Astrid Sofia Lovisa Thyra (
Stockholm,
17 november 1905 –
Küssnacht am Rigi,
29 augustus 1935), hertogin van Brabant,
prinses van België, prinses van Zweden, vrouw van Koning
Leopold III, was de vierde Koningin der Belgen en de moeder van prinses (later groothertogin)
Josephine-Charlotte,
koning Boudewijn en
koning Albert II.
Prinses Astrid was de dochter van prins Karel van Zweden (1861-1951) en prinses Ingeborg van Denemarken. Haar zus Märtha van Zweden was kroonprinses van Noorwegen en de moeder van de huidige koning Harald V van Noorwegen. Haar oom was koning Christiaan X van Denemarken en haar grootvader was koning Oscar II van Zweden. Via haar beide ouders bestaat er ook een verwantschap met de Nederlandse en de Luxemburgse dynastie.
Toen ze zich verloofde met de katholieke prins Leopold, zoon van koning Albert van België, verliet ze haar geboorteland.
Bij haar aankomst in Antwerpen vergat de prinses alle ceremonieel en vloog haar verloofde om de hals; dit spontane gebaar was het begin van de enorme sympathie die de vorstin bij de bevolking verwierf. Het paar huwde in Zweden op 4 november 1926; zes dagen later, op 10 november, volgde een tweede huwelijksplechtigheid in België. Het huwelijk werd bijgewoond door de Zweedse koninklijke familie, die een paar dagen in Brussel te gast was. Ook de Beierse en Deense koninklijke familie waren aanwezig.
Het jonge paar woonde eerst in het Bellevue-paleis te Brussel. Nadien verhuisde het gezin naar het Kasteel van Stuyvenberg, waar Boudewijn en Albert werden geboren. Bij de geboorte van Prins Albert stuurde de prinses doopsuiker naar alle kinderen die op dezelfde dag waren geboren.[1]
Door haar huwelijk in 1926 met de Belgische kroonprins Leopold werd zij na de dood van koning Albert I in 1934 koningin der Belgen. De blijde intredes (de ceremonieel afgelegde ontvangsten in de negen provinciehoofdsteden) werden druk bijgewoond. Van het volk kreeg ze door nationale intekening het diadeem der negen provinciën.
In de koninklijke familie bestond bezorgdheid vanwege haar lutherse afkomst. Een paar jaar na haar huwelijk bekeerde de koningin zich tot het rooms-katholieke geloof.
De koningin deed aan naastenliefde en organiseerde zelf inzamelacties ten behoeve van de minderbedeelden. Als ze een aangrijpende verzoekbrief kreeg, ging ze soms persoonlijk op onderzoek uit om het in de brief aangeroerde probleem op te lossen.
In 1935 kwam de koningin der Belgen op 29-jarige leeftijd om het leven bij een auto-ongeval in het Zwitserse Küssnacht am Rigi. De koning verloor, doordat de koningin iets aanwees, de controle over de wagen, waarin het paar incognito, onder de naam Renard, een uitstapje maakte, voordat zij huiswaarts zouden keren. Nadat de auto van de weg was geraakt en tegen een perenboom was gebotst, werd de vorstin, die via de al geopende autodeur uit de auto wou springen, uit de auto geslingerd en tegen de perenboom gekatapulteerd. De auto schoot nog door tegen een andere boom en belandde daarna in het water. Door ernstig hoofdletsel was de koningin op slag dood. Samen met de vorstin overleed ook haar ongeboren vierde kind[bron?], terwijl haar andere kinderen de avond ervoor per trein naar huis waren gereisd. De koningin werd opgebaard met een omzwachteld hoofd. De koning was vrijwel ongedeerd.
Vele Belgen waren in rouw en treurden om de prinsjes en het prinsesje die op jonge leeftijd hun moeder verloren. Door dit ongeval was Astrid slechts een jaar koningin. Leopold treurde om haar verlies en verbood zijn kinderen over haar te spreken. Haar boudoir liet hij intact en hij bewaarde haar met bloed besmeurde jurk.
