Video: Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands addresses her nation as she announces abdication Dutch Queen Beatrix announced she was to abdicate on 30 April after 33 years as head of state, clearing the way for her eldest son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, to become The Netherlands' first king in more than a century. She explained she was stepping down "not because the burden of office is too heavy, but because of the conviction that the responsibility for our nation should now lie in the hands of a new generation." The monarch, who turns 75 on Thursday, was thought to be giving time for her son to enjoy fatherhood before becoming King Willem-Alexander: he has three young daughters with Argentine investment banker Maxima Zorreguieta. The announcement, in a nationally televised speech, signalled an end to the reign of one of Europe's longest-serving monarchs, whose time on the throne was marked by tumultuous shifts in Dutch society. Observers believe Beatrix remained on the throne for so long in part because of unrest in Dutch society as the country struggled to assimilate more and more immigrants and shifted away from its traditional reputation as one of the world's most tolerant nations.