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Her abdication was announced earlier today. On April 30 ("Queen's Day," which I suppose will have to be renamed) her son Willem-Alexander will take over as King Willem IV.
Too bad she didn't abolish the monarchy as a parting gift.
Why?
From the link:
"Queen Beatrix is seen by many in the Netherlands as a surrogate grandmother. Most office buildings and universities proudly display her glamorous portrait, decorated in a range of suitably colourful costumes.
She enjoys high approval ratings and is one of the most popular ruling monarchs in Europe. Under Dutch law it is still illegal to insult the queen."
Her position is mostly ceremonial.
If it's due to cost, that depends on how much the Dutch are willing to pay, does it not?
Too bad she didn't abolish the monarchy as a parting gift.
The Netherlands is one of the most democratic societies in the world. If they wanted to abolish the monarchy, nothing prevents them from doing so. They didn't, so it must mean something.
Too bad she didn't abolish the monarchy as a parting gift.
Hardly anyone in the Netherlands agrees with you. It is one of the most pro-monarchist countries in the world
This was all over the news today. I was expecting her to announce it sooner or later (she is 75 after all) but it still came as a surprise to me. She is truly a wonderful woman, always there to help people when something tragic happened (and we've had our share of national tragedies ). There will be a huge celebration in Amsterdam on the 30th of April and I will definitely be there
@Suzy_Q, that law is entirely ceremonial. You are free to insult the Queen (or any monarch for that matter) however you want, nobody's going to arrest you, lol.
Edit: btw, the OP says that the new monarch will be called King Willem IV but that's wrong, he will be called King Willem-Alexander.
@Suzy_Q, that law is entirely ceremonial. You are free to insult the Queen (or any monarch for that matter) however you want, nobody's going to arrest you, lol.
Glad to hear from the Netherlands!
And it's good to know that insulting the queen will not get you thrown in the pokey! From what you say I suspect that the insults are infrequent.
Are you saying... you didn't know that?
Maybe you should give a proof/link that the Netherlands is NOT one of the most democratic societies in the world?
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). There will be a huge celebration in Amsterdam on the 30th of April and I will definitely be there 
