Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg

The Luxembourg ruling house had tried to block a decision by Parliament only once before, when Grand Duchess Marie-Adelaïde refused to sign a bill in 1912 to reduce the role of Roman Catholic priests within the education system.

The ultimate solution was that the grand duke would be declared unable to perform his duty temporarily.

Henri has four siblings: Archduchess Marie Astrid of Austria (born 1954), Prince Jean of Luxembourg (born 1957), Princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein (born 1957) and Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg (born 1963).

Henri (Henri Albert Gabriel Félix Marie Guillaume, ; Heinrich; born 16 April 1955) is Grand Duke of Luxembourg.

Prince Henri was born on 16 April 1955, at the Betzdorf Castle in Luxembourg as the second child and first son of Jean, Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg, and his wife, Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium.

His father was the eldest son of Charlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, and Prince Félix of Bourbon-Parma.

His mother was the only daughter of King Leopold III of Belgium by his first wife, Princess Astrid of Sweden.

The prince's godparents were his maternal uncle the Prince of Liège (later Albert II of Belgium) and his paternal aunt Princess Marie Gabriele.

On 12 November 1964, when Henri was nine, his grandmother abdicated and his father became Grand Duke.

Prince Henri became heir apparent to the Luxembourg throne on the abdication of his paternal grandmother, Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg, on 12 November 1964.

By two sovereign decisions of 14 April 1973 the Grand Duke decided that "Henri will be considered as having reached the age of majority as from 16 April 1973, the date on which he will have reached the age of eighteen years" and "that His Royal Highness Prince Henri will bear, in His capacity as Heir Apparent to the Crown of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and of the Grand-Ducal Trust, the title of Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Hereditary Prince of Nassau, Prince of Bourbon of Parma."

Henri was educated in Luxembourg and in France, where he obtained his baccalaureate in 1974, after which he undertook military officer training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, England on the Standard Military Course (SMC) 7.

He then studied political science at University of Geneva and the Graduate Institute of International Studies, graduating in 1980.

From 1980 to 1998, he was a member of the Council of State.

They married in Luxembourg in a civil ceremony on 4 February 1981 and a religious ceremony on 14 February 1981 with the previous consent of the grand duke, dated 7 November 1980; and they remain married.

The couple has five children:

In addition, he was made an honorary major in the British Army's Parachute Regiment, effective 19 July 1989.

One of the grand duke's main functions is to represent Luxembourg in the field of foreign affairs.

This was similar to the "escape route" provided to his uncle King Baudouin of Belgium when he refused to sign an abortion law in 1991; thus the law could take effect without the signature of the grand duke, but also without the need to enact far-reaching changes in the constitution.

Article 34 of the constitution was subsequently amended to remove the term "assent", leaving the relevant provision to read: "The Grand Duke promulgates the laws..."

As a result, his signature is still needed but it is clear that his signature is automatic and that he has no freedom of decision.

The head of state no longer has to "sanction" laws for them to take effect, as the officeholder merely promulgates them.

As the head of a constitutional monarchy, Grand Duke Henri's duties are primarily representative.

However, he retains the constitutional power to appoint the prime minister and government, to dissolve the Chamber of Deputies, to promulgate laws and to accredit ambassadors.

With few exceptions, however, he is bound by convention to act on the advice of the government.

Grand Duke Henri is commander-in-chief of the Luxembourg Army, in which he holds the rank of general.

On 4 March 1998, Prince Henri was appointed as lieutenant representative by his father, Grand Duke Jean, meaning that he assumed most of his father's constitutional powers.

He has reigned since 7 October 2000.

Henri is the eldest son of Grand Duke Jean and Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium.

He is a first cousin of King Philippe of Belgium.

On 7 October 2000, immediately following the abdication of his father, Henri acceded as Grand Duke of Luxembourg and took the constitutional oath before the Chamber of Deputies later that day.

In May 2001, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa undertook their first foreign state visit to Spain at the invitation of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía of Spain.

Grand Duke Henri is a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), a member of The Mentor Foundation (established by the World Health Organization) and a director of the Charles Darwin Trust for the Galápagos Islands.

The grand duke lives with his family at Berg Castle in Luxembourg.

He also has a holiday home in Cabasson, a village in the commune of Bormes-les-Mimosas in Southern France.

While studying in Geneva, Henri met the Cuban-born María Teresa Mestre y Batista, who was also a political science student.

On 2 December 2008, it was announced that Grand Duke Henri had stated he would refuse to give his assent to a new law on euthanasia that had been passed earlier in the year by the Chamber of Deputies.

Under the constitution then, the grand duke "sanctions and promulgates the laws" meaning the need for the grand duke's sanction or approval was required in order for laws to take effect.

In the absence of clarity on the long-term implications for the constitutional position of the grand duke posed by such a refusal, it was announced by Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker that a constitutional amendment would be brought forward.

In 2019, Henri's net worth was estimated around US$4 billion.