Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant, will celebrate her 18th birthday tomorrow, October 25. She is the eldest child of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde, and heir apparent to the Belgian throne. And when Princess Elisabeth takes over from her father, she’ll make history as Belgium’s first queen to reign in her own right.

Ten years prior to her birth, a new act of succession was put into effect which means Elisabeth comes first in the line of succession because she is the eldest child, rather than the oldest boy.

This will make her the first ever queen regnant of Belgium – all those before her were Queen Consorts, the wife of the King.

The Princess’s coming of age celebrations next week will air live on Belgian television and a series of photographs were released in the run-up.

They were taken over the summer at the Castle of Laeken by Michel Gronemberger.

READ MORE

• The NEW Princess of Wales: Future Queen of Belgium moves to Wales

There are five photos in total released with the young future monarch showing a striking resemblance to her paternal grandmother, Queen Paola, in the images.

With the exception of one photograph alongside her father, King Philippe, the Duchess of Brabant features solo in the snaps.

The official ceremonies marking the 18th birthday of the heir start at 11am on October 25 at the Royal Palace in Brussels.

King Philippe will give a speech while there will be musical performances as well as a display by the Royal Ballet School of Antwerp.

The event will be attended by the Belgian Royal Family as well as politicians and dignitaries.

Friends of the family will also be present as will 80 other young people from across Belgium who celebrate their 18th birthdays in 2019.

The public will also get to hear from Elisabeth herself who is expected to make a speech.

A commemorative stamp is also being released, taken by her proud father this summer, by the Belgian post office.

DON’T MISS: 
Royal snub: Aides hit back at claims Meghan and Harry modernising [INSIGHT]
Meghan Markle gave up her whole way of life to marry into royal family [COMMENT]
The Queen does not watch The Crown because it is too realistic [INSIGHT]

READ MORE

• Royal news: Former king of Belgium agrees to take DNA paternity test

After the celebrations, Elisabeth will head back to Wales, where she currently goes to school.

These lavish celebrations will seem foreign to British royalists, as UK royals tend to keep celebrations under wraps.

With the exception of Trooping the Colour, the British royals never publicise their birthday plans.

However, there are still some royal traditions they indulge in.

During the Queen’s milestone birthdays she will have an official cake baker.

For her 90th birthday in 2016, Great British Bakeoff winner Nadia Hussein had the honour, making the monarch a three-tiered orange flavoured purple and gold cake.

For his fifth birthday, Prince George had a commemorative coin, which pictured his namesake, St George, fighting the legendary dragon.

Royal children generally have low-key birthdays similar to the other younger members of the general public.

For her third birthday, Charlotte spent the day at school, treated to a cake per nursery tradition for each attending child.

Source: Read Full Article