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In most countries, the sovereign never dies. Edward of Wales will be King of England the instant King George's death is known. But Albert was King of the Belgians, not King of Belgium, and the Belgians will have no king until he has sworn allegiance to their Constitution, a ceremony that was postponed last week until after the funeral of King Albert. For seven days then, the Belgians had no king. They were lucky in their king-to-be. Like his father, Crown Prince Leopold has had a hard practical schooling. He has served in the Belgian Senate. He has specialized in the study of Colonial administration. He likes to monkey with engines; he drives his own car. But his hobbies are safer: trout fishing and collecting butterflies. In 1926 he married dark-haired Princess Astrid of Sweden after a courtship that set lady-novelists' hearts aflutter. In order not to attract attention Prince Leopold paid flying visits to Sweden in a third class railway coach, carrying his own bags. People thought he was a new butler. Announcing the engagement, beaming King Albert said:
"Their marriage is entirely one of inclination. They are making their decision without interference from anybody."
Brussels housewives still remember how Princess Astrid pushed her own baby carriage up & down the shady Avenue Louise after her little Daughter Charlotte was born.
Thirty-two years old, Leopold, who will be the youngest king in Europe, reached Brussels last week still in pale grey plus fours, after an all night ride from Switzerland. There are problems he must face at once. Communists were threatening a general strike. The Flemish separatists, always a noisy group, were supposed to have marked pro-Nazi leanings. Belgium's frontier defenses cannot compare with the new steel and concrete chain of France, but all young Leopold could hear last week was the sound of guns, fired one every half hour, to mourn the death of his father.