Belgium’s King Albert II on Wednesday announced he will abdicate the
throne in favor of his son, Crown Prince Phillipe. the move makes the
Belgian king the second monarch this year to hand over power to the nexr
generation.King Albert II, 79, announced the decision in a televised statement on Wednesday, explaining that he will end his 20-year reign because of his age and health issues.
“I realise that my age and my health are no longer allowing me to carry out my duties as I would like to,” he said in his address.
“Prince Philippe is well prepared to succeed me.”
King Albert’s announcement comes only three months after Queen Beatrix of the neighbouring Netherlands vacated the Dutch throne in favour of her son Willem-Alexander. While Beatrix followed the tradition set by her mother and grandmother, abdications are not normal in Belgium.
While King Albert II’s abdication may have been a shock for many, rumors of the announcement swirled for weeks before it happened.
Royal scandal
In January, the Belgian king’s sister-in-law, Queen Fabiola, was accused of trying to hide some of her fortune from being part of an inheritance tax. And just a few weeks ago, Delphine Boël asked the court to order the king and two of his children to give DNA samples. Boël claims she is the king’s daughter, born after an alleged affair between King Albert II and an aristocrat, Boël’s mother. There is some speculation in the media that this may have influenced his decision to abdicate.
BBC News: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-23167525
The Inquisitr: http://www.inquisitr.com/830425/belgiums-king-albert-ii-will-abdicate-throne/
