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Prince Claus of the Netherlands

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27-512: Prince Claus of the Netherlands, Jonkheer van Amsberg (born Klaus-Georg Wilhelm Otto Friedrich Gerd von Amsberg ; 6 September 1926 – 6 October 2002) was Prince of the Netherlands from 30 April 1980 until 6 October 2002, as the husband of Queen Beatrix . Initially a diplomat in the service of West Germany and West German deputy ambassador to Ivory Coast , Claus met Beatrix on New Year's Eve 1963 and married her in 1966. When his wife ascended to

54-733: A husband of the heir, Claus was a member of the National Advisory Council for Development Cooperation and its Bureau, and was a chair of the National Committee for Development Strategy 1970‑1980 and the Netherlands Development Organization. He also worked as special advisor to the Minister for Development Cooperation. He held these positions until 1980. On 30 April 1980, Claus' mother-in-law, Queen Juliana, abdicated in favour of Princess Beatrix, who became Queen of

81-517: A long illness, aged 76. He died less than four months after the birth of his first grandchild . Claus was interred in the royal family's tomb in Delft on 15 October. It was the first full state funeral since Queen Wilhelmina 's in 1962. Prince Claus was also appointed Honorary Fellow of the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) in 1988. Prince Claus was held in very high esteem in

108-586: A member of House of Amsberg which belonged to the untitled German nobility from Mecklenburg , operated a large farm in Tanganyika (formerly German East Africa ) from 1928 until World War II . His mother belonged to the ancient von dem Bussche noble family which originated from the County of Ravensberg . From 1938, Claus and his six sisters grew up on their maternal grandparents' estate in Lower Saxony ; he attended

135-871: A nineteenth-century anarchist pamphlet. The magazine was eventually confiscated. In Provo #12, the magazine was described as a monthly sheet for anarchists, provos, beatniks , pleiners, scissors-grinders, jailbirds, simple simon stylites , magicians, pacifists , potato-chip chaps, charlatans, philosophers, germ-carriers, grand masters of the queen's horse, happeners, vegetarians , syndicalists , santy clauses, kindergarten teachers, agitators, pyromaniacs , assistant assistants, scratchers and syphilitics , secret police, and other riff-raff. Provo has something against capitalism , communism , fascism , bureaucracy, militarism , professionalism, dogmatism , and authoritarianism . Provo has to choose between desperation, resistance and submissive extinction. Provo calls for resistance wherever possible. Provo realises that it will lose in

162-406: A reference to the memory of occupying German soldiers confiscating Dutch bicycles. A smoke bomb was thrown at the wedding carriage by a group of Provos. For a time, it was thought that Beatrix would be the last monarch of the Netherlands. However, over time, Claus became accepted by the public, so much so that during the last part of his life he was considered by some to be the most popular member of

189-793: A soldier in the German 90th Panzergrenadier Division in Italy in March 1945. He was taken prisoner of war by the American forces at Meran before taking part in any fighting. After his repatriation , he finished school in Lüneburg and studied law in Hamburg . He then joined the German diplomatic corps and worked in Santo Domingo and Ivory Coast . In the 1960s, he was transferred to Bonn . Claus met Princess Beatrix for

216-771: The Friderico-Francisceum-Gymnasium in Bad Doberan from 1933 to 1936 and a boarding school in Tanganyika from 1936 to 1938. Claus was a member of such Nazi youth organisations as Deutsches Jungvolk and the Hitler Youth . From 1938 until 1942, he attended the German Baltenschule Misdroy in what is now Międzyzdroje , Poland. In 1944, Claus was conscripted into the German Wehrmacht , becoming

243-444: The hippie movement. Provo was founded, on 25 May 1965, by Robert Jasper Grootveld , an anti-smoking activist, and the anarchists Roel van Duijn and Rob Stolk. The term was used for the movement as a whole and for individual members. Provo was officially disbanded on 13 May 1967. 12 July 1965 the first Provo magazine was published. It contained the "Provo manifesto", written by Roel van Duijn, and reprinted recipes for bombs from

270-476: The royal family . This change in Dutch opinion was brought about by Claus's strong motivation to contribute to public causes (especially Third World development, on which he was considered an expert), his sincere modesty and his candor (within but sometimes on the edge of royal protocol). The public also sympathised with Claus for his efforts to give meaning to his life beyond the restrictions that Dutch law imposed on

297-828: The Board of Directors of Royal PTT Nederland, and Chair of the Transport and Public Works Platform. Claus was an honorary chair of the National Coordinating Committee for the Protection of Monuments and Historic Buildings and the King William I Foundation. He was also a patron of the Concertgebouw Orchestra and Scouting Netherlands. On Claus' seventieth birthday, the Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development

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324-477: The Bonaparte King of Holland was " Queen of Holland" with the style Majesty . The following spouses of the monarchs of Holland between 1806 and 1810; and the Netherlands since 1813: Provo (movement) Provo was a Dutch counterculture movement in the mid-1960s that focused on provoking violent responses from authorities using non-violent bait. It was preceded by the nozem movement and followed by

351-465: The Great Men that made us big have gone", a reference to Provo's two arch-enemies, Van Hall and Van der Molen. Many Provo groups emerged in other cities in the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, and New York. Stockholm staged an anti-nuclear war happening /action under the name Provies. In London a "Death and Rebirth of International Times" happening, after a police raid of the first UK underground paper,

