Constitutional Monarchy
The Belgian Congress chose Louis, Duke of Nemours, the second son of the French king Louis-Philippe, to be king of Belgium. However, the French king, heeding the advice of Lord Palmerston of the British Foreign Office, repudiated the offer. Lord Palmerston and the Great Powers desired a strong leader to prevent Belgium from falling under the control of France, and to prevent the outbreak of war. Erasme Louis Surlet de Chokier was appointed Regent of Belgium on 25 February 1831. On 4 June the Congress chose Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg as king — a strong and political choice as Leopold was not only talented and capable but well connected to both Britain and France. Leopold I took the oath as King of the Belgians on 21 July 1831. Leopold I of Belgium was German, a British royal, a Protestant and a freemason.
Read more about this topic: Belgian Revolution
Famous quotes containing the word monarchy:
“The Sovereign has, under a constitutional monarchy such as ours, three rights—the right to be consulted, the right to encourage, the right to warn. And a king of great sense and sagacity would want no others.”
—Walter Bagehot (1826–1877)