Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, the richest royal in Europe, has abdicated the throne in favor of his 43-year-old son, Guillaume, on Friday.
The 70-year-old monarch, who’s worth $4 billion, put an end to his 25-year reign over the small Western European country in a passing-of-the-torch ceremony at his gilded royal residence, the Grand Ducal Palace.
A lavish gala dinner is set to follow the ceremony, with French President Emmanuel Macron and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier expected to attend.
Dutch and Belgian royals, along with 60 parliament members, witnessed Guillaume swear an oath to Luxembourg’s constitution before becoming the symbolic head of state.
Guillaume will be the symbolic leader of the country’s 1,000-person army, which was one of NATO’s founding members after World War II.
Henri announced his abdication in Dec. 2024 from the throne of the world’s last remaining grand duchy.
Guillaume, the seventh grand duke since the country got its own monarchy in 1890, married Belgian-born Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy in 2012, and they share sons Charles, 5, and François, 2.
Like Henri, Guillaume received a military education at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in England, after attending ritzy European boarding schools.
Grand Duke Henri, who’s married to Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, amassed his staggering wealth through means unlike British royalty. Luxembourg’s royals receive just $11 million per year, compared to the $111 million annually given to King Charles and Queen Camilla.
Instead, Henri’s wealth comes from a portfolio of real estate and private holdings, large amounts of land, and pricey jewels, which got him into hot water in 2006 after trying to auction those belonging to his late mother, Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte.
Luxembourg has become a top financial hub, partially due to being a corporate tax haven.
It also plays an important role for the European Union, being home to the European Court of Justice and the European Investment Bank.
