"Not an eternity"

Date for change of throne in Luxembourg still secret

Luxembourg's Grand Duke Henri (far left) wants to step down and hand over more responsibility to his son Guillaume (right). He does not yet want to reveal when the change of throne will take place.

(Bild: APA/AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Luxembourg's Grand Duke Henri does not yet want to reveal the date of the change of throne. "But it is clear that it will not take an eternity," he said in an interview published by the palace on the occasion of the imminent appointment of his son Guillaume as his deputy. 

The governorship is the first step. "And then we will continue with the second step," said the 69-year-old, who has been head of state of the second smallest country in the EU since 2000.

Date set for change of throne
The date for the change of throne has already been set. "Yes, we know it. We have already discussed it," said Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume. The 42-year-old will be appointed "Lieutenant-Représentant" by his father on Tuesday and will then take over "certain responsibilities", while Grand Duke Henri (69) will remain Head of State.

Guillaume said he was "ready": the timing of his appointment was ideal and he felt well prepared. He sees the time until his accession to the throne as "part of the learning process". And admitted that he was "a little nervous" before the ceremony.

More responsibility for Guillaume
"I really want to give Prince Guillaume a lot more responsibility, because I think I really need to take my foot off the gas," said Grand Duke Henri. For example, as Lieutenant Governor, his son will take care of accreditations and receptions for ambassadors and sign decrees on behalf of the Grand Duke.

He is "a little nervous", admitted Guillaume.

(Bild: www.viennareport.at)

However, Henri said that he would continue to handle everything to do with state visits and major events in the country himself. The future heir to the throne Guillaume emphasized that he would also continue his previous economic missions and activities in the social sector and with young people during his governorship.

Guillaume said that he attaches great importance to family life and wants to be present as a father of two. He will therefore continue to drive his school-age son to school every morning - and put both children to bed at night, he said. In order to better separate work and private life, a new family home will be built on the grounds of Schloss Berg.

A time of transition
Grand Duke Henri said that the future period would be a transition. However, he and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa were already looking forward to the new phase in their lives. "I don't really like the word retirement, but that's exactly what it is," he said. For now, he is looking forward to "taking it a bit easier".

Grand Duke Henri is looking forward to "stepping back a little".

(Bild: APA/AFP/Marco BERTORELLO)

One of the most important tasks of a Grand Duke is to "maintain national unity", said Henri. There are ten monarchies in Europe. "They are all more or less accepted." He sees his office "as a service to the nation, to the people, to the country of Luxembourg", said the Grand Duke. "If the people here no longer want a monarchy, then we will do something else."

The only Grand Duchy in the world
Henri himself had become "Lieutenant-Représentant" two and a half years before his father Jean abdicated. Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume has been married to Princess Stéphanie, a Belgian countess, since October 2012. 

Luxembourg is the only Grand Duchy in the world still in existence today and has around 670,000 inhabitants. Grand Duke is a title for monarchs of a rank between King and Duke. The Luxembourg dynasty is also known as the House of Luxembourg-Nassau.