Royal visit coming to the capital of Flanders! King Philippe of Belgium and his wife, Queen Mathilde, will be in Lille on Wednesday October 16 as part of a state visit to France which will begin on Monday October 14 in Paris. This visit to Lille was organized because of “proximity to Belgium and numerous cross-border cooperations”indicates a source at the royal palace. The royal couple will first be received at the Lille Town Hall, at the foot of the belfry, by Martine Aubry, mayor of Lille. The lunch will be held at the Lille Opera, in the presence of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde as well as the heir to the throne, Princess Elisabeth, indicates the royal palace. The President of the Republic will not be present in Lille.
Lunch at the Lille Opera
Martine Aubry, mayor of Lille, should be accompanied by Xavier Bertrand, the president of the Hauts-de-France regional council during the lunch which will bring together the royal couple but also many Belgian political figures, notably regional presidents. The royal couple will then visit Euratechnologies, the business district dedicated to new technologies, which celebrates its 15th anniversary this year. Before the Lille stage, the royal couple will have spent two days in Paris, received by Emmanuel Macron, including a state dinner at the Elysée.
