Ottoman Diplomats

Synopsis

Etienne Carathéodory Effendi reports about the festivities in honour of the fiftieth anniversary of the Belgian independence. The festivities started on July 18th with a big military revue, with 30.000 men. On July 21st the 49th anniversary of the oath of Leopold I was celebrated with an unusual splendour. As usual, a Te Deum took place, for which the cathedral was splendidly decorated. The Te Deum was attended by King Leopold II, Queen Marie-Henriette, the Count and Countess of Flanders (Prince Philippe of Belgium – brother of Leopold II – and his wife Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen), and the royal family, also including Princess Stéphanie’s fiancé, Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria-Hungary. The diplomatic corps was also present, in uniform. In the afternoon, the inauguration of the monument in memory of Leopold I took place in Laeken. The complete diplomatic corps (in uniform) also attended this ceremony, which Carathéodory called a splendid one. Three speeches were given, the most important one by the Minister of the Interior, Rolin-Jaequemyns. King Leopold II also gave a speech as a reply. (The enclosed copy of the pages of the Belgian Official Journal, containing the speeches referred to by Carathéodory, are not photographed.) In the evening, the city was brilliantly illuminated. Carathéodory is proud to mention that the decoration of the Ottoman legation’s hotel proved to be a success, as he received positive reactions from the Belgian government.

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