Küssnacht schonk Leopold de grond van de plaats van het ongeluk, waarop Leopold een kapel liet bouwen ter herinnering aan haar. Astrid zelf ligt begraven in een praalgraf in de koninklijke crypte te Laken. Ze rust naast haar echtgenoot en diens tweede vrouw, Lilian, prinses van Retie.[2]
Astrid schonk de dynastie de latere koningen Boudewijn en Albert II en groothertogin Josephine Charlotte van Luxemburg.
Astrid de Suède (en suédois : Astrid av Sverige), princesse de Suède, née le 17 novembre 1905 à Stockholm (Suède) et décédée dans un accident de voiture le 29 août 1935 à Küssnacht am Rigi (Suisse), est la quatrième reine des Belges, du 23 février 1934 jusqu’à sa mort.
Née à Stockholm le 17 novembre 1905, seconde fille du prince Carl de Suède et de la princesse Ingeborg de Danemark, nièce du roi Gustave V de Suède, sœur de la princesse royale Martha de Norvège, elle épouse, le 10 novembre 1926, Léopold, prince de Belgique et duc de Brabant, le futur Léopold III.
De cette union naîtront :
À la suite de la mort tragique du roi Albert Ier, le 17 février 1934, Léopold, sous le nom de Léopold III, et Astrid deviennent roi et reine des Belges.
Préoccupée par les questions sociales, elle organise en 1935, au palais royal de Bruxelles, une grande collecte de vêtements et de vivres.
L'accident de voiture qui causa le décès d'Astrid1,2, survenu le 29 août 1935 à Küssnacht am Rigi, en Suisse, cause une grande émotion en Belgique (émotion d'autant plus vive que des clichés pris de l'accident et de la mise en bière de la reine sont publiés dans la presse3) et en Europe, où son souvenir demeure jusqu'à aujourd'hui.
Elle est inhumée, comme tous les rois et reines de Belgique, dans la crypte royale de l'église Notre-Dame de Laeken, à Bruxelles.
Il existe une place de la Reine-Astrid dans le 8e arrondissement de Paris, à proximité des quais de Seine et près du pont de l'Alma – et le hasard voudra que, soixante-deux ans presque jour pour jour après la mort d'Astrid, une autre princesse, Lady Di, soit elle-même victime d'un accident de voiture mortel dans le tunnel du pont de l'Alma. Un monument à la mémoire de la reine Astrid se trouve également à Menton4.
En Belgique :
- le mémorial Reine Astrid érigé par l'architecte Paul Bonduelle lui rend hommage à Laeken au square du 21 juillet, adossé au Domaine royal ;
- dans la commune d'Anderlecht, en région de Bruxelles-Capitale, l'ancien parc d'Anderlecht (ou parc du Meir) a été rebaptisé parc Astrid en 1935, à la suite du décès de la reine. Ce nom est également utilisé encore aujourd'hui pour désigner le site d'implantation du stade Constant Vanden Stock exploité par le Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht (RSCA) ;
- au cœur de la ville de Charleroi, le parc Reine Astrid a été baptisé de la sorte en 1939 en hommage à la reine des Belges ;
- à l'hôtel de ville de Liège, une œuvre du sculpteur Adelin Salle la représente présentant son fils, le prince Albert, aux Liégeois le 7 juillet 1935 ;
- il existe aussi de nombreux lieux d'hommages à la reine en Flandre : la place Astrid, à côté de la gare centrale d'Anvers, différentes places (Duinbergen, Wenduine) et noms de rues à la côte belge.
En Suisse :
- à Küssnacht, canton de Schwytz, lieu de l'accident de voiture qui lui coûta la vie, une chapelle (de) rend hommage à la reine.
Au Rwanda :
- Butare, ville au sud du Rwanda, portait anciennement, en son honneur, le nom d'Astrida.
