The brother of the king of Belgium assures that the monarchy is a "medieval structure" unsuited to its time

Prince Lorenzo, little brother of King Philip of Belgium, assured this Friday that the monarchy is “a structure older than the Middle Ages” and that “it has not been sufficiently adapted” to the present.

“A royal family is based on a structure older than the Middle Ages. But this structure has not been sufficiently adapted until now, you could say that I live in the Middle Ages,” the prince declared in an interview published by the Flemish newspaper Nieuwsblad.

“What I don't understand is that society should always have a figure like that above society: a president, a prime minister, a king,” added the 59-year-old aristocrat about the form of government of democratic states.

The king's brother, who receives an annual salary of 366,000 euros from the Belgian State, frequently appears in the press in his country for his statements.

On the occasion of the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II of England, a little over a year ago, the prince criticized that he had not been invited to the funeral when “so many ordinary people are there, supposed officials who believe themselves important and people with excessive ambition.” , a situation he described as “shame.”

His official agenda suspended

Lorenzo of Belgium's controversies led to both his father, King Emeritus Albert II, and his brother, King Philip, suspending their agenda as representative of the country.

Among others, Queen Paola's youngest son was involved in a scandal when he met with the son of the then Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2007 and 2008.. He also participated without authorization in an event at the Chinese embassy in his country in 2017 that cost him a financial penalty of 47,000 euros.