Holland has a king and tourists see orange

This event in the world’s most liberal city Amsterdam is a tourist dream come true.

This event in the world’s most liberal city Amsterdam is a tourist dream come true.

Holland has a king for the first time since 1890 – after the transition took place today, April 30, a national holiday known as Queen’s Day. It was a busy holiday in any year in the Netherlands and especially popular in 2013. It will be renamed King’s Day during the reign of Willem-Alexander, and moved to April 27, the new king’s birthday.

Earlier a Dutch protester was heard: “Away with the monarchy, it’s 2013” โ€“ which the Dutch policemen took to be a violation of the Netherlands’ lese majeste law, which still prohibits insulting the royal family despite the country’s general support of freedom of speech.

Despite this protest, the looming arrival of a new monarch is being greeted with a flood or orange, the color of the Dutch royal family, known as the house of Orange-Nassau.

Royal delegations from 18 nations, from Thailand and Japan to Monaco and Norway, were attendance for the investiture Tuesday, along with thousands of national and international tourists wearing orange. They arrived in the Netherlands from all corners of the world.

King Willem-Alexander later said during a TV interview that the policemen had made “a mistake” by removing the protester. But the incident spurred like-minded Dutch to call for a royal-free future.
The anti-monarchists numbers are small. The Republican protest in Amsterdam was attended by nine participantsโ€“ they were almost outnumbered by journalists.

In the meantime today, King Willem-Alexander became the first Dutch male monarch in more than a century Tuesday as his mother Beatrix abdicated to end a 33-year reign. His popular Argentine born wife became Queen Maxima.

The generational change in the House of Orange-Nassau gave the Netherlands a moment of celebration and pageantry as this trading nation of nearly 17 million struggles through a lengthy recession brought on by the European economic crisis.

Visibly emotional, the much-loved Beatrix ended her reign in a nationally televised signing ceremony as thousands of orange-clad people cheered outside. Millions more were expected to watch on television.

Willem-Alexander gripped his motherโ€™s hand and looked briefly into her eyes after they both signed the abdication document in the Royal Palace on downtown Amsterdamโ€™s Dam Square.

Beatrix looked close to tears as she then appeared on a balcony overlooking some 20,000 of her subjects.
โ€œI am happy and grateful to introduce to you your new king, Willem-Alexander,โ€ she told the cheering crowd.

Moments later, in a striking symbol of the generational shift, she left the balcony and Willem-Alexander, his wife and three daughters โ€” the children in matching yellow dresses and headbands โ€” waved to the crowd.

The former queen becomes Princess Beatrix and her son becomes the first Dutch king since Willem III died in 1890.

The eldest daughter of Willem-Alexander and Maxima Catharina-Amalia, who attended the ceremony wearing a yellow dress, became Princess of Orange and first in line to the throne.

Maxima has been married to the heir to the Dutch throne for 11 years. Her freshness, true love story and spontaneity made her way into the royal family and citizensโ€™ hearts. She was born on May 17, 1971 in Buenos Aires. She is the fourth daughter of Jorge Zorreguieta and the eldest child of Maria del Carmen Cerruti. Maxima has three brothers: Martin, 40; Juan 30; and Ines, 28; in addition to three stepsisters: Maria, 56; Angeles, 54; and Dolores, 47.

Maxima lived out her childhood in an apartment in the North District of Buenos Aires and studied in the exclusive Northlands School, a bilingual academy. She studied Economy in the Universidad Catolica Argentina, where she got her bachelor degree in 1995. Maxima Zorreguieta is an independent woman who likes to work. She worked first in Argentina and soon moved to New York to work in an executive position for the HSBC Bank. When she was 28 years old she met Prince Willem-Alexander in Seville in 1999. In May 2000 she moved to Brussels to work in the Deutsche Bank and to be near her prince. The rest of the love story is history.

They got married on February 2, 2002, in the Nieuwe Kerk (New Church) of Amsterdam under the Protestant Rite, although Maxima continued professing the Catholic faith, a decision that was welcomed by the Church.

Maxima spontaneity and her South American exotic touch despite her perfect adaptation to the Dutch identity opened the hearts of her people in the Netherlands. Maxima is the most popular member of the Royal Family of the Netherlands, according to several surveys.

Holland is a fairly young monarchy. The Kingdom of the Netherlands was established in 1815, and King William I was its first ruler. The first king of Holland was from the House of Orange-Nassau. The origin of Hollandโ€™s motto, โ€˜Je maintiendrai (โ€œI will maintainโ€)โ€™, the colors of the flag and the national color orange may all be found in the House of Orange-Nassau. Queen Beatrix has been the reigning monarch for over 30 years. The intended heir to the throne, the Prince of Orange, is her oldest son, Willem-Alexander. The monarch has limited power; the Queen has immunity, but the real power lies with the ministers. The monarch is neutral and does not make pronouncements about political topics.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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