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Heir to the Luxembourgish throne (born 1981) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Prince Guillaume, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg (Guillaume Jean Joseph Marie; born 11 November 1981), is the heir apparent to the Luxembourg throne and current regent of the country since October 2024, as the son of Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa.
| Prince Guillaume | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg (more) | |||||
.jpg) Guillaume in 2024 | |||||
| Regent of Luxembourg | |||||
| Regency | 8 October 2024 – present | ||||
| Monarch | Henri | ||||
| Born | Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg 11 November 1981 Grand Duchess Charlotte Maternity Hospital, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg | ||||
| Spouse | |||||
| Issue | Prince Charles of Luxembourg Prince François of Luxembourg | ||||
| |||||
| House | Luxembourg-Nassau (official)[1] Bourbon-Parma (agnatic) | ||||
| Father | Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg | ||||
| Mother | María Teresa Mestre y Batista | ||||
| Religion | Roman Catholic | ||||
Prince Guillaume was born on 11 November 1981 at the Grand Duchess Charlotte Maternity Hospital in Luxembourg City and is the eldest child of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and his wife, Cuban-born Grand Duchess Maria Teresa.[2] His godparents are Princess Marie Astrid of Luxembourg and Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg. Guillaume has four younger siblings: Prince Félix, Prince Louis, Princess Alexandra and Prince Sébastien.
Guillaume's education includes Lycée Robert-Schumann in Luxembourg;[3] Swiss boarding schools the Institut Le Rosey and the Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil where he finished the French baccalaureate in 2001;[3] and Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Camberley, England.[3] He began his higher education studies in the United Kingdom where he studied at University College, Durham and Brunel University, both in England.[4] In 2006 he entered Institut Philanthropos in Fribourg, Switzerland, where he spent a year studying philosophy and anthropology. He later studied letters and political science at the Institut Albert-le-Grand in Angers, receiving his bachelor's degree with honors in 2009. His degree was issued by Université d'Angers,[3] as a result of a partnership agreement between the two schools. From 2018 until 2019, Prince Guillaume attended a postgraduate training at the Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) in London.[5]
The Hereditary Grand Duke completed internships at the Belgian Chemical Union in 2003, at the Deutsche Bank in London in 2004, and at the Spanish branch of ArcelorMittal in 2005.[5] Sworn in December 2002 as an officer in the Luxembourg Army, Prince Guillaume holds the rank of colonel.[5]
Guillaume has been heir apparent to the crown of Luxembourg since his father's accession in 2000. On his future succession to the grand ducal throne, he will reign as Guillaume V (English: William V).
Guillaume became the honorary chairman of the Board of Economic Development of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, an agency for economic promotion and development, in March 2001.[6][5] He has also been a member of the Council of State since 24 June 2005.[6] He attended the Millennium Conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York City in 2005.[5] Prince Guillaume also worked at the European Commission and the Permanent Representation of Luxembourg to the European Union in Brussels in 2012.[5]
The Hereditary Grand Duke is patron of the Luxembourg Cycling Sport Federation, Youth Hostels Central, National Association of Road Victims, Chamber Orchestra of Luxembourg, Youth Harmony Orchestra of the European Union, as well as to Young Entrepreneurs Luxembourg and Special Olympics Luxembourg Associations.[6]
During the summer of 1997, Guillaume participated as a member of Luxembourg Scout Movement in a humanitarian camp in Nepal. He was involved in a reforestation project and other actions for the benefit of less fortunate communities. In 2017, the Hereditary Grand Duke joined the board of directors of the World Scout Foundation to support the development of scouting around the world.[6]
In 1999, he participated in a charitable mission in Aguascalientes to provide the educational and social assistance to young people in one of the most deprived areas in Mexico. After having chaired the Kräizbierg Foundation, which works for people with disabilities, for more than 10 years (2000–2011), the Hereditary Grand Duke accepted the title of honorary president in March 2011.[6]
Since 18 January 2016, the Hereditary Grand Duke has been a member of the board of directors of Europäische Stiftung Kaiserdom zu Speyer Foundation.[6] He is also a member of the board of directors of the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grande-Duchesse.[6]
On 8 October 2024, as had been announced by Grand Duke Henri on his Official Birthday that year, Prince Guillaume was appointed as lieutenant representative (regent).[7] Under this capacity, he assumed a number of his father's constitutional powers,[8] such as the swearing in of ambassadors and the signing of Grand Ducal Decrees. This is traditionally the first step in the abdication process in Luxembourg.[9]
On interviews for his 30th birthday, he stated that he was in a relationship with a "dear miss" that had been going strong for more than a year but needed more time to evaluate their possible future. On 26 April 2012, the court announced the engagement of the Hereditary Grand Duke to the Belgian Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy.[10] The civil wedding took place on Friday, 19 October 2012; the religious wedding took place on Saturday, 20 October 2012, at the Notre-Dame Cathedral.[11]
Guillaume and Stéphanie have two sons, named Charles (born 10 May 2020) and François Henri Louis Marie Guillaume (born 27 March 2023), who are second and third in the line of succession to the throne of Luxembourg, respectively.[12][13]
Guillaume is interested in music and sports; he plays the piano and enjoys football, swimming and volleyball. He speaks Luxembourgish, French, German, Spanish and English. He regularly represents his parents in many foreign activities.[2]
| Styles of The Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
| Reference style | His Royal Highness |
| Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
His style and title in full is: His Royal Highness Prince Guillaume Jean Joseph Marie, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Hereditary Prince of Nassau, Prince of Bourbon-Parma.[14]
| Country | Date | Appointment | Ribbon | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Luxemburg |
11 December 1999 | Knight of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau |  |
[15] |
| Grand Cross of Order of Adolphe of Nassau |  |
[16] | ||
| 23 June 2012 | Grand Cross of the Order of the Oak Crown |  |
||
 Belgium |
Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown |  |
||
 France |
Grand Officer of the Order of the Legion of Honour |  |
||
 Italy |
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic |  |
[17][18] | |
 Netherlands |
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau |  |
||
| Recipient of the King Willem-Alexander Inauguration Medal |  |
|||
 Portugal |
23 May 2017 | Grand Cross of the Order of Aviz |  |
[19] |
 Senegal |
24 February 2023 | Commander of the National Order of the Lion |  |
|
 Slovakia |
Grand Officer of the Order of the White Double Cross |  |
[20] | |
 United Kingdom |
22 September 2020 | Recipient of the Sandhurst Medal |  |
[21] |
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