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28-580: Tervuren was one of the main summer retreats of the dukes of Brabant and their successors, the Burgundian dukes and the governors of the Habsburg Netherlands . They primarily used Tervuren Castle as a basis to hunt in the surrounding Sonian Forest . Although the castle was medieval in origin, it was modernized and redesigned over time up to the 18th century. However, as the moated palace became too damp, governor Charles of Lorraine decided to construct

56-740: A new palace in Laeken , which was constructed between 1782 and 1784. Nowadays, nothing remains of the Château Charles. The plans made by Dewez can be found back in the National Archives of Belgium . In addition, the National Archives of France have a plan and drawings of what the palace looked like. Olivier Le May made two gouaches of the château, which are now in a private collection. Other residences used by Charles of Lorraine: Duke of Brabant The Duke of Brabant ( Dutch : hertog van Brabant , French : duc de Brabant )

84-455: A new palace, the Château Charles. He commissioned the architect Laurent-Benoît Dewez to design the new summer lodge. When Dewez fell out of favour, Louis Montoyer and Antoine Payen the Elder completed the palace. Construction started in 1778. The main building was already completed in 1779, and furnishing followed soon. With large festivities, the palace was put into use on 1 September 1779. It

112-593: A reception at Buckingham Palace the evening before the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla of the United Kingdom . In June 2023, she and her father attended the wedding of Crown Prince Hussein of Jordan and Rajwa Al Saif . Elisabeth carried her first solo official trip abroad in October 2023 by attending Prince Christian of Denmark 's 18th birthday celebration banquet at Christiansborg Palace , Denmark. In March 2024, she and her father King Philippe received

140-718: A significant change in Belgian royal tradition, being the first time that a future Belgian monarch's education has begun in Dutch. Elisabeth graduated from primary school in July 2013 with a 95% average on her report card. She contributed to the St John Berchmans College's newspaper under the name "Elisabeth van België". From August 2018, Elisabeth continued her secondary education at UWC Atlantic College in Llantwit Major , Wales under

168-667: A video message to support Belgian scientists in Antarctica. In September 2011, Elisabeth gave her first public speech in Dutch at the opening of the Princess Elisabeth Children's Hospital, part of Ghent University Hospital . She gave her first self-written speech on 17 October 2014 during commemorations of the centenary of the outbreak of World War I at Nieuwpoort . Elisabeth read the prayer intentions at her great-aunt Queen Fabiola 's funeral in December 2014. She christened

196-505: A visit to St Hilda's College, Oxford . There, she and her aunt met St Hilda's Principal Professor Dame Sarah Springman and the Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University Professor Dame Louise Richardson . On 17 June 2022, together with her mother Queen Mathilde, she was among the royal guests invited to the celebrations of the 18th birthday of Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway . Elisabeth carried her two first solo official engagements in

224-658: The COVID-19 pandemic , Elisabeth held conversations over the phone with elderly people in residential care centers in order to give them encouragement and support. On 21 July 2021, she joined fellow students of the Royal Military Academy of Belgium to parade during Belgian National Day. In March 2022, Elisabeth and her parents attended a roundtable discussion about the ramifications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine . On 12 May 2022, Elisabeth accompanied her aunt Princess Astrid on

252-657: The House of Belgium ( House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha until 1920) are as follows: Article 1, alinea 2, of the Royal Decree of 16 December 1840 says, since an amendment in 2001 : " The title of Duke of Brabant or of Duchess of Brabant will be worn, in future, by the Prince or the Princess, elder son or daughter of the King, and, if lacking, by the Prince or the Princess, elder son or daughter of

280-565: The Royal Military Academy in Brussels , studying social and military sciences. Among the 160th promotion, she received her blue beret in September 2020 and completed her one-year military training on 9 July 2021. Whilst attending the military academy, Elisabeth renounced any money that cadets receive and only obtained a certificate that she has completed the first year of training. For

308-676: The patrol vessel Pollux P902 on 6 May 2015 in Zeebrugge . In April 2019, Elisabeth joined her father King Philippe on a visit to the training center of the Brussels firefighters. She attended the funeral of Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg in May 2019. In June 2019, Elisabeth and her mother traveled to Kenya on behalf of the United Nations Children's Fund and visited the Kakuma refugee camp. During

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336-671: The 17th and 18th centuries (see Generality Lands ). Today, the title of duke or duchess of Brabant designates, since the Royal Decree of 16 December 1840 (amended in 1991), the heir apparent to the throne of Belgium . The current holder is Princess Elisabeth . Counts of Leuven , Counts of Brussels and Landgraves of Brabant : Counts of Leuven , Counts of Brussels , Landgraves of Brabant , Margrave of Antwerp and Dukes of Lower-Lorraine : Dukes of Brabant and Dukes of Lothier : Dukes of Brabant , Dukes of Lothier and Dukes of Limburg : [REDACTED] Dukes of Brabant , Dukes of Lothier and Dukes of Limburg : In

364-528: The Belgians; there is no ceremony or formal oath that the new duke/duchess must pass. When the Duke of Brabant loses his father, or when he abdicates, his title goes to the next in line, and he becomes the new King of the Belgians. Unlike the office of King of the Belgians, the eldest child of the sovereign does not need to reach the age of 18 to become Duke of Brabant. However, if a Duke or Duchess of Brabant has not reached

392-436: The age of 18, he or she cannot ascend to the throne of Belgium, as stipulated by the constitution. When the prince or princess becomes duke of Brabant, this title takes precedence of the other titles: Prince or Princess of Belgium. The last Duke of Brabant became King in 2013, and passed the title to his oldest child. The current Duchess, Elisabeth was only 12 years old when she became duchess in 2013. The Dukes and Duchess of

