What does Prince Laurent's Te Deum visit to Hasselt reveal about Belgium's monarchy?
As Belgium marks its national holiday, the Limburg capital Hasselt prepares to welcome Prince Laurent for the traditional Te Deum in St Quentin's Cathedral.
In 30 seconds
- Hasselt, capital of Limburg, is preparing to welcome Prince Laurent for the Te Deum in St Quentin's Cathedral, per Het Nieuwsblad.
- The Te Deum is sung in Belgian cathedrals on National Day (21 July) and the King's Feast (15 November).
- Royal family members are dispersed to provincial capitals so the monarchy is symbolically present nationwide; the king and queen attend the central Brussels ceremony.
- Prince Laurent is the youngest child of King Albert II and the brother of King Philippe.
The Te Deum is a Catholic hymn of thanksgiving sung in Belgian cathedrals on National Day (21 July) and the King's Feast (15 November). Members of the royal family — King Philippe and Queen Mathilde in Brussels, siblings including Prince Laurent and Princess Astrid in the provincial capitals — attend so the monarchy is symbolically present across the country. Hasselt, the capital of Limburg province, hosts its ceremony in St Quentin's Cathedral (Sint-Quintinuskathedraal). Prince Laurent is the youngest child of King Albert II and Queen Paola and the brother of the reigning King Philippe.
Background
The Te Deum entered Belgian public life in the years after independence in 1830, when the young Catholic kingdom fused religious thanksgiving with loyalty to the new crown. It survived the country's secularisation as a civic-ceremonial fixture: attendance by royals, local officials and veterans' groups now matters as much as the liturgy itself. The practice of dispersing royal family members to provincial cathedrals lets a single household represent a federal state whose communities increasingly govern themselves.
What to do
Residents near St Quentin's Cathedral can expect a ceremonial gathering with local dignitaries during the national-holiday period; for most Belgians the event is a symbolic fixture of the 21 July calendar rather than a disruption.
The Belgian angle
For Hasselt and the wider Limburg province, hosting a member of the royal family is treated as a point of civic prestige and a moment of visibility for the provincial capital, drawing local dignitaries, associations and municipal officials into St Quentin's Cathedral for the ceremony.
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- 25 Jul 2026
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- 25 Jul 2026
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- 25 Jul 2026
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