King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium concluded their state visit to France this Wednesday. After two days in Paris, the Belgian king and queen made a detour to Lille before heading to Brussels. The visit to the capital of Flanders aimed to highlight the synergies between Belgium and Hauts-de-France.
Read also: King Philippe at the Chantilly castle of his ancestors to honor the first queen of the Belgians
End of the state visit of Belgian sovereigns to France
King Philippe, 64, and Queen Mathilde of Belgium, 51, arrived by Eurostar in Paris on Monday. After spending two days in the capital, the sovereigns headed north this Wednesday, October 16, 2024. On the way, Philippe and Mathilde of Belgium stopped for a few hours at the Château de Chantilly to inaugurate an exhibition dedicated to the first queen. Belgians. The royal couple arrived in Lille early in the afternoon.
Read also: The second day of the state visit of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde made a neighborhood visit, welcomed to this city which has 230,000 inhabitants by the mayor of its commune, Martine Aubry. The European Metropolis of Lille (MEL) exceeds one million inhabitants and the metropolitan area of Lille (AML), which also brings together Belgian cities influenced by Lille, has more than 3.2 million inhabitants.
Read also: Queen Mathilde brilliant at the Center Pompidou with King Philippe and Prince Eudes of Orléans
Crowd bath and city medal for King Philippe in Lille
King Philippe and Queen Mathilde enjoyed an exceptional crowd, with Lille residents flocking to the city to see the royal couple. Martine Aubry guided her guests, accompanied by the Minister of Housing, to show them some historic and emblematic buildings in her city. This visit was also symbolic for the King of the Belgians and echoed the visit made by his father in 2003. The last state visit of a King of the Belgians to France was the one that his father, King Albert II, made more than twenty years ago, at the invitation of President Jacques Chirac. King Albert II and his wife, Queen Paola, concluded their state visit by visiting Lille.
Read also: King Philippe and Queen Mathilde invited to a state dinner at the Élysée by Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron
During these few hours spent in Lille, it was a question of honoring the cultural, economic and historical proximity between Belgium and France, and in particular the north of the country. Gastronomy, traditions and even some common linguistic aspects were highlighted during the visit.
At the Lille opera house, a ceremony was organized in honor of this visit. Mayor Martine Aubry awarded the city medal to King Philippe. The new honorary citizen gave a speech of thanks, in which he recalled the history of this large region of Flanders which also includes part of Belgium. King Philip spoke of the coal and waterways that contributed to the industrialization of this region. The sovereign did not fail to address European issues, he who had before him Martine Aubry, daughter of Jacques Delors, one of the great builders of Europe.
Nicolas Fontaine
Editor-in-chief
Nicolas Fontaine has been a designer-editor and author for numerous Belgian and French brands and media. A specialist in royal family news, Nicolas founded the site Histoires royales of which he is the editor-in-chief. [email protected]
