Queen Astrid of Belgium

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Queen Astrid of Belgium, grandmother of King Philippe of Belgium and Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, was born on this day in 1905. The third of four children of Prince Carl of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland, and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark, her uncles were the Kings of Sweden, Denmark, and Norway. Her siblings were Princess Margretha of Denmark, Crown Princess Martha of Norway, and Prince Carl Bernadotte. In 1926, she married the then Crown Prince Leopold of the Belgians. The couple had three children, Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg, King Baudoin, and King Albert, and succeeded to the Belgian Throne in 1934. However, the following year, while driving on holiday in Switzerland, the couple got into a car crash, and the pregnant Queen Astrid passed away from her injuries on site. One of the most popular members of the Royal Family, her death led her husband into a long period of mourning, until his second marriage in 1941.

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