Why the Belgian King is not the King of Belgium

This is Philippe, Belgium’s seventh king (and seventh monarch) since the country’s independence from the Netherlands in 1830. Like most European monarchs,1 Philippe is a constitutional monarch with a symbolic role and mostly ceremonial authority. Unlike most monarchs, however, Philippe’s isn’t official titled after his kingdom. Instead of “King of Belgium”, Philippe is “King of the Belgians” – and for the Belgians, this isn’t just a semantic distinction. Belgium’s monarchy is the sole current example of what British journalist Kingsley Martin called a “popular monarchy”, with a monarch of the people rather than a monarch of the state itself. This practice was common in the Middle Ages and early modern era, as with the famous “Mary, Queen of Scots”. In modern times, a popular title usually represents a national ideal that the monarch derives power from the people rather than from royal descent or divine right. A great example is Napoleon, who took the title “Emperor of the French”, as…