Biography
Albert I (8 April 1875 – 17 February 1934) was King of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 until his death in 1934.
Albert was born in Brussels as the fifth child and second son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders, and Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Albert succeeded his uncle Leopold II to the Belgian throne in 1909. He married Elisabeth of Bavaria, with whom he had three children.
Albert ruled during an eventful period in the history of Belgium, which included the period of World War I (1914–1918), when most of Belgium was occupied by German forces. Other crucial events of his reign included the adoption of the Treaty of Versailles in June 1919, the ruling of the Belgian Congo as an overseas possession of Belgium along with the League of Nations mandate of Ruanda-Urundi, the reconstruction of Belgium following the war, and the first five years of the Great Depression (1929–1934).
Albert died in a mountaineering accident in eastern Belgium in 1934, at the age of 58, and he was succeeded by his son Leopold III (r. 1934–1951). He is popularly referred to as the Knight King (Dutch: Koning-Ridder, French: Roi-Chevalier) or Soldier King (Dutch: Koning-Soldaat, French: Roi-Soldat) in Belgium in reference to his role during World War I. Official biography from the Belgian Royal Family website
Funeral of King Albert of The Belgians, newsreel on the British Movietone YouTube Channel
Information about King Albert's mountaineering feats
Belgium in the First World War, including stories of the royal couple, in French
Archive Albert I of Belgium, Royal museum of central Africa
Newspaper clippings about Albert I of Belgium in the 20th Century Press Archives of the ZBW
Portraits of Albert I of Belgium at the National Portrait Gallery, London
Filmography
Information
Known ForActing
GenderMale
Birthday1875-04-08
Deathday1934-02-17 (58 years old)
Birth PlacePalace of the Count of Flanders, Belgium
ReligionCatholic Church
RelationshipsQueen Elisabeth of the Belgians (1900-10-02 - 1934-02-17)
ChildrenLeopold III of Belgium, Marie José of Belgium, Prince Charles, Count of Flanders
FatherPrince Philippe, Count of Flanders
MotherPrincess Marie, Countess of Flanders
SiblingsPrincess Henriette of Belgium, Prince Baudouin of Belgium, Princess Joséphine Marie of Belgium, Princess Joséphine Caroline of Belgium
CitizenshipsBelgium
ResidencesLoppem Castle · Palace of the Marquess of Assche, Belgium
AwardsSupreme Order of Christ, Order of Lāčplēsis, Order of the Star of Romania, Order of the Black Eagle, Order of the White Eagle, Order of the Rue Crown, Royal Order of the Lion, Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary, Order of Saint Stanislaus, Order of St. Andrew, Distinguished Flying Cross, Royal Order of the Seraphim, Military Cross, Order of Michael the Brave, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, Knight of the Garter, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav, Knight grand cross of the order of the crown of Italy, Knight Grand Cross in the Order of the Netherlands Lion, Collar of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum, Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour, Grand Croix of the Légion d'honneur, Order of St. George, 3rd class, Order of St. George, 4th class, Grand Cross of the Military Order of the Tower and Sword, Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, Knight of the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky, Order of Saint Anna, 1st class, Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Leopold II (Belgium), Grand Cross of the Order of Wissam El Alaouite, Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown, Order of Saint Stanislaus, 1st class, Grand Cross of the Military Order of Saint James of the Sword, Godfather promotion of Special Military School of Saint-Cyr, Doctor honoris causa of the University of Strasbourg, Bailiff Grand Cross of the Order of Saint John, Grand Cross of the Sash of the Three Orders, Grand Cross of the Order of the African Star, Grand Cross of the Order of Military Virtue, Order of the Three Stars, 1st Class, Grand Cross of the Order of Christ, Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of the White Rose of Finland, Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Vytis
This article uses material from Wikipedia.
King Albert I- Filmography
- Information