A Constitutional Monarchy
Belgium is a constitutional hereditary monarchy with King Albert II becoming the sixth King of the Belgians after the death of his elder brother, King Baudouin, in 1993. He is Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and holds the ranks of Lieutenant-General and Vice-Admiral.

The monarch’s role in Belgium is as an arbitrator and as the guardian of the unity and independence of the country. The King is assisted by a number of advisers, including a Head of Cabinet who handles political and administrative matters, and liaison with the government and political circles. The King has a meeting with the Prime Minister once a week.

In addition to receiving Belgians from all walks of life, the King also receives a large number of foreign dignitaries, such as visiting Heads of State and Ambassadors, as well as undertaking tours both abroad and at home.

King Albert II
King Albert II was born in Brussels in 1934, the second son of King Leopold III and Queen Astrid. As Prince of Liège, he served as Chairman of the Belgian Red Cross for almost 40 years and distinguished himself as Honorary President of the Belgian Office of Foreign Trade. Since acceding to the throne, King Albert has made a number of State Visits to European countries as well as to Japan and China.

Queen Paola
Queen Paola was born Donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria, the daughter of Prince Fulco Ruffi di Calabria and Countess Louisa Gazelli of Italy. She married the then Prince Albert in 1959. A mother of three, she has dedicated her efforts to the young, in particular to the Queen Paola Foundation for Children in less fortunate circumstances. She is also Chairwoman of the Belgian branch of AMADE, a worldwide foundation established by the late Princess Grace of Monaco in 1964 to befriend all children regardless of race or creed.

Crown Prince Philippe
Born in 1960, Prince Philippe is the eldest son of King Albert II and Queen Paola, and is heir to the throne. In the last European royal marriage of the 20th century, Prince Philippe married Miss Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, now Princess Mathilde, on December 4, 1999.
The couple has a daughter, Princess Elisabeth, born on 25 October 2001 and two sons, Prince Gabriel, born on 20 August 2003, and Prince Emmanuel, born on 4 October 2005.

Prince Philippe trained as a pilot with the Belgian Air Force and then as a paratrooper before studying at Trinity College, Oxford, and Stanford University, California, where he graduated Master of Arts in political science. He has been Honorary President of the Belgian Office of Foreign Trade since 1993 and as such makes frequent trips abroad. In recent years these have included visits to Hong Kong, New York, Seoul, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Santiago de Chile, Australia, New Zealand, California, Poland, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, Turkey, China and India. 

Princess Mathilde
Princess Mathilde, the wife of Prince Philippe, was born in 1973, the daughter of Mr Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz and Countess Anne Komorowski. She studied speech therapy in Brussels and established her own practice in the city in 1995.

The Princess is actively engaged in a number of fields relating to special needs. The Princess Mathilde Fund was set up in December 2000 aimed at identifying and supporting projects that are likely to improve the situation of vulnerable persons. She took part in the 2002 United Nations Conference on Children's Rights and, at the invitation of Unicef and the Belgian Agency for Development Cooperation, has traveled on humanitarian missions to Niger and Mali, emphasizing children's rights, health, female empowerment, poverty eradication and good governance. Princess Mathilde was also a United Nations Envoy for the International Year on Micro-Credit and is a Unicef and ONUSIDA Special Representative for the international campaign on orphans and children made vulnerable by HIV/Aids.

Princess Astrid
The second of the royal children, Princess Astrid was born in 1962 and in 1984 married Archduke Lorenz of Austria. They have five children: Prince Amedeo, Princess Maria Laura, Prince Joachim, Princess Luisa Maria and Princess Laetitia Maria. Princess Astrid studied art history at Leiden and completed her education in Geneva, Switzerland, and Michigan in the US. Currently Chairwoman of the Belgian Red Cross, Princess Astrid takes a particular interest in humanitarian affairs as well as representing the Belgian Crown at home and abroad.

Prince Laurent
The younger son of King Albert and Queen Paola, Prince Laurent was born in Brussels in 1963 and is married to Princess Claire, formerly Miss Claire Coombs. Their first child, Princess Louise, was born in February 2004. Prince Laurent studied at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels before joining the Navy, where he became a helicopter pilot and a combat diver. He has also studied at a US university and spent time with the International Monetary Fund, the UN Development Program and the UN Environment Program. He has since established the Royal Institute for Management of Sustainable Resources and the Promotion of Clean Technologies and is President of the Prince Laurent Foundation for the Welfare of Domestic and Wild Animals.

Queen Fabiola
Born Fabiola Mora y Aragon in Madrid, Spain, in 1928, Queen Fabiola is the widow of the late King Baudouin. She has devoted her life to helping children and the needy and continues to be active with a number of charities, in particular the Queen Fabiola Foundation for the Handicapped. Her interests also include supporting some notable cultural programs established by Queen Elisabeth, the wife of King Albert I.