Picture by Anja Feßer, Thüringische Staatskanzlei.
Tuesday, 9 July 2019, Free State of Thuringia, Germany: The King and Queen of Belgians paid an official visit to Thuringia with a focus on cultural, historical and genealogically relevant sites.
In fact, after Their Majesties’ arrival at Erfurt Airport, they headed summarily to Gotha, or rather to Friedenstein Castle for a leg of the trip dedicated to family history.
Premier of Thuringia Bodo Ramelow and his spouse Germana Alberti vom Hofe welcomed the Royal Couple, and their delegation which included the Premier of the German-Speaking Community of Belgium, Oliver Paasch, the Belgian Ambassador to Germany Baron Willem van de Voorde and his wife Baroness Dr. Kristin van de Voorde. HH The Duke [Andreas] of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha accompanied by his heir, Hereditary Prince Hubertus and the latter’s wife Hereditary Princess Kellyalso partook in this part of the programme.
The subsequent part of the programme was a visit to Weimar, which included the Buchenwald Memorial, the New Museum and the newly reopened Bauhaus Museum in Weimar. The visit to the Buchenwald Memorial took place in remembrance of the more than 4000 Belgian prisoners imprisoned between 1940 and 1945, more than 500 of whom died. In Weimar, the focus is on the 100th anniversary of the Bauhaus and the city of culture and classics.
For further information:
Government of Thuringia: https://www.staatskanzlei-thueringen.de/medienservice/veranstaltungsberichte/besuch-belgien-koenigspaar-2019/
Royal Belgian Embassy to Germany (HE Ambassador Baron Willem van de Voorde): https://diplomatie.belgium.be/en/germany?fbclid=IwAR3aGgrvNdd3swIGbGz3UbmkfdzAdRp4Gq77taVvF1kmJtffI1qkmvJrZuc
Bauhaus in Weimar: https://diplomatmagazine.eu/2019/04/24/bauhaus-museum-weimar-opens/
