The Curious Case of the Changing Label
Albert Léopold Clément Marie Meinrad (8th April 1875 – 17th February 1934) was famously King of the Belgians during the First World War. Popularly known as the "Knight King" (roi-chevalier or koning-ridder) or "Soldier King" (roi-soldat or koning-soldaat), Albert assumed leadership of the Belgian army at the outset of the War and made continual visits to the front-line trenches from his headquarters at De Panne on the Belgian coast.
For 15 years after the War, Albert worked hard to rebuild his country but was killed in a mountaineering accident near Namur in eastern Belgium at the age of 58.
What may not be known is that, just like his namesake grandson King Albert II, Albert I was a second son who came to Throne because of the death of his elder brother... Baudouin. Their father, Philippe, Count of Flanders, was also a second son.
In 1869, Philippe's nephew and Heir to the Throne, Leopold, Duke of Brabant, second child and only son of King Leopold II, died at the age of 9 from pneumonia, after falling into a pond. Leopold II and Queen Marie Henriette tried for another baby boy, but after the birth of yet another daughter, Clémentine, in 1872, the couple abandoned all hopes and their already strained marriage broke down completely. The King's brother Philippe therefore became Heir Presumptive. He did not change his title, though, and remained Count of Flanders.
Philippe had been assigned a plain red three-pointed Label. The official date given for the Label is 1880 (a Royal Decree was issued on 13th July that year) but the belief is that it was assigned sometime before 1869, i.e. the birth of his first son, Baudouin.
Baudouin (3rd June 1869 – 23rd January 1891) was born six months after his cousin's untimely death which made him second in line to the Throne after his father and was thus groomed to eventually succeed as king. However, Baudouin tragically died of influenza in the Palace of the Count of Flanders a day after the anniversary of his cousin Leopold's death.
Baudouin had been assigned a red Label like his father's but with a golden Annulet or ring on the centre Point. Again the year 1880 is cited but no further details are given.
Prince Albert appears to have been assigned a red Label with a central white Crescent either at birth or before 1879. (In English heraldry at least, a Crescent is the mark of Cadency for a second son, but that might just be pure coincidence.) Strangely enough, possibly mirroring the system in the German Empire, Albert was not born a Prince of Belgium, he remained a Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha until his elder brother's death and, nearly two months later, was created a Prince of Belgium. This remained the situation until the next family tragedy occured in 1905: The Count of Flanders, Albert's father, died of major respiratory difficulties. Philippe's health had been in decline since the death of his elder son and he had missed the 75th anniversary celebrations of Belgian Independence. His relationship with his brother had deteriorated to the point of being non-existent.
Albert now became Heir to the Throne of the Belgians (Heir Apparent in all but name) and allegedly took on his father's title and his plain Label, although there isn't any confirmed proof of that. Leopold II was looked on as aloof and autocratic and his private life to be particularly irregular, especially compared to the pious Albert, and did not help his nephew to prepare for kingship. Albert therefore read extensively, almost to the point of exhaustion.
When Leopold II died in 1909, Albert became King. He, of course, dropped any Labels from his Coat of Arms and would also drop the dynastic Inescutcheon of his German Saxe-Coburg and Gotha family after the First World War which the present King has taken up. He granted his second son, Charles, his and his father's title of Count of Flanders but Charles was assigned a yellow Border of difference rather than a Label.
UPDATE: Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands
Neither does there appear to be concrete evidence of usage post Abdication. For instance, Stall Plates and Banners, such as those for the Order of the Garter in St George's Chapel Windsor, are no help as they do not change. Neither Queen Juliana's nor Queen Beatrix's Banner changed when they abdicated even though their Arms did. Their Arms, though, were fully documented whereas Wilhelmina's appear not to be. She could not revert to her Arms prior to her Ascension to the Dutch Throne as she herself as Queen changed the Arms in 1907 consequent to her marriage, as outlined in another previous Blog.
Wilhelmina's Arms after her Abdication will probably remain a mystery, unless anyone else knows any differently...