Astrid Sofia Lovisa Thyra of Sweden (17 November 1905 – 29 August 1935) was Queen consort of the Belgians as the first wife of King Leopold III. By birth she was a princess of the Sweden's royal House of Bernadotte. Her grandsons include King Philippe of Belgium and Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg.
Astrid was born at her parents' home of Arvfurstens Palats in Stockholm on 17 November 1905, the third child and youngest daughter of Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland, and his wife Princess Ingeborg of Denmark. Her father was the younger brother of King Gustav V of Sweden, and her mother was the younger sister of King Christian X of Denmark and of King Haakon VII of Norway. She had two elder sisters Princess Margaretha of Sweden and Princess Martha of Sweden and a younger brother Prince Carl Bernadotte.
As an eligible princess, Astrid was mentioned as a potential bride for a number of princes including the future Edward VIII of Great Britain and the future Olav V of Norway. Astrid's successful suitor was Crown Prince Leopold of Belgium.
In September 1926, their engagement was announced. King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth of Belgium invited the press to the royal palace in Brussels. "The Queen and I," declared Albert, "would like to announce to you the impending marriage between Prince Leopold, Duke of Brabant and the Princess Astrid of Sweden. We are convinced that the princess will bring joy and happiness to our son. Leopold and Astrid have decided to join their lives without any pressures or reasons of state. Theirs is a true union among people with the same inclinations." Queen Elisabeth, incorrigible romantic that she was, insisted in saying "It is a marriage of love... tell it to our people. Nothing was arranged. Not a single political consideration prevailed in our son's decision."
In Stockholm on 4 November 1926 civilly and in Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula, Brussels on 10 November religiously, Princess Astrid married Crown Prince Leopold of Belgium, the son of King Albert I of Belgium and his wife, Queen Elisabeth, born Duchess Elisabeth in Bavaria. The couple travelled separately to Antwerp after their civil marriage, to be reunited in Belgium.
For the religious marriage, the couple were attended by a large wedding party of young friends and relatives: Princess Feodora of Denmark, Princess Marie-Jose of Belgium, Princess Martha of Sweden, Princess Ingrid of Sweden, Alfhild Ekelund, Prince Carl of Sweden, Prince Gustav Adolf of Sweden, Crown Prince Olav of Norway, Margareta Stähl, Count Claes Sparre, Anna Adelswärd, Prince Charles of Belgium, Count Folke Bernadotte, Baron Sigvard Beck-Friis, Anne Marie von Essen, and Baron Carl Strömfelt.[1]
Princess Astrid was given a tiara as a wedding gift from the Belgian government, created by Belgian jeweler Van Bever, the original version of the diadem is a flexible diamond bandeau in a stylized Greek key motif topped with 11 large diamonds on spikes. These large stones, totaling around 100 carats on their own, symbolize the nine provinces of Belgium and the (now former) Belgian colony of the Congo. She later added a set of diamond arches to enclose each of the 11 independent stones. After Astrid’s death the tiara was in the possession of King Leopold, and his second wife Princess Lilian wore parts of the tiara but not the full gem (Lilian never held the title of Queen). Leopold abdicated the throne in favor of his son Baudouin; when Baudouin married, Leopold gave the tiara to the new queen. Fabiola, Belgium’s first queen since Astrid, wore it on her wedding day. She handed the jewel over after Baudouin’s death to be worn by Queen Paola who, after the abdication of her husband Albert, gave it to Mathilde new Queen of the Belgians.
