H.R.H. the Crown Prince | Cour grand-ducale (2024)

His Royal Highness Prince Guillaume Jean Joseph Marie, Prince of Luxembourg, Prince of Nassau and Bourbon-Parma, is the eldest son of Their Royal Highnesses Grand Duke Henri and Grand duch*ess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg.

His brothers and sister are:

• Prince Félix
• Prince Louis
• Princess Alexandra
• Prince Sébastien

After his father's accession to the throne on 7October 2000, Prince Guillaume was sworn in on 18December 2000and officially became Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Photos of the Royal Wedding

Prince Guillaume and Princess Stéphanie are parents to two boys, Prince Charles Jean Philippe Joseph Marie Guillaume, born on 10May 2020and Prince François Henri Luis Marie Guillaume, born on 27March 2023. Both were bornat theMaternité Grande-duch*esse Charlottein Luxembourg..

Prince Guillaume went to the local public primary school in Lorentzweiler, Luxembourg. He started his secondary education at the Lycée Robert Schuman in Luxembourg City. At the age of 16, he enrolled at the Institut Le Rosey and subsequently at the Collège Alpin Beau Soleil in Switzerland, where he obtained his French Baccalaureate in 2001. Prince Guillaume is fluent in Luxembourgish, French, German, English and Spanish.

Following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, the Hereditary Grand Duke successfully completed officer training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in Great Britain from September 2001to August 2002.

He was sworn in as officer in the Luxembourg army in December 2002. Prince Guillaume currently holds the rank of Colonel.

After studying international politics in the United Kingdom, Prince Guillaume continued his studies in France and obtained a double degree in Literature and Political Science with honours at the University of Angers in 2009.

Parallel to his university studies, the Crown Prince also gained some practical experience in the economic and political domains, in particular through internships in multinational companies, notably at the Belgian Chemical Union in 2003and at Deutsche Bank in London in 2004. In 2005, he trained at the Spanish branch of the steel group ArcelorMittal to learn about their various activities.

Prince Guillaume also lives up to his responsibility as heir to the Throne by participating in the various economic and social initiatives of the Luxembourg Government.

Together with the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Prince Guillaume attended the Millennium Conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York in 2005, whose topic was the eradication of extreme poverty in the world.

A stay in Brussels in 2012at the European Commission and at the Permanent Representation of the Grand Duchy enabled him to deepen his knowledge of the functioning of the European Union, the negotiation process and the institutional workings. He attended, among other things, meetings of the Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) and the Political and Security Committee (PSC).

From 2018to 2019, Prince Guillaume followed a postgraduate course at the Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) in London, where he acquired additional expertise in regards to his future responsibilities as Head of State.

Prince Guillaume’s duties and official engagements

While still a student, the Crown Prince started to fulfil his representational duties, particularly by promoting Luxembourg abroad, but also by supporting companies and economic initiatives at home.

The Crown Prince’s engagements for the country abroad

In March 2001, Prince Guillaume became Honorary President of the Board of Economic Development of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the country's agency for economic promotion, which today is called the Trade & Investment Board.

Proudly serving the nation, the Hereditary Grand Duke is regularly invited to represent the Grand Duchy on economic and financial prospecting missions to countries in Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa.

Since 2004, in his role as Honorary Chairman of the Trade & Investment Board, Prince Guillaume is bestowing the 'Luxembourg American Business Award' in New York.

Prince Guillaume’s commitments in Luxembourg

Prince Guillaume has regularly participated in the events of 'Luxembourg for Business', nowadays called ‘Luxinnovation’, to promote his country as an innovative and international business destination. He also takes part in the activities of the Chamber of Commerce, 'Luxembourg for Finance' and the Fedil (Federation of Luxembourg Industrialists). The Prince, in concert with many national economic actors, thus contributes to the visibility and attractiveness of the country.

For the past 50years, the awards ceremony of the Chamber of Trades’ vocational training certificate (brevet de maitrîse de la Chambre des métiers) has been traditionally presided over by a member of the Grand Ducal Family, an honour that has been bestowed on Prince Guillaume since 2004.

Prince Guillaume has also been present at the Chamber of Commerce's annual graduation ceremony since 2015.

He visits the 'Home & Living Expo' every year to support this sector.

Since 24June 2005, the Crown Prince has been a member of the Council of State. He regularly attends the plenary sessions and various committees. This enables him to deepen his knowledge of the institutional and legislative workings of the country.

Since his appointment as Hereditary Grand Duke, Prince Guillaume has accompanied his parents to numerous representative and institutional activities, such as National Day celebrations, New Year's Audiences granted to national authorities, as well as many State and official visits.

