Queen Astrid, is of Swedish origin).
Philippe and Matilda have four children - princes Gabrielle and Emmanuel, as well as princesses Eleanor and Elizabeth - as the oldest child in the family, she has a chance to become the first woman to ascend the throne of Belgium.
Before her marriage, Matilda ran her own speech therapy consultation, and today the future queen is actively involved in charity work, participates in the country's economic life, and is also the Honorary President of the Belgian branch of the international organization Unicef.
Future Queen of Belgium - Princess Matilda (with her husband, Prince Philip)
A brilliantly educated Bavarian princess at the startXX century was considered the first bride in Europe, and became "only" the Queen of Belgium. She soon severed her family ties with Germany by resisting her during the First World War. But for the Nazis, she was already a prisoner - because of the capitulated son. And even in these circumstances, she saved thousands of lives, hid Jewish children in her castles, tried to stop the deportation of Belgian Jews to concentration camps. Today it is exactly 50 years since Queen Elizabeth, who was awarded the title of Righteous Among the Nations, passed away.
Thirty years later, Winston Churchill will repeat the words "Iron Curtain" she uttered about interstate relations. And this concept will subsequently be attributed to him. Back in 1914, during the First World War, upon learning of the German invasion of Belgium, her Queen Elizabeth would say: "Now the Iron Curtain has fallen between Germany and me." Having cut off the family-monarchical connection with Germany, becoming a true Belgian, she remained so until her death on November 23, 1965, having managed to save thousands of human lives during the Second World War. Mostly Jewish lives.
Bavarian Princess Elizabeth Gabriela Valeria Maria of Bavaria was born on July 25, 1876 at Possenhofen Castle. Her father was Karl Theodor, Duke of Bavaria, an ophthalmologist known in Europe, and her mother was the Portuguese Infanta Maria Jose. The godmother was the famous Austrian Empress Elizabeth, better known as Sisi. The young princess, who received an excellent education, spoke three languages, was fond of music, sculpture, painting, Egyptology, medicine and zoology. She was the subject of universal adoration, being considered the first bride in Europe. In 1900, she married the heir to the Belgian throne, Crown Prince Albert, and in 1909 they became King and Queen of the Belgians.
It was a truly happy union of two loving, versatile and creative people. In marriage they had three children, the firstborn later became King Leopold III. From the first days of their reign, the young royal couple enjoyed popularity among their subjects. But especially everyone loved Elizabeth, who never stood aside from grief, always sincerely sympathizing with the suffering, always friendly and open to communication. It is known that her words about the Iron Curtain in relations with Germany were uttered after the German ambassador to Belgium presented an ultimatum to the royal family demanding that German troops pass through the country's territory to attack France. Hearing about Germany's demand from his wife, Albert replied: “Belgium is a nation, not a road,” and rejected it.
During the First World War, together with the small army of her country, Elizabeth put up tangible resistance to the mercilessness of the Germans, their barbaric destruction of Belgian cities. She spent almost four years at the front, organizing a military hospital and working there as an operating nurse. The skills instilled by her father during the time when she assisted him during operations came in handy. Her father, in addition to being a Bavarian Duke, received the title of Doctor of Medicine and subsequently became a successful ophthalmologist. For Elizabeth it is it was not ostentatious participation in the life and struggle of their country, not posing for the filming of cameramen. And the proof is that half a century later, when 88-year-old Elizabeth appeared at the parade in front of the participants in the First World War, all the veterans rose from their seats, meeting her with applause. After all, in front of them was not just a queen, but a woman who saved many of their lives, a woman whom they saw next to them in trenches and hospitals.
After the First World War, Elizabeth created funds to help the blind, cancer and poliomyelitis patients, and organized hospitals for patients with tuberculosis. She travels a lot. So, in 1922, she participates in the famous Howard Carter expedition, during which the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun was opened, and in 1928 she visits the Belgian Congo, where two cities at that time already bore her name. There she also establishes a fund for medical assistance to Congolese. With her active participation in Brussels, the Palace of Fine Arts, the Royal Library are being built, the National Symphony Orchestra of Belgium is being created. And Albert Einstein, admired by her position in life and talents, will somehow ask her: "Your Majesty, I have an immodest question: why do you need the boring profession of a queen after all this?" Life was really in full swing in her, and those around her admired it. This continued until 1934, when her husband, King Albert, who was fond of mountaineering, died, falling off a cliff, and a year later her daughter-in-law died in a car accident. Having stopped all social activities, Elizabeth focused on the upbringing of three orphaned grandchildren, two of whom would become kings of Belgium in the future.
In the same years, Albert Einstein, worried about her state of mind, wrote to her: “Dear Queen! I have been told how hard life is for you and into what deep anguish the indescribably cruel blows that have befallen you have plunged you into. And yet we should not grieve for those who left us in the prime of life after happy, active and fruitful years and who were given to fully fulfill their life purpose ... And yet the spring sun, as before, brings a new life with us, and we can enjoy this new life and help it. And Mozart is as beautiful and gentle as he always was and will remain forever. Ultimately, there is something enduring, beyond the reach of fate and all human delusion. Old people are closer to this eternal than young people who oscillate between fear and hope. We have an advantage: to perceive beauty and truth in their purest forms. "
It was not a personal but a world tragedy that made her return to public life. In May 1940, the military scenario of August 1914 was repeated: Germany attacked Belgium. But this time the Belgian army did not put up serious resistance, and Elizabeth's son, King Leopold III, did not follow the example of his parents, who in a similar situation continued to fight, and capitulated to the Nazis, spending the whole war as an "honorary prisoner". Elizabeth's freedom was also limited, and she spent the entire five years of German occupation at Leiken Castle in the north of Brussels. But, unlike her son, she resisted in all possible ways. Hundreds of her letters to the fascist leadership are known, in which she tried to protect political prisoners, hundreds of appeals, attempts to use her influence to help save Jews and Jewish children from deportation and the Nazis.
Thus, in July 1942, the Gestapo began mass arrests of Jews in Brussels and Antwerp. Elizabeth secretly meets with representatives of the Association of Belgian Jews, assures that she will do everything in her power to stop the raids and protect Belgian Jews from deportation. Indeed, in September, thanks to her incessant requests to the German occupation authorities, dozens of Jews who were members of the community were saved. Alas, it was not possible to help those who did not have a Belgian passport - they were all deported to Auschwitz.
At the same time, Elizabeth gives her castle as an orphanage. Officially, the orphanage was for the children of Belgian soldiers, but hundreds of Jewish children were secretly brought here. Upon learning of this, the Gestapo arrived at the castle in September 1943. However, they did not find a single Jewish name in the lists of the children - they were all changed to Christian ones. In addition, interrogations did not give anything: both the educators and the children themselves. The educators did not confess, and ordinary Belgian children did not even suspect that Jewish children lived and played next to them. Not a single child from the castle died.
The Belgians, following their queen mother, formed resistance units. And in Belgium, in percentage terms, many more Jews were saved than in other Nazi-occupied countries. Probably following her example, most Belgians did not support the anti-Jewish actions of the Nazis, and many men on the street took off their hats to Jewish women when Jews were forced to wear yellow stars on their clothes.
Paying tribute to Elizabeth of Bavaria, the State of Israel, shortly after its founding, awarded her the honorary title of Righteous Among the Nations. She simply could not be indifferent to the fate of those who were unreasonably and unjustly persecuted.