Royal Jewels of the World Message Board: Re: Seating

Let's see if WA will change the tradition but he's likely to also revert back to the title HRH Prince of the Netherlands if/when he abdicates. Not sure what would happen when WA dies while being King. I have a feeling Maxima would not mind being titled Queen-mother next to her daughter The Queen. She likes the limelight a bit too much to step back behind her daughter as a mere Princess but I could be totally wrong of course. Anyway I actually like the clarity: there can only be one Monarch at a time. It's the title that comes with this particular function. When you abdicate you also relinquish the title that comes with the function unless in a principality or Grand Duchy of course there's no different title for the monarch. The formal change of titles also allows for a clean break for the former monarch to step back in a way that suits the person. In other monarchies they never had to deal with this situation before and thought it best to solve it / or not deal with it (Spain, Belgium, Denmark) by allowing the former monarch to keep the title but it actually does not make sense. But in a number of countries former Heads of State also remain ' President' for life...or at least are addressed as such.

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They could simply have matched Queen Mary with the Grand duke of Luxembourg and her husband with the Grand duchess.
As for Beatrix being moved down yes I agree it's down to the silly habit introduced by Queen Wilhelmina of styling a former monarch as HRH princess. I hope the current monarch and his wife will style themselves as TM King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima once he abdicates.

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Looking at the main table seating plan I see that the King of the Belgians is actually sitting immediately to the right of Queen Silvia, so that is quite a prominent position (sitting next to the hostess). It is only natural that King Harald is sitting to her left, him being the longest reigning King (apart from King Carl Gustaf himself of course) present. And since King Philippe is escorting the Queen of Thailand she is seating next to him.

I guess one could have put Queen Mathilde together with the King of Thailand (who himself was assigned a prominent seat to the left of the Swedish King) but that would perhaps resulted in Queen Mary being escorted by her husband (as he would be the only reigninig King "free" then) and thus she would be seated next to him (i.e. Queen Mary and Queen Mathilde swappinig places). That would not be very correct either.

And perhaps Beatrix was places further down as she has now "demoted" herself to Princess rather than Queen (although, yes, she is a former reigning Queen - but she has formally reverted back to her style of HRH and Princess - not HM and Queen).

Just my thoughts of course as it would be impossible to know for sure unless we hear it from someone who actually worked with putting the seating plan together.

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And Beatrix, having been a reigning queen, should have been seated next to Queen Margrethe. Queen Sofia was a queen consort.

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Im slightly shocked by the seating arrangements. Frederik and Mary get precedence over Philip and Mathilde and the Thai royal couple both of them being longer reigning sovereigns. Like Frederik Philip is the grandson of a Swedish princess. It's a breach of protocol and not one I can understand or subscribe to.

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For the history, the group picture, with no less than 9 reigning or formerly reigning Kings/Queens/Grand-dukes, 2 presidents (with their respective spouse), 7 Queens/Grand-duchesses consort, 4 heads of former sovereign families (with their respective wife/partner), 4 Crown princes or princesses...

(picture credit: Linda Broström/The Royal Court of Sweden)

1st row, from left to right : Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, Queen Sofia of Spain, Queen Margrethe II of denmark, Queen Mary and King Frederik X of Denmark, Queen Silvia and King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Sonja and King Harald V ofNorway, Queen Mathilde and King Philippe of the Belgians, Queen Suthida and King Maha Vajiralongkorn (Rama X) of Thailand.

2nd row, from left to right : Duke Franz of Bavaria, Björn Skúlason and his wife Halla Tómasdóttir, President of Iceland, Alexander Stubb, President of Finland, and his wife Suzanne Innes-Stubb, Tord Magnuson and his wife Princess Christina of Sweden, Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden and her daughter Princess Estelle of Sweden, Prince Daniel of Sweden, Princess Benedikte of Denmark, dowager Princess of Sayn-Wittgentstein-Berleburg, Grand-Duke Guillaume V and Grand-Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg, Grand-Duke Henri of Luxembourg, Princesse Margareta of Romania, Custodian of the Romanian Crown, and her husband Prince Radu, Princess Katherine and her husband Prince Alexander of Serbia.

3rd row, from left to right : Thomas Greinwald (Duke Franz of Bavaria's partner), Duke Hubertus of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and his wife Duchess Kelly, Prince Wenzel of Liechtenstein and his mother Crown Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein, Christopher O’Neill and his wife Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Prince Carl Philip and Princesse Sofia of Sweden, Prince Leopold of Bavaria and his wife Princess Ursula, Crown Prince Filip of Serbia and his wife Crown Princess Danica.

I just regret that, except Princess Estelle, King Carl XVI Gustaf's grandchildren were not on the picture. They could have been seated on the front row (directly on the carpet, or on low stools), which would have added a lovely touch of youth...

I notice that Princess Margaretha of Sweden, eldest sister of the King, was not here. She is 91 now, but is her health condition too frail now?

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HM Queen Silvia is wearing the Braganza tiara
HRH Crown Princess Victoria in the Connaught tiara
HRH princess Sofia in her own tiara but I think the tops are amethyst but I could not see them well
HRH princess Madeleine in the modern fringe she often wears