On September 14, 2023, King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium made a special visit to the capital city of Italy, Rome. On the morning of September 14, King Philippe and Queen Mathilde visited Vatican City for a private audience with Pope Francis. The King and Queen were received by Pope Francis. The King and Queen then met with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican's Secretary for Relations with States.
Nice to see that the queen exercising her right to „ Privilège du blanc“.
ردحذفAnd how i miss the late queen e., who chose colour for one of her visits...
حذفThe late Queen E., whom I miss dreadfully too, would not have worn white to a Vatican visit anyway. This is a privilege only given (or now exercised by own decision by the visiting lady) to Queens or wives of Kings who are catholic. According to my knowledge, currently the Queens Mathilde and Letizia are allowed to wear white should they wish to, and also Princess Charlene of Monaco, Grandduchess Maria Teresa of Luxemburg, and the Princess of Liechtenstein (there is none right now, she died in 2021: Liechtenstein only has Hereditary Princess Sophie, wife of Hereditary Prince Alois).
حذفQueen Mathilde is always so elegant, so traditional. I can't imagine her going with the come-as-you-are trend when visiting the pontiff. She sticks to the old way and it suits her perfectly.
حذفAs a catholic queen married to a catholic king, Queen Mathilde used her "privilège du blanc" when received on a private visit by Pope Francis. Her coat dress has been created by Meer couture, a Belgian designer who made other coat-dresses for her in the past. Love her shoes and clutch. The veil looks like it is a beautiful piece of lace. Maybe Brussels lace, but I did not found any information on that.
ردحذفWhat a beautiful outfit. Queen Mathilde looks amazing and the lace veil is stunning.
حذفMathilde looks lovely, all three do. Am wondering though... wouldn't it be about time to have equal dress codes for men and women? It's always argued that it is a tradition that women cover their head, but why don't men have to. It would be a small adjustment to modern times and set an important message about gender parity. Either way would work - both cover their heads or both don't.
ردحذفIt is just a thought; of course I do not want to start any religious discussions here.
What a silly suggestion.
حذف15.53, i agree completely with you, it's about time.
حذفIt is a tradition that I've always knew : men when they entered church took of their hat. It was a form of being polite. Women on the contrary went to church with a hat on and kept it on during mass. Nowadays men and women are not wearing hats anymore, unless on special occasions like funerals or men when wearing a uniform.
حذفWhen on audience with the Pope a catholic queen had to wear a long white dress and a veil (also called a "mantilla") made of lace. Common women had to wear a black dress and a black veil. Nowadays on demand of Pope Francis it is not necessary anymore to be dressed like that. People men and women and children can wear their civilian clothes when meeting him. Of course if a catholic queen prefers to wear white she still can do it. But one already see a difference with Queen Paola who wore a long dress, instead of a dress with a normal length. Rose
Actually Pope Francis has relaxed the dress code. Women don't have to wear a veil and can also wear any colour. It's Mathilde's own choice to go with the veil and her traditional privilege du blanc, but I think it's very pretty.
حذفWell, it's the same with other cultures/ religijnie, Jewish men cover their heads when entering synagogue and women don't. Really don't need everything to be identical! Zofia
حذفCan we please give it a rest with this gender equality madness? Men uncover their heads as a sign of respect. Women cover their heads out of respect. It's worked perfectly well since Biblical times and has harmed no one. Enough already!!
حذفCome on. Let's try and keep at least some traditions, haven't we got rid of enough of them in the last 50 years? I don't get why everything has to be modernized.
حذفOh, I love to see the “Privilège du blanc” being fulfilled by a catholic royal lady. There are only a very few women allowed to wear white for a meeting with the pope (reigning royal house, catholic, Queen), and Mathilde is one of them.
ردحذفMathilde looks very good here and her husband looks smart and handsome, too.
Missy
I agree.
حذفIf I was one of the few women in the world with privilège du blanc, I would absolutely exercise that privilege. I hope the women who are granted the privilege continue to honor the tradition.
حذفbeautiful in white royal exemption
ردحذفLe couple royal belge a été reçu au Vatican ; ce n’est pas la première fois que la reine Mathilde fait usage de son privilège du blanc pour rencontrer le pape ; son voile ou mantille est vraiment magnifique !
ردحذفIls ont l'air d'y croire.............
ردحذفI also like the understated dignity of the accessory of the Pope: the standing cane.
ردحذفTo anon 15:53
ردحذفI want to respond to your suggestion that women stop wearing head coverings to meet the Pope. You wrote: "It would be a small adjustment to modern times and set an important message about gender parity." I do not think so. Gender equality does not mean that women and men should wear the same things. For example -skirts and romantic dresses suit women, men don't and even if Harry Styles tries (seeking attention at all costs), he looks stupid and ridiculous.
As a Catholic, I can say that we don't wear head coverings at all in church when it's warm, but only in winter we have hats. The women keep them on during the whole mass, the men take them off as a sign of respect. It's traditional and I like it. The Pope visited my country (Slovakia) two years ago (I was there and met him), none of the women wearing weil or hat (it was september), not even our lady president Mrs Caputova. On the contrary, during the state visit to the Vatican, Mrs. President wore a veil. This means that the veil is intended for receiving visits to the Vatican at the highest level. Give the words "president Caputova & pope Francis" into the "google" and you will see. She is a very charming lady with a sense of fashion.
Stephanie
A very good dress design for the queen. The lace head covering is beautiful and adds elegance to the outfit. The kings suit fits well, both dressed respectfully for such a privileged visit
ردحذفThe Royal couple were very reverent and dignified. The lace head gear looks elegant and subtle. The Queen looks lovely. The King looks well groomed and appropriately dressed. A lovely visit.
ردحذفVery nice, love this white dress. css
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