378-517: The Netherlands In the Netherlands , a royal consort is a person married to the Dutch monarch during his or her reign. All female spouses of the monarchs of the Netherlands have been titled " Queen of the Netherlands" with the style Majesty . The male spouses of the three queens regnant of the Netherlands were titled "Prince of the Netherlands" with the style Royal Highness . The spouse of

405-551: The Netherlands. After the investiture, the couple visited the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba . As a prince consort, Prince Claus frequently visited public organisations, commercial and industrial enterprises, and companies in the agriculture and fisheries sector. In 1984, Claus became the Inspector General for Development Cooperation, member of the Board of Directors of De Nederlandsche Bank N.V. (until 1998), member of

432-495: The Provos and the anti-war demonstrators among the general public. An official investigation into the crisis was opened. These events eventually led to the dismissal of Amsterdam's police chief, H. J. van der Molen, in 1966 and the resignation of mayor Gijsbert van Hall in 1967. After van Hall had been removed, Grootveld and Rob Stolk (printer of Provo magazine) decided to end Provo. Stolk said: "Provo has to disappear because all

459-478: The end, but it cannot pass up the chance to make at least one more heartfelt attempt to provoke society. Provo regards anarchy as the inspirational source of resistance. Provo wants to revive anarchy and teach it to the young. Provo is an image. The political wing of the Provos won a seat on the city council of Amsterdam , and developed the "White Plans". The most famous of those is the "White Bicycle Plan", which aimed to improve Amsterdam's transport problem. Generally

486-523: The first time on New Year's Eve 1963 in Bad Driburg at a dinner hosted by the Count von Oeynhausen-Sierstorpff , who was a distant relative of both of them. Claus and Beatrix were also distantly related (5th cousins twice removed), as both being descendants from von dem Bussche family . They met again at the wedding-eve party of Princess Tatjana of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Moritz, Landgrave of Hesse , in

513-428: The international development cooperation community, partly because of his considerable insight and understanding of the problems involved, and partly because of his exceptional gift for expressing the hopes and anxieties felt by all. gave up the title "Prince of the Netherlands, but still held the title "Prince of Orange-Nassau" title granted by Royal Decree to descendants of Princess Irene Prince consort of

540-402: The line of succession to the throne—in 1965. He was granted Dutch citizenship later that year and changed the spellings of his names to Dutch. The couple were married on 10 March 1966. Their wedding day saw violent protests, most notably by the anarchist-artist group Provo . They included such memorable slogans as "Claus, 'raus!" (Claus, get out!) and "Mijn fiets terug" (Give me back my bike),

567-494: The new shackles they have voluntarily cast upon themselves", meaning the necktie , that "snake around my neck," and encouraged the audience to "venture into open- collar paradise ". He then removed his tie and threw it on the floor. Claus battled depression for a number of years, and underwent surgery in 1998 to remove his prostate. In 2001, he underwent another surgery to remove one of his kidneys. He eventually died on 6 October 2002 from Parkinson's disease and heart failure. As

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594-512: The plans sought to address social problems and make Amsterdam more liveable. List of the White Plans: Tensions with the police peaked in June 1966, when the construction worker Jan Weggelaar died during a demonstration. A strike was called by construction workers and large numbers of workers and their sympathisers, including Provos, marched through Amsterdam. Demonstrators fought the police in

621-550: The royal family's freedom of speech and action. However, these restrictions were gradually loosened; Claus was even appointed as senior staff member at the Department of Developing Aid, albeit in an advisory role. One example of his attitude toward protocol was the "Declaration of the Tie". In 1998, after presenting the annual Prince Claus Awards to three African fashion designers , Claus told "workers of all nations to unite and cast away

648-525: The streets (on the Dam and Damrak) and attacked the offices and vehicles of De Telegraaf . At the same time, the Provos participated in left-wing student protests against the Vietnam War . Demonstrations were banned, resulting in an increase in their size and popularity. The police responded with increasing force, and by mid-1966 hundreds of arrests were made every week. Police brutality led to increasing sympathy for

675-476: The summer of 1964. With memories of German oppression still very strong 20 years after the war, sections of the Dutch population were unhappy that Beatrix's fiancé was a German and former member of the Hitler Youth . Nonetheless, Queen Juliana gave the engagement her blessing after giving serious thought to canceling it. The engagement was approved by the States-General —a necessary step for Beatrix to remain in

702-417: The throne in 1980, Claus took his place as Prince of the Netherlands, which he held until his death in 2002. Klaus-Georg Wilhelm Otto Friedrich Gerd von Amsberg was born on his mother's family's estate, Schloss Dötzingen, Hitzacker , Germany , on 6 September 1926. He was the second child and only son of Claus Felix von Amsberg and his wife, Baroness Gösta von dem Bussche-Haddenhausen . His father, by birth

729-517: Was established on the initiative of the Dutch government. The fund focused on enhancing understanding of cultures and promoting interaction between culture and development. Claus suffered various health problems, such as depression , cancer and Parkinson's disease . He died of complications of pneumonia and Parkinson's at the Academic Medical Center in Amsterdam on 6 October 2002 after

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