Dutch Princess Margriet to visit Ottawa and meet with leaders

·1 min read
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, and Princess Margriet of the Netherlands visit the Canadian War Cemetery in Bergen op Zoom, south-western Netherlands in October 2021. The princess will visit Ottawa from May 12 to 16. (Peter Dejong/The Associated Press - image credit)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, and Princess Margriet of the Netherlands visit the Canadian War Cemetery in Bergen op Zoom, south-western Netherlands in October 2021. The princess will visit Ottawa from May 12 to 16. (Peter Dejong/The Associated Press - image credit)

Princess Margriet of the Netherlands and her husband are paying a delayed visit to Ottawa this Thursday, after their original trip in 2020 was cancelled.

In a news release, the Royal House of the Netherlands said the princess's visit in 2020 was to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands.

The Dutch princess was born in Canada's capital during the Second World War, states the release.

She and Pieter van Vollenhoven, a professor, will be in Ottawa from May 12 to 16, and meet with Gov. Gen. Mary Simon, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Veterans Affairs Minister Lawrence MacAulay, and Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson.

The royal's itinerary will also include opening the Canadian Tulip Festival, a visit to the War Museum, meeting with veterans, unveiling a plaque at Beechwood National Military Cemetery, and touring an exhibition about the Dutch royal family's life in Canada at Ottawa City Hall.

The tulip festival is rooted in a wartime favour, and Princess Margriet visited 20 years ago for the festival's 50th anniversary.

WATCH | An archival video about Princess Margriet's birth in Ottawa: