Dutch Queen Beatrix will today enact a once-in-a-generation royal title change as she signs over her throne to her eldest son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander.
The widely popular Queen Bea, as she is affectionately known by the public, succeeded her mother, Juliana, as head of state in 1980. She announced her decision to relinquish the crown in January this year to “make way for a new generation”.
Beatrix, who turns 75 this year, is considered the longest serving and oldest reigning Dutch monarch. Her mother abdicated from the throne on her 71st birthday, and her grandmother Wilhemlmina resigned in 1948 at the age of 68.
“My mother taught me that being queen is a position that you carry around with you day and night. You can never forget about it, not for a moment” she said.
The role will now be handed to her eldest son, giving the Netherlands its first king in more than a century.
Though her abdication was widely expected, she is highly regarded for her scandal-free reign and her down-to-earth demeanor, considered significant in contrast with other European royal families.
Many royal observers believe that Queen Beatrix, who also holds a law degree, has retained the throne for so long in part because of unrest in Dutch society as the country shifts away from its traditional reputation as one of the world’s most tolerant nations.
Beatrix is reputed to be one of the richest women in the world, and the richest female monarch, narrowly beating Queen Elizabeth for the honour.
In a nationally televised farewell address on the eve of her abdication she paid tribute to her late husband Prince Claus and said he had helped to modernise the royal family.
“Perhaps history will bear out that the choice of my partner was my best decision” she said.
Her marriage to Claus, a German aristocrat, was initially marred by violent protests, as he had previously served in the Hitler Youth and the Wehrmacht, evoking bitter memories of the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands 20 years after World War II.
However, by his death in 2002, he was regarded as one of the most popular members of the Dutch monarchy.
While her ruling has been scandal free, it has not been without tragedy.
In 2009 seven people where killed when an attacker tried to drive his car into a bus carrying the royal family. His car slammed into the crowd, killing members of the public who were watching the queen in a national holiday parade.
In February last year her second son, Prince Frisco, was struck by an avalanche while skiing in Austria and remains in a coma.