Nobody expected him. Sitting at the presidential table, to the right of Brigitte Macron, Prince Gabriel of Belgium is discreet. Instead of his usual military fatigues, he preferred a sober suit jacket embellished with a navy blue tie and an elegant pocket square. The youngest son of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium looks great for his first state dinner given on October 14 in honor of his parents at the Élysée. The Belgian sovereigns indeed arrived the same morning for a three-day visit to France at the invitation of President Emmanuel Macron.
The perfect opportunity for the young 21-year-old boy to spend some time with his father and mother while he has been following, since the beginning of September, a five-month Erasmus program at the Military Academy of Saint-Cyr Coëtquidan. It is within this prestigious Breton establishment that the student from the Royal Military School of Brussels came to complete his officer training thanks to a course in geopolitics. Who better than this prince to embody the unwavering links that unite France and Belgium so praised by the two heads of state in their speeches?
These successive speeches do not fail to bring a few smiles to Gabriel. If he is nervous, Their Majesties’ son doesn’t let it show. However, it is not uncommon to see him accompanying his parents during official events, even more so since his older sister, Crown Princess Elisabeth, flew to Harvard this summer. During the recent visit of Pope Francis, the young boy had already left his military uniform in the closet to attend the September 29 mass organized at the King Baudoin stadium in Brussels. Even outside Belgian borders, Gabriel proves to be an irreplaceable support for his family.
Read also >> Philippe and Mathilde of Belgium at the Élysée: a state dinner to celebrate friendship
France
