At the invitation President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands began her state visit to Estonia today and will remain there until May 16th. The queen was not accompanied by the Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima of the Netherlands for this trip. Besides visiting the capital of Tallinn, she will travel to the island of Saaremaa and its city Kuressaare. 
Tonight, she toasted the President of Estonia at the state banquet and said, “it gives me great pleasure to visit your country and to be your guest here this evening. This afternoon we were shown one of the most advanced centres of government in the world, and tonight we are gathered in the mediaeval heart of your capital, a city centre of such great historical significance that it has been inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. This combination of old and new is typical of your country. On the one hand you cherish an ancient culture, on the other you are completely open to modernity. Respect for the past goes hand in hand with interest in the future.”“In the course of history, there has been frequent contact between our countries and our peoples have worked together successfully. In the late Middle Ages a lively trade arose in the context of the famous Hanseatic League, which linked the Low Countries with the towns and cities around the Baltic Sea. Later, when our country had become an independent power, these ties became so important that our great seventeenth-century statesman, Johan de Witt, even spoke of the ‘mother of all trades’. Timber from this region was needed to build our houses and ships, and grain to feed our people. In the recent past these age-old contacts have been revived and our economic ties intensified. And the city links established between various places in our countries contribute to the further strengthening of contacts between our citizens.”
“Between that distant past and the present day lies a long and turbulent history that for your country was indeed not without tragedy. Foreign, and often cruel rulers oppressed your people and threatened your culture. But Estonia withstood these trials with great fortitude. Estonian culture was preserved through stories, fairy tales and songs and is still alive and well.”
Queen Beatrix’s entire speech at the state banquet in Tallinn, Estonia can be read here.
Photos: Lex van Lieshout