The 2nd piece of Royal Mail that arrived today is from Belgium. I had written to Queen Mathilde for her 43rd Birthday last month.
The envelope looks similar to the other ones I have received from Belgium. Unfortunately the postmark has been placed over the royal cypher. Sometimes, the Belgium Post is nice enough to place it at the bottom of the letter, so it doesn't ruin the cypher.
While all the envelopes from Belgium have been similar, they have all been slightly different. What was most interesting is that the crowns have been different. It's understandable the crown on different royal's Monogram would be different, but I would expect "Palais de Bruxelles" to always use the same crown. And for the crown on the envelope to match the card inside.
Inside the envelope is a typed note. And you will notice the crown here, does not match the one on the envelope. The message is in French, the 2nd of three official languages in Belgium.
The Message reads: "Her Majesty The Queen would like to thank you very much for the nice congratulations you offered her on the occasion of her birthday on 20 January."
Included with the card is a picture of Queen Mathilde, taken by Christian Lambiotte.
The reply came just a few weeks after her birthday, which is a great response time.
