Beatrix of the Netherlands

Beatrix
Beatrix in 2015
Queen of the Netherlands
Reign30 April 1980 – 30 April 2013
Inauguration30 April 1980
PredecessorJuliana
SuccessorWillem-Alexander
Born (1938-01-31) 31 January 1938 (age 86)
Soestdijk Palace, Baarn, Netherlands
Spouse
(m. 1966; died 2002)
Issue
Detail
Names
Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard
House
FatherPrince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld
MotherJuliana of the Netherlands
ReligionProtestant
SignatureBeatrix's signature

Beatrix[1] (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbeːjaːtrɪks ˌʋɪlɦɛlˈminaː ˈʔɑr(ə)mɡɑrt] ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013.

Beatrix was born during the reign of her maternal grandmother, Queen Wilhelmina, and became heiress presumptive upon the accession of her mother, Queen Juliana, in 1948. Beatrix attended a public primary school in Canada during World War II, and then finished her primary and secondary education in the Netherlands in the post-war period. In 1961, she received her law degree from Leiden University. In 1966, Beatrix married Claus von Amsberg, a German diplomat, with whom she had three children. When her mother abdicated on 30 April 1980, Beatrix succeeded her as queen.

Beatrix's reign saw the country's Caribbean possessions reshaped with Aruba's secession and becoming its own constituent country within the kingdom in 1986. This was followed by the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010, which created the new special municipalities of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba, and the two new constituent countries of Curaçao and Sint Maarten.

On Koninginnedag (Queen's Day), 30 April 2013, Beatrix abdicated in favour of her eldest son, Willem-Alexander.[2] At the time of her abdication at age 75, Beatrix was the oldest reigning monarch in the country's history.[3]

  1. ^ Members of the Royal House: Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands – official website of the Royal house of the Netherlands
  2. ^ de Jong, Perro (30 April 2013). "The Netherlands' love and respect for Beatrix". BBC. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  3. ^ Myrtille van Bommel, "Beatrix oldest Dutch reigning monarch Archived 3 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine", Radio Netherlands Worldwide, 2011. Retrieved on 2012-05-15.