Ottoman Diplomats

Synopsis

On New Year’s Day, the Belgian King and Queen (Leopold II and Marie Henriette) received New Year’s greetings from the civil and military authorities at their palace in Brussels. The nuncio conveyed the felicitations of the entire diplomatic corps. Thereafter, the King and the Queen, surrounded by the Count and Countess of Flanders (Prince Philippe of Belgium and his wife Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen), the government, and civil and military dignitaries received the mission heads, who had the honour to convey their special felicitations to the King and Queen. Etienne Carathéodory Effendi remarks that Leopold II showed a lot of courtesy towards the personnel of the Ottoman legation. The King asked Carathéodory several times to convey his warm and sincere felicitations and his wishes for the prosperity of the Ottoman Empire to the Sultan. Leopold II also stressed how touched he was by the Sultan’s gracious attention at his name day, to which Carathéodory replied that the Sultan always wished for the good fortune of the Belgian royal family and the prosperity of Belgium. He added that the Sultan, friend and ally of Leopold II, would be touched. He also thanked the Queen for her efforts of the Red Cross. (In his report, he explains what that is.) Carathéodory also notes that he was interested in the speeches at the royal reception, because they gave him a good insight into the interior politics of the country. In attachment are two speeches that were pronounced that day.

Attachments

Newspaper clipping (title unknown, date unknown, newspaper unknown, Speeches of Baron d'Anethan, deputy Speaker of the Belgian Senate, and Xavier Thibaut, Speaker of the Belgian House of Representatives, pronounced at the royal reception on the occasion of New Year's Day.)

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