Grand Duke Henry of Luxembourg plans to abdicate.

He has been resigned since October 2000, but has not announced when he intends to step down.


Grand Duke Henry, Duke of Luxembourg, has revealed his plans to abdicate the throne of Luxembourg.

Henry (69 years old) has ruled the country since October 2000, and he said in a new interview with the Belgian newspaper “La Libre” that he knows when he will step down in favor of his son, Prince Guillaume, the hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg.


"There are plans. There will come a day when I have to do it, and I intend to retire at some point. It's obvious," Henry said.

The Grand Duke added: “All this was planned through family consultation. I find it very important to give young people perspective. Transference and trust are the essential elements in my relationship with my son Guillaume.

Henry and his wife Maria Theresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, had five children; Guillaume, 42, is the eldest. Prince Guillaume is married to Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy and they have two children: Prince Charles, 3, and Prince François, 1. He has not commented on his father's plans yet.

The planned abdication follows royal tradition in Luxembourg: in 1919, Grand Duchess Marie Adélaïde abdicated in favor of her younger sister Charlotte. Grand Duchess Charlotte then followed suit in 1964, passing the throne to her son Grand Duke Jean, who did the same in 2000 for Henry.

Henry will join a short list of monarchs who have abdicated this century, including his father in 2000 and, more recently, Queen Margrethe of Denmark, who stepped down in January in favor of her son, the current King of Denmark, Frederik X.

Unlike Grand Duke Henry, other European monarchs have no intention of abdicating. For example, King Harald of Norway, who has suffered from numerous health problems in recent years, said his job was “for life.” “I stand by what I have always said, which is that I have sworn an oath to Parliament, an oath for life,” Harald said earlier this year. It is likely that King Charles III, despite currently receiving treatment for cancer, will never abdicate.
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