Royal Watch News

Holland's Queen Beatrix to abdicate

Jan 28, 2013, 20:45 GMT

Queen Beatrix

Holland's Queen Beatrix will abdicate on April 30.

The monarch - who has served as head of state for 33 years - announced her decision on Monday, paving the way for her eldest son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, to become the nation's first king in more than a century.

In a speech from her Huis ten Bosch palace, Beatrix, 74, said: 'Responsibility for our country must now lie in the hands of a new generation.

'I am deeply grateful for the great faith you have shown in me in the many years that I could be your queen.'

Prime Minister Mark Rutte, immediately paid tribute to the queen, saying: 'Since her coronation in 1980s she's applied herself heart and soul for Dutch society.'

Queen Beatrix suffered a personal tragedy last year, when her son Prince Johan Friso was involved in a tragic ski accident.

The father-of-two - who was brain damaged and left in a coma from which doctors have warned he may never wake up - was transferred to Wellington hospital in London as Holland does not have an appropriate hospital to treat him.