Dutch King Willem-Alexander turns 58

King Willem-Alexander turned 58 years old on Sunday, but celebrated his birthday a day earlier as the royal family traditionally refrains from public activities on Sundays. It is the second time since Willem-Alexander ascended the throne that his birthday has fallen under these circumstances.

King Willem-Alexander was born on April 27, 1967, in Utrecht as the first child of Princess Beatrix and Prince Claus. In 2002, he married Máxima, and he has served as king since 2013.

This year, the royal family celebrated Koningsdag in Doetinchem. Willem-Alexander did not indicate on Saturday whether he would hold a private celebration on Sunday. Speaking at the end of the day, he called the festivities in Doetinchem "a fantastic day."

The schedule for Koningsdag began more than an hour later than usual to accommodate the funeral of Pope Francis. Ahead of the day’s events, King Willem-Alexander paid tribute to the late pope in a video message. "The community spirit of Pope Francis is also a hallmark of Koningsdag," he said. "This is all the more important in this time of tensions and uncertainties in the world around us. Freedom, equality, and legal certainty are not self-evident."

The royal family, including King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, Princess Amalia, and Princess Alexia, arrived in Doetinchem around noon and were welcomed by Mayor Mark Boumans. Joining them were Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien, Prince Floris and Princess Aimée, Prince Bernhard and Princess Annette, Prince Maurits and Princess Marilène, and Prince Pieter-Christiaan and Princess Anita.

The Achterhoekse band Normaal played their biggest hit, Oerend Hard, upon the family's arrival, according to NOS. King Willem-Alexander enthusiastically sang along and afterward climbed onto the stage to shake hands with lead singer Bennie Jolink. Prince Constantijn also enjoyed the performance, commenting, "From my youth," and adding, "a very long time ago."

Following several cultural performances and a culinary break featuring regional dishes from the Achterhoek, the royal group proceeded to an area labeled "Sportlaan 1 tot 100," where various sports demonstrations took place. Both the king and queen participated in a game of table tennis, during which King Willem-Alexander scored a point against Queen Máxima with a "keiharde smash," or powerful smash, which he did with visible satisfaction.

However, the king faced a setback during the Koningsdag quiz event. After missing a penalty shot, he and his team were defeated by Queen Máxima’s team, who demonstrated particular knowledge of music by the pop duo Suzan & Freek.

The route was lined with large crowds, with spectators standing several rows deep behind barriers, waving enthusiastically at the royal family. According to a spokesperson for the municipality, approximately 30,000 people came to Doetinchem for the festivities. Many German visitors also joined the celebrations in the city, which lies near the German border.

The festivities concluded at the Walmolen, where Suzan & Freek, along with Snelle, performed the song De Overkant for the royal family. Queen Máxima and Princess Amalia sang along, clearly knowing the lyrics of the song that celebrates the Achterhoek region.

In his closing speech, King Willem-Alexander thanked the city of Doetinchem for its flexibility in starting the day later than usual. "I am going to walk the route again, because it was so much fun..." he joked.

He also addressed the many German guests present. "We now see what eighty years of peace and freedom have brought us: friendship with each other. And let us continue to work on this together, every single day."