420-502: The current Kingdom of Belgium , the title of "Duke of Brabant" has been revived as a dynastic title at the court, and is traditionally assigned to the oldest son or daughter of the sovereign (even though the province of North Brabant , part of the historical duchy, is now part of the Netherlands and has been so since 1648). The oldest son or daughter automatically becomes the duke/duchess of Brabant when his/her father becomes King of

448-474: The elder son or daughter of the King " Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant King Albert II Queen Paola Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant (born 25 October 2001), is the heir apparent to the Belgian throne . The eldest child of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde , she was elevated to the dukedom after her grandfather Albert II abdicated on 21 July 2013. The first child of

476-490: The first in the line of succession since she is the eldest child. On 21 July 2013, once Elisabeth's father had sworn the oath of office as King ( her grandfather having abdicated shortly before), she became heir apparent to the throne , receiving the title of Duchess of Brabant . Should she ascend as expected, Elisabeth shall become Belgium 's first female monarch . Styled "Her Royal Highness Princess Elisabeth of Belgium" from birth, when her father acceded as King of

504-494: The following week by christening the Belgian oceanographic research vessel RV Belgica and inaugurating KU Leuven 's Princess Elisabeth Additive Manufacturing Lab. In December 2022, Elisabeth and her brother Prince Emmanuel participated in the Warmathon in Brussels. In March 2023, Elisabeth and her mother Queen Mathilde traveled to Egypt, where they visited archaeological sites. On 5 May 2023, Elisabeth accompanied her father to

532-493: The former U.S. President Barack Obama at the Castle of Laeken . In June 2024, Elisabeth and her siblings voted for the regional, federal and European elections. Elisabeth volunteers to help children with learning difficulties, the elderly, the homeless and disabled people. Ten years prior to Elisabeth's birth, a new 1991 amendment of the succession line was implemented which introduced absolute primogeniture , defining her as

560-765: The name "Elisabeth de Brabant", receiving her International Baccalaureate diploma in May 2020. Elisabeth attended the Yale Young Global Scholars Program at Yale University . She also attended an introductory course at the Permanent Representation of Belgium to the United Nations in New York City . In May 2020, the Belgian Royal Court announced that Elisabeth would undertake military training. On 31 August 2020, Elisabeth entered

588-593: The name "Elisabeth de Saxe-Cobourg". In May 2024, the Belgian Royal Court announced that Elisabeth was admitted into Harvard Kennedy School to study for a two-year master's degree in public policy. She was also selected for an Honorary Award from the Fulbright program . Elisabeth started her studies at Harvard in September 2024. Elisabeth speaks Dutch, French, German and English, and has also taken classes in Mandarin Chinese. Elisabeth's first public appearance

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616-826: The next two years, she attended the Royal Military Academy's annual three-week summer camps and other practical and theoretical military classes. She swore the officers' oath on 26 September 2023 being commissioned as a second lieutenant in three branches of the Belgian Armed Forces . Elisabeth had one of the highest grades among her promotion. Elisabeth went on to study history and politics at Lincoln College, Oxford , in October 2021. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree with upper second class honours in July 2024. Elisabeth rowed for Lincoln College Boat Club in Torpids , an Oxford rowing race , in February 2023 under

644-986: The then Duke and Duchess of Brabant , Philippe (now King ) and Mathilde , Elisabeth was delivered by Caesarean section at 21:58 CET on 25 October 2001 at the Erasmus Hospital , the teaching hospital of the Université libre de Bruxelles in Anderlecht , Brussels. She was baptized on 9 December 2001 in the chapel of Ciergnon Castle in the Belgian Ardennes, by the late Cardinal Danneels , Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels . Her godparents are Archduke Amedeo of Austria-Este (paternal cousin), and Countess Hélène d'Udekem d'Acoz (maternal aunt). Elisabeth initially studied at St John Berchmans College in Marollen , Brussels from September 2004 until August 2018. This marked

672-487: Was assigned to Count Henry III of Leuven shortly after the death of the preceding count of Brabant, Herman II of Lotharingia (born 20 September 1085). Although the corresponding county was quite small (limited to the territory between the rivers Senne and Dender ) its name was applied to the entire country under control of the dukes from the 13th century on. In 1190, after the death of Godfrey III, Henry I also became duke of Lotharingia. Formerly Lower Lotharingia, this title

700-456: Was barely finished when Charles of Lorraine died in 1780. His nephew, Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor first intended to sell the country house, but ultimately decided to demolish both the Château Charles and Tervuren Castle in order to recycle the building materials to pay off the debts left by Charles of Lorraine. Charles' successors as governors, Archduchess Maria Christina of Austria and her husband Albert Casimir, Duke of Teschen , commissioned

728-598: Was now practically without territorial authority, but was borne by the later dukes of Brabant as an honorific title. In 1288, the dukes of Brabant became also dukes of Limburg . The title fell to the dukes of Burgundy in 1430. Later on, it followed with the Burgundian inheritance until the French Revolution , although the northern part of the territory of Brabant was actually governed by the United Provinces during

756-522: Was on 21 July 2006, when she accompanied her parents during the Te Deum for National Day celebrations at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula . The following year, on 13 June 2007, Elisabeth and her parents attended the opening of a new Technopolis youth interactive at Mechelen . In February 2009, Elisabeth gave her name to a Belgian scientific polar research station . She and her father also recorded

784-528: Was the ruler of the Duchy of Brabant since 1183/1184. The title was created by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in favor of Henry I of the House of Reginar , son of Godfrey III of Leuven (who was duke of Lower Lorraine at that time). The Duchy of Brabant was a feudal elevation of the existing (since 1085/1086) title of landgrave of Brabant. This was an Imperial fief which

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