Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg

Accession

On 4 March 1998, Prince Henri was appointed as lieutenant-representative by his father, Grand Duke Jean, meaning that he assumed most of his father's constitutional powers. On 7 October 2000, immediately following the abdication of his father, Henri acceded as Grand Duke of Luxembourg and took the constitutional oath before the Chamber of Deputies later that day.

Role and interests

As the head of a constitutional monarchy, Grand Duke Henri's duties were primarily representative. However, he retained the constitutional power to appoint the prime minister and government, to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies, to promulgate laws and to accredit ambassadors. With few exceptions, however, he was bound by convention to act on the advice of the government. Grand Duke Henri was commander-in-chief of the Luxembourg Army, in which he holds the rank of general. In addition, he was made an honorary major in the British Army's Parachute Regiment, effective 19 July 1989.^[6]

One of the grand duke's main functions is to represent Luxembourg in the field of foreign affairs. In May 2001, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa undertook their first foreign state visit to Spain at the invitation of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía of Spain.

Grand Duke Henri is a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), a member of The Mentor Foundation (established by the World Health Organization) and a director of the Charles Darwin Trust for the Galápagos Islands.^[7]

During his reign, Henri lived with his family at Berg Castle in Colmar-Berg. He also has a holiday home in Cabasson, a village in the commune of Bormes-les-Mimosas in Southern France.^[8]

Henri was alleged by Business Insider to be one of the world's richest monarchs, with a net worth estimated around US$4 billion in 2019,^[9] though representatives of the grand duke's administration have disputed this claim as seeming to incorrectly account for historical and cultural property not actually owned by the grand ducal family, and claimed that the real value of their net worth was "a fraction of these $4 billion".^[10]

Media and publicity controversies

Since the accession of Henri to the Grand Ducal Throne in 2000, the court's approach to media and publicity has varied markedly.^{[citation needed]} In 2002, Grand Duke Henri expressly identified himself with a press conference called by Maria Teresa with a view to discussing with journalists the shortcomings of her personal relations with her mother-in-law Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte.^{[citation needed]}

In contrast, when the grand ducal couple's first grandchild was born in 2006, the Court Circular pointedly omitted to mention the event, probably as the father Prince Louis was not married at the time.^{[citation needed]} However, the pregnancy was announced in 2005, so the country was informed that the prince and his girlfriend were going to be parents. The press also had access to the child's baptism.^{[citation needed]}

The grand ducal family's approach to media and publicity issues has given rise to media comment regarding the quality of communications advice which has been sought and followed.^{[citation needed]} As well as the public airing of the difficulties between the grand duchess and her mother-in-law, several other events have resulted in adverse publicity, most notably: in 2004, the opening of parliament by the grand duke in person, the first time in over 100 years the monarch had done so; in 2005, the grand duke announced he intended to vote in favour of the European Constitution in the impending referendum, only to be reminded by senior politicians that he had no such right. The proposed sale of large tracts of the Gruenewald in the summer of 2006 was shortly followed by the proposed sale (cancelled shortly afterwards) at Sotheby's of recently deceased Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte's effects.^[11]

Euthanasia and constitutional reform controversies

On 2 December 2008, it was announced that Grand Duke Henri had stated he would refuse to give his assent to a new law on euthanasia that had been passed earlier in the year by the Chamber of Deputies.^[12] Under the constitution then, the grand duke "sanctions and promulgates the laws" meaning the need for the grand duke's sanction or approval was required in order for laws to take effect. In the absence of clarity on the long-term implications for the constitutional position of the grand duke posed by such a refusal, it was announced by Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker that a constitutional amendment would be brought forward.^{[citation needed]}

The Luxembourg ruling house had tried to block a decision by Parliament only once before, when Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde refused to sign a bill in 1912 to reduce the role of Roman Catholic priests within the education system.^[13] The ultimate solution was that the grand duke would be declared unable to perform his duty temporarily. This was similar to the "escape route" provided to his uncle King Baudouin of Belgium when he refused to sign an abortion law in 1991; thus the law could take effect without the signature of the grand duke, but also without the need to enact far-reaching changes in the constitution.^{[citation needed]}

Article 34 of the constitution was subsequently amended to remove the term "assent",^[14] leaving the relevant provision to read: "The Grand Duke promulgates the laws..." As a result, his signature is still needed but it is clear that his signature is automatic and that he has no freedom of decision. The head of state no longer has to "sanction" laws for them to take effect, as the officeholder merely promulgates them.^[15]

Health issues

On 3 February 2011, Henri felt ill after waking. The court physician determined the grand duke was having some kind of blood circulation problem. An ambulance rushed him to the cardiac unit of the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg. Shortly after, the Grand Ducal Court issued a statement that he was to undergo a balloon angioplasty without divulging further information about the underlying condition that required it, although one Luxembourgish newspaper claimed he had had a cardiac arrest. The day after the angioplasty, the communications chief announced the procedure had been a success. "The state of His Royal Highness' health is not disturbing," the statement read, adding that the grand duke might be able to leave the hospital within the next few days, as indeed he did.^[16]

Waringo report

On 31 January 2020, the Waringo report was released, a governmental report on the internal workings of the monarchy that had been compiled by Jeannot Waringo [lb], former Financial Director of Luxembourg.^[17] The report identified significant problems in terms of staff management at the Palace resulting in a high turnover rate and an atmosphere of fear. It noted that internal communications were almost nonexistent. Waringo indicated that the most important staff decisions were made by the Grand Duchess. There was no division of staff for personal use and that for official functions. Waringo was also not able to determine if the grand ducal couple's private activities were financed by the State or not.^[17] The Court responded that "(i)n the interests of greater transparency and modernization, the Court will contribute constructively to the implementation of the improvements proposed in this report."^[18]

Abdication

On 23 June 2024, his official birthday, Henri announced his plans to appoint his son Guillaume as lieutenant representative (regent) in October. Traditionally, this signals the grand duke's intention to abdicate in the future.^[19][20] On 8 October, Guillaume was sworn in as lieutenant representative.^[21] On 24 December 2024, Henri announced in his Christmas message his intention to abdicate in favour of Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume on 3 October 2025.^[22]

Following his abdication, Henri stated that he would be leaving Luxembourg "for a while".^[23]

Titles and styles

• 16 April 1955 – 16 April 1973: His Royal Highness Prince Henri of Luxembourg
• 16 April 1973 – 7 October 2000: His Royal Highness The Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg
• 7 October 2000 – 3 October 2025: His Royal Highness The Grand Duke of Luxembourg
• 3 October 2025 - Present: His Royal Highness Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg^[24]

Honours