Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders

Prince Philippe of Belgium, Count of Flanders (24 March 1837 – 17 November 1905) was the third born and second surviving son of Leopold I, King of the Belgians and his wife Louise d'Orléans (1812–1850).
Born at the Château de Laeken, near Brussels, Belgium, he was created Count of Flanders on 14 December 1840. Upon the death of his nephew, Prince Leopold, Duke of Brabant, Philippe became heir presumptive to the Belgian throne, from 1869 until his own death in 1905.
In 1866, after the abdication of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, Prince of Romania, he refused being named the new Romanian sovereign, and the throne was later accepted by Carol I. Earlier, Philippe had also refused the crown of Greece, which was offered to him in 1862.
Marriage and issue.
On 25 April 1867 at St. Hedwig's Cathedral in Berlin, he married Marie Luise Alexandra Caroline, Princess of Hohenzollern, (1845–1912), daughter of Karl Anton von Hohenzollern (1811–1885) and his wife Josephine of Baden (1813–1900).
Their children were:
He died in his residence the Palace of the Count of Flanders, and is buried at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken. He was succeeded as heir presumptive to the throne by his son, Albert.
Honours.
He received the following decorations and awards:
Literature.
Damien Bilteryst, Philippe Comte de Flandre, Frère de Léopold II, Bruxelles, Editions Racine, juin 2014, 336 p. 