Astrid was enthusiastically adopted by the Belgians. She was widely loved for her beauty, charm and simplicity. Her public and official engagements radiated enthusiasm. Leopold was her most fervent admirer. The love shared by the young couple was evident to all. On more than one occasion people could see them holding hands, even during official engagements. In 1927, Leopold and Astrid had a daughter, Princess Joséphine-Charlotte. In 1930, the Belgian press gave extensive coverage to the birth of the long-awaited royal heir. Leopold was on his way to visit some areas away from Brussels when the Duchess of Brabant went into labor. The royal palace immediately sent him a telegram that reached Leopold at a stop during his journey. The royal palace's message announced the impending birth of the couple's second child. Without thinking twice about the day's engagements, Leopold returned to Brussels immediately. Prince Leopold and King Albert walked anxiously in the garden at Stuyvenberg Palace while the Duchess of Brabant began her labor. Next to Astrid were her mother, Ingeborg of Denmark, duchess of Västergötland, and her mother-in-law Queen Elisabeth. At 4:15 pm the royal physicians proudly announced the healthy birth of a little prince. The sound of a cannon silenced the general happiness expressed by the people of Brussels. Their first son, Prince Baudouin eventually succeeded his father as King of the Belgians. He was given the name of Baudouin in memory of his deceased great-uncle who was supposed to have become king.
At Stuyvenberg, not far away from the Royal Palace of Laeken, the young Duchess of Brabant, raised in the simplicity of the Scandinavian courts, joyfully raised her growing family. At a small villa in the palace grounds, Astrid cooked for her family. And every time she could, Astrid would stroll along the Avenue Louise with her children. The Court Marshall vehemently protested against these promenades. "They break protocol," he would say. Yet in her simplicity, Astrid would retort by saying "But I'm just another mother, am I not?" She even went as far as joining the crowds during a military revue in an effort to see her promenading husband at the head of his regiment.
Raised as a Lutheran, Astrid converted to Catholicism after marrying Prince Leopold. She had initially considered converting to Catholicism, simply because it was the religion of Belgium, but the priest she consulted, Father William Hemmick, told her not to do so until she genuinely believed it was the true religion.[2] Astrid learned more about Catholicism and, several years later, in 1930, converted from genuine conviction. Her decision made her happy, and she confided to a close childhood friend: "My soul has found peace."[3] Her father-in-law, King Albert, who was very devout himself, repeated, on the day of Astrid's conversion: "I am glad, very glad. Now all the family is united in the same religion.
On February 17, 1934, King Albert died in a mountain-climbing accident in Marche-les-Dames, Belgium. Leopold and Astrid became the new King and Queen of the Belgians with the style of Majesty. Later that year, the third child of Leopold and Astrid was born. He was named Albert after his grandfather, and would eventually succeed his brother Baudouin as King of the Belgians.
As Queen, Astrid dedicated her time to raising her family and promoting social causes. She was very concerned with the situation of women, children, and the disadvantaged. During an economic crisis in Belgium in 1935, she organized a collection of clothing and food for the poor. She did this through an open letter, which was published as the "Queen’s Appeal".
In August 1935, the King and Queen went incognito to Switzerland on holiday. Prince Albert remained in Brussels. Only one year old, he was considered too young for the journey. Joséphine-Charlotte and Baudouin had travelled with their parents to their holiday home, Villa Haslihorn in Horw, Switzerland. The children were sent back to Belgium with their nannies on 28 August. On 29 August 1935, the King and Queen decided to go for a last hike in the mountains before returning home. Their chauffeur was sitting in the back of the Packard One-Twenty convertible, the King was driving and the Queen looking at a map. As the Queen pointed out something to her husband the car went off the road, down a steep slope, and slammed into a pear tree. Queen Astrid had opened her door to try to get out, but she was thrown out upon impact. Her body collided with the trunk of the tree, while the car slammed into a second tree. King Leopold was thrown out of the car as well, but he was only lightly injured. The car went on, only to stop in a lake. It was 9:30 am on 29 August 1935. The Queen died from her injuries at the scene of the accident at Küssnacht am Rigi, near Lake Lucerne, Schwyz, Switzerland.
Queen Astrid is interred in the royal vault at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, Brussels, beside her husband, King Leopold III of the Belgians, and his second wife, Princess Lilian of Belgium.
