The New York Times today offers a profile of the King of the Belgian's mother, the Countess of Flanders. She is "regarded by the Belgians as one of the most gifted royal Princesses in Europe." She is an "accomplished artist in watercolors" as well as in embossed leatherwork, and she has promised to submit some of her paintings at the coming Brussels Worlds Fair.
The Countess is "greatly beloved" because of her "simple, human ways and her whole-hearted sympathy with the poor and needy." After the World's Fair, her paintings will be sold, and the proceeds will benefit several hospitals that treat "indigent tuberculosis patients."
King Albert's mother has great concern for those who suffer from the scourge of tuberculosis.
The Countess has also had a literary salon, which has been a "feature of Brussels social life for over forty years. The New York Times correspondent, who has been invited to the countess' events, noted that that the "habitués of her salon in the Flanders Palace," have included Alexandre Dumas fils, Guy de Maupassant, Robert Browning, the Duke of Aumale, Prince Napoleon, Carmen Sylva, King Oscar of Sweden, Queen Amelie of Portugal and Prince Henri d'Orleans.
The "salon has been essentially democratic and a gathering place for authors of every social status."
Queen Elisabeth of Roumania was one of the "most gifted and by all means the most sympathetic of the Countess's guests." As the writer Carmen Sylva, the queen offered lectures on "historical and philosophical topics," for the benefit of charity. These soirées were among the most glittering ever hosted by the Countess of Flanders.
The Duke of Aumale "was one of the most versatile and entertaining" of the countess' guests. He was a "brilliant conversationalist" and his talks ranged from his experiences in the Franco-Prussian War to the French Academy. Despite being a son of Louis Philippe, the duke was a noted admirer of Napoleon.
The Countess of Flanders was born Princess Marie of Hohenzollern on November 17, 1845. She married Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders, the younger brother of Leopold II, in Berlin on April 25, 1867.
They had five children, Prince Baudouin (1869-1891), Princess Henriette, born in 1870, who is married to the Duke of Vendome; Princess Josephine (1870-1871), Princess Josephine, born in 1872), and the wife of Prince Karl Anton of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, and King Albert II, born in 1875, who is married to Duchess Elisabeth in Bavaria.
The Count of Flanders died in November 1905. He was the heir to the throne after the death of Leopold II's only son, Leopold, who died at the age of ten in 1869. King Leopold II died in 1909 and was succeeded by Philippe's only surviving son, Prince Albert.
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