Figure 1.--Prince Alexandre is seen with his father her at about age 5 or 6 in 1948. We wears a ruffled blouse that looks very much like thecones his father wore as a boy. Even the hair cut is similar. |
|
Prince Alexandre de Rethy was the younger half-brother of Baudouin and Albert. He was the son of King Leopold and his second wife, Marie Lilianne Baels, Princess de Rethy. They had two other children, both girls. Alexandre mustvhave led a rather eventful early life. First in the custody of the Germans and then loving in exile in Switzerland. Some of the clothes he wore as a young boy look rather like the clothes his father wore--the last Belgian prince to wear those styles. Other oufits show the styling of the post-War era.
Leopold as the eldest son of King Albert I ascended to the throne in 1934 as Leopold III
after the tragic death of his revered father. Although greeted with great warmth by the Belgian people, his reputation was tarnished by the colapse of the Belgian Army in World War II. This was probably unfair as no country let alone a small country like Belgium was able to stop the Whermacht in the early years of the War. Even his courageous resistance to the Germans during the occupation was not able to improve his reputation. Thus when the Allies entered Belgium in 1944, Leopold was never returned to the throne. His brother Charles served as regent until 1951 when his son Baudouin was crowned.
Leopold mairred Marie Lilianne Baels, later created Princess de Rethy, in a religious ceremony on September 11, 1941, during the German occupation. The civil ceremony took place on December 6, 1941 at Laeken Castle. This mairrage was not popular in Belgium. Not only was his wife a commoner, but she was widely viewed as pro-NAZI.
Alexander had siblings from both of his father's mairages. His father had three childrten with Queen Elizabeth and then three children with Alexandre's mother, Marie Lilianne Baels, Princess de Rethy.
Leopold and Elizabeth's first child, Josephine-Charlotte, was born in 1927. Josephine-Charlotte of Belgium married Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg.
Almost 3 years later, an heir was born. He was given the name of Baudouin in memory of his deceased great-uncle who was supposed to have been king. Baudouin married doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón. The couple's youngest child, Albert, married donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria and inherited the Belgian throne from his brother Baudouin in 1993. The present heir to the Belgian throne, Prince Philippe, is the eldest son of Albert and Paola.
Astrid a few months after becoming Queen in 1934 gave birth to yet another little prince, Albert (Prince of Liege) in Brussels at the Château du Stuyvenberg on June 6, 1934.. King Baudouin had no heirs so his brother Albert took the constitutional oath on August 9, 1993, and ascended to the throne of Belgium, becoming the sixth King of the Belgians. King Albert has been married to Donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria since 2 July 1959.
Alexandre was born in 1942 during the heighth of German occupation, the first child of his father's second mairrage. He was styled Prince Alexander de Rethy was the younger half-brother of Baudouin and Albert.
HBRC has little information on Alexander's childhood, but it must have been very eventful. He was born in 1942 while his father was in the custody of the Germans in Belgium and then alter taken to Germany and Austria where they were liberated by American forces. Because of the King's unpopulartity, the family could not return to Belgium and lived in Switzerland. Some photographs exist of a trip to the Netherlands duiring this time. Eventually they returned to Beligium in 1950, but his father was forced to abdicate. HBRC has no informnation on Alexandre's relationship with his older brothers and sisters or indeed what they thought of their father's second mairrage. Based on available images, however, there appears to have been a very warm relationship among the boys.
|
Available images provide some information on the clothing Aleandre wore as a younger boy. Some are quite similar to the clothes that his father wore as a boy. Many of those styles appear quit dated by the late 1940s. Alexandre was Sthe last Belgian prince to wear those styles. Other oufits show the styling of the post-War era. Alexandre wears a ruffled blouse which looks very much like the ones his father and uncle wore as boys. It is an offen necked blouse which appears to button on to his short pants. The blouse has ruffles at both the neck and short sleeves. This is the only major difference, that the blouse had short sleeves. Short sleeved shirts and blouses were not commonly worn until after World War I (1914-18). Alexandre's pants are sifferent than the ones worn by his father who wire longer=length knee pants. Note the buttons on the legs od his father's photographs. Alexandre wears button on short pamts cut much shorter and without the buttons at the leg hem. HBRC does not have full details about rompers. We belirve they are primarily a style that appear after World War I, but theu may have been worn in the 1910s as well. Rompers during the 1940s and 50s were still worn by younger European boys--generally with shorter styling than before World War II. I'm not sure what the French term for rompers was. Alenandre wears a sunsuit-type romper with a bin front in a ginham pattern. I'm not sure what color it would have been, presumably either red or blue. Alexander at a slightly older age, perhaps about 7 or 8, wears a dark blue sailor suit about 1950. His sailor suit is just like his father wore, except with lace up rather than strap shoes. In several photographs Alenandre wears white ankle socks. Presumbaly with other outfits he also wore kneesocks. Alexandre in the photographs of him as a younger boy wears white lace up high-top shoes. With his sailor suit he appears to be wearing laceup Oxfords. The available images all show Alexandre as a younger boy in the late 1940s. I'm not sure what he wore as an older boy in the mid-1950s.
Aleandre wears his hair long, rather like his father and uncle did. As a toddler in a variety of fancy outfits he wears his hsair long, sometines curled. The curls wererther like the ones his fsther wore, short curls over hisears, but well off his shoulders. We salso see a more bushy uncurled style. At about age 5 or 6 we see him wearng atraditinal sailor suit with somewhat shorter hsair cut in bangs. In the photograph on the sailor suit his hair is stull long, but does not look as styled as in the other photographs. It is kind of a sgaggy page boy bangs cut. We are not yet just sure whenn his hsair was cut short and worn with a part.
Prince Alexander was born during the German occupation of Belgium. For most of the occupation, the Royal Family was held under tight security, but in relastively comfortasbkle circumstances in Belgium. They were interned in his castle at Laeken, Brussels. AfterD-Day as the Allies liberated France and approached Belgium, the retreating Germans took the King and his family with them as they fell back into the Reich. They were finally liberated by American soldiers in Austria. The King was unable, however, to resume his reign or even live in Belgium. His war time actions were cointroversial and his new wife unpopular. Thus Alexander did not grow up in Belgium.
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site royal pages:
[Return to the Main Leopold III page]
[Return to the Main Belgium page]
[Austria]
[France]
[Germany]
[Italy]
[Monaco]
[Netherlands]
[Norway]
[Romania]
[Russia]
[Spain]
[United Kingdom]
