Tonight we watched a programme on Queen Beatrix. This Thursday she will resign after a reign of 33 years. The reportage showed images of the life of a royal girl taking on the task of queen. Impressive. I have seen images I never saw before, or maybe I just see them different as I am older now. Or maybe because I am researching chick lit* 😉
On the day she graduated, in the company of her mother Queen Juliana
Beatrix studied law school in Leiden, and graduated in 1959. She was a young professional woman. There are two men we sortofknow of that were ‘friends’ with the princess during her stay in Leiden.
Quirky answer on camera in the US in 1959
She loved to travel and met President Eisenhower in the US. On television she was asked how she would spend her night off, when she giggled and said she wasn’t going to tell. {This shows a great understanding of PR: a secret can add to the magic ;-)}
In 1962 she visits India.
Going places as a bachelor girl
There’s also footage of her riding an elephant over there, I just found out. She had a taste for adventure!
Princess Beatrix rides through streets on elephant, meets King Bhumipol and Queen Sirikit.
Watch the film here.
The Other Hitchcock Girl in Royal Window
She could be a movie star, her life story would make a perfect scenario! There’s royalty and common folk, intrigue, scandal (in the family), sad losses, but most of all love and passion.
1965: A snapshot taken from the shrubs: Spotted in the garden with “an unknown man”
And ofcourse there are the gritty snapshots, stolen private moments of a princess dating. The unknown man in the picture above turned out to be Claus von Amsberg – a delicate detail to him at the time was his German background – but he was a sweetheart and they were in love. A fairy tale development.
I do (March 10 1966)
But, back to reality, she was to become queen, and accepted her call in 1980.
At work / Not just play 1980
Her private life has seen great ups and deep downs, but she managed, worked hard to do a good job – being the queen, a mother, and a wife. Like many a modern woman in that sense, the storyline has chick lit potential.
*) Romantic fiction – Literature that appeals mainly to women.
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PS | 2018 | Charity shop find, the story.
PS | Beatrix finds Mr Big
