Leopold III

Leopold III (1901-1983), king of the Belgians (1934-1951), son of King Albert I, and grandnephew of King Leopold II, born November 3, 1901, in Brussels. In 1926 he married Princess Astrid of Sweden. During World War II, when the German army invaded Belgium and France, Leopold, with the bulk of the Belgian army, was surrounded by the Germans and quickly capitulated. His surrender incurred the violent disapproval of the Belgian people and brought accusations of treason. Leopold, however, refused to administer his country under German control and was imprisoned first in his castle at Brussels and later in Germany. Despite his defiance of the Germans, the Belgian government-in-exile in London refused to recognize his right to rule.

After the liberation of Belgium in 1944, the legislature elected Leopold's brother Prince Charles as regent. Leopold later went into exile in Switzerland. In 1946 a commission of inquiry exonerated Leopold of treason, but the controversy concerning his loyalty continued. He won a referendum permitting his return, and he returned from exile on July 22, 1950. Riots soon erupted, and on August 1 he delegated his royal powers to his son Baudouin. On July 16, 1951, Leopold abdicated in favor of Baudouin. He died in Brussels, September 25, 1983.