The Prince is personally involved in the duty of remembrance. Because Grand Duke Jean, his grandfather, fought in World War II, these commemorations hold a deep meaning for him. Since he was sworn in as Crown Prince, Prince Guillaume has attended national and international commemorations of World War II, such as the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Liberation of Vianden and the Auschwitz-Birkenau and the Mauthausen concentration camps in 2015. He accompanied an educational, cultural and commemorative journey with young people joining the Témoins de la Deuxième Génération ASBL (Second Generation Witnesses ASBL) and the Krakow/Auschwitz ASBL in 2016. In 2019, he attended the commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge at Schumannseck.

As a member of the Grand Ducal Family, the Hereditary Grand Duke holds the Knight of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau, the Grand Cross of the Order of Civil and Military Merit of Adolphe of Nassau and the Grand Cross of the Order of the Oak Crown.

The Crown Prince was given the medal of Grand Officier de la Légion d’Honneur of France in 2015.

In 2018, the Miami University John E. Dolibois European Center awarded Prince Guillaume with the highest honorary distinction, the Doctorate honoris causa, for his public and social engagements.

Prince Guillaume and Princess Stéphanie like to take up engagements as a couple, which reflect their many common interests. Together with his wife, who founded the ASBL De Mains de Maîtres (From the Hands of Masters) and who is its Honorary President, Prince Guillaume actively promotes Luxembourg's arts and crafts.

Apart from promoting the national economic sector, the Crown Prince and Princess attend many cultural events. They are regularly present at concerts, fairs and arts exhibitions or in museums.

Encouraged by his grandfather and his father to discover and protect nature, Prince Guillaume has been a member of the Scouts since he was a child. As such, he enthusiastically participated in a humanitarian camp in Nepal in the summer of 1997, which left him with unforgettable memories. He worked on a reforestation project and helped on projects for disadvantaged communities.

In 2017, the Crown Prince joined the Board of Directors of the World Scout Foundation to support the scouting movement throughout the world. After Grand Duke Jean, who had been Chief Scout of Luxembourg since 1945, passed away, Prince Guillaume made his promise in October 2019in front of nearly 3,000scouts in the municipal park of Luxembourg City and proudly took over the title. In September 2021, he accepted the post of Chairman of the World Scout Foundation.

En savoir plus son engagement scout

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He has been involved in many initiatives to support youth, particularly in the field of education and training, such as:

• the European Meetings of Luxembourg Students (REEL – Réunion européenne des étudiants luxembourgeois) in 2003,
• the UNESCO World Youth Day in 2005,
• the REEL debates in Strasbourg in 2013.

Prince Guillaume granted his High Patronage to the Central Youth Hostel Office in 2001. Furthermore, he has held the High Patronage of the Jonk Fuerscher Lëtzebuerg (Young Researchers Luxembourg) since 2020.

Because he wants to promote Luxembourgish entrepreneurship, the Hereditary Grand Duke has held the High Patronage of Jonk Entrepreneuren Luxembourg (Young Entrepreneurs Luxembourg) since 2013and that of the Fédération des Jeunes Dirigeants d'Entreprise du Luxembourg (Federation of young business leaders) since 2017.

The Crown Prince also takes an interest in social business and developments related to microfinance activities, which are promising tools in the fight against poverty. He attended several Global Grameen Meetings, the ALFI Spring Conference in 2015, as well as other events in this field.

After chairing, for more than 10years (from 2000to 2011), the board of directors of the Kräizbierg Foundation, which works on behalf of people with disabilities, the Crown Prince became its Honorary President in March 2011. Prince Guillaume is very attached to this Foundation and values, among other things, its concepts of social and professional integration.

He has been the High Patron of the Special Olympics Luxembourg since 2017, of the Association nationale des victimes de la route (National Association of Road Victims) since 2002, and is also a member of the board of directors of the Fondation du Grand-Duc et de la Grande-duch*esse (Foundation of the Grand Duke and the Grand duch*ess).

In 2020, the Crown Prince took over from Grand Duke Jean the title of Honorary Governor of the Lions District 113Luxembourg, which the latter held from 1967until his death in 2019.

Prince Guillaume is interested in politics, economics, philosophy and history. His favourite readings are autobiographies, philosophical treatises as well as historical novels. Since 18January 2016, he has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Europäische Stiftung Kaiserdom zu Speyer Foundation, which works for the preservation of the almost thousand-year-old imperial cathedral in Speyer.

The Crown prince loves music, both classical and modern. He is passionate about playing the guitar. As a child, he was a member of the Pueri Cantores choir in Luxembourg. He also granted his High Patronage to the Luxembourg Chamber Orchestra and the European Union Youth Orchestra. Of the performing arts, he is particularly fond of the theatre.