Like all girls, Amalia also wanted to become a princess when she was little. "Like in Disney movies," King Willem-Alexander said then. The difference is that this young lady is indeed a princess and in the future she will even become a queen. From a very young age, she tried on the impressive jewelry that her mother Máxima de ella is allowed to wear for state banquets and galas. When Máxima missed the earrings that she had to wear, surely old family heirlooms, just before setting off, she knew that she had to yell at Amalia to get her to bring them back.

She has also posed -as a child- very seriously for her mother with the Mellerio ruby ​​tiara on her head, a diadem that she bought for Amalia's great-great-grandmother, Queen Emma. Her appearance is as serious as her classmates when she wants to be an elegant princess with her plastic tiara. "I love them!" Amalia says, unlike her sister Alexia, who doesn't like all the pomp and circumstance that comes with royalty. Amalia used to make fun of her sister about it. "Later I'm going to say no, and then Alexia has to!" Then Alexia yelled, "No! I don't want to wear a tiara!"

When she was a nine year old girl, she really understood what was in store for her. When her grandmother Beatriz announced that she was abdicating the throne, she immediately wanted to know about her father: "How long are you going to be?" The day of her investiture, April 30, 2013, marks a major turning point in the princess's young existence. Suddenly she is no longer like her sisters, but the Princess of Orange, a title reserved for the heir to the throne. Amalia will go down in the history books as the first woman in history to bear the title. That day she seemed like a slap in the face for her. "All those people who look at me as if I were a goldfish in the head," says Amalia. “That coronation day was also a huge push in the other direction. I wanted to help my parents, I felt it very strongly. Instead of a burden, I began to see it as an honor."

A 'normal' youth

But that was not the intention of her parents. Amalia had to be able to be a girl until she was 18 years old. Apart from always having security wherever she goes, and always having a nanny in the house - the Argentine Paz for many years - her life is almost like that of any other child. Her friends are always welcome. Usually more at the house of the royal family -Villa Eikenhorst first, Huis ten Bosch later- than at the house of friends, since it is easier for security reasons. That is why the palace becomes a meeting place for children, where everyone is always welcome and can always join the dinner.

She played hockey with her teammates for several years and also does horseback riding, although her name was not added to the list until the end of each contest, so that it would not be known that the Princess was participating as a jumper. Amalia is not as talented on horseback as her grandmother Beatriz had, but for her it is also a way of forgetting her sorrows for a while. "If you really want to know me, you need to see me ride."

Her parents protect Amalia and her sisters. For this reason, a so-called 'media code' was created, an agreement in which the media, who do not disturb the family and especially the three girls, are invited to photo sessions and conversations. Guillermo Alejandro and Máxima thought that it was very important that Amalia's youth be as normal as possible, so there have been no obligations, such as those that Estelle of Sweden or Princess Leonor have had to fulfill from an early age. Her parents did not want Amalia to worry about her future, she had to be able to be a girl and know herself. "If she doesn't know herself, she can't exercise this public function," said Willem-Alexander.

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Amalia herself has always been very curious about what awaits her. When she slept with then-queen Beatrix at the Huis ten Bosch palace, where Amalia now lives with her parents, she could listen to her grandmother for hours. Her grandmother could tell her all about her ancestors, like Princess Amalia van Oranje-van Solms, who had the Oranjezaal (Orange Room) built in the palace out of love for her late husband. Therefore, it is very significant that the 'Amalia of today' has chosen to pose for the first official portrait of her as an adult crown princess in this particular room. The light in the photos is like the paintings on the walls, like the Dutch masters did in the Golden Age.

Talent

Princess Amalia is a talented young woman. She knows how to play the modern classical music of Ludovico Einaudi on the piano. But she is also a huge fan of musicals. She likes to sing along to Broadway hits. And very, very well, according to those who have been allowed to listen to it. "I inherited that from my mother," says Amalia. But it's not something she wants to do in public. "Singing is something I keep to myself," she says. Because if you make it public, you lose a part of yourself. “So I have the idea that people can demand that of me. Forcing me to do things I don't want to do." She only sings for friends and family, as well as for a Christmas musical she did with schoolmates. But since so much is already expected of her in public, she continues to sing for herself.

Amalia will be the center of attention much more in the future. Just one day after her birthday, this very Wednesday, she will enter the Council of State. A symbolic function, of which the Head of State is the symbolic president. During his years as crown prince, his father, King Willem-Alexander, and his grandmother Beatrix gained much experience in administrative matters in the kingdom by attending these meetings. Amalia will give her first speech there, just after her 18th birthday. But then her life will calm down for a while.

The princess is now on sabbatical and will probably go abroad again to travel and intern. After that, she will start her studies in September. Probably first in the Netherlands, then she would like to study abroad for a few more years. So when she graduated cum laude earlier this year, she informed the Prime Minister that she was waiving her €1.6 million a year allowance for staff and other expenses. "As long as she can offer so little in return," Amalia says of her future as a student, "it makes me uncomfortable."

Because except for King's Day, where we already saw Amalia every year, she will probably only go with her parents by bus to the inauguration of the State Parliament, wearing a long dress with a hat and the sash of the royal order . Because she will spend some time before she actually starts the official job, she will pay her income back until the end of her studies. The spending allowance as well, as long as she doesn't have to face high costs as crown princess. A gesture of sympathy. The Dutch have great faith in Amalia, who even at a young age seems to have a greater sense of duty than her father. When she made a joke about the crown and 'fake news', she nudged her father. He may be the King, but Amalia dares to contradict her father.

future as queen

You can guess what Amalia will be like as queen. Her father had more affinity with her grandmother Juliana than with her own mother. Beatriz was more distant and regal, Juliana wanted to be close to people. Amalia really seems to like Beatriz's style better. The splendor of royalty corresponds to Amalia, the royal dignity. She may also opt for a somewhat greater distance from people. She recounts, in a book written by Claudia de Breij, that she finds the bow so beautiful, the royal bow of the knees that is still used mainly in Scandinavian countries and in the British palace. And she finds Dutch boys less gallant than, say, German boys.

Her classmates from her elementary school even had bets on who would catch her first. No one took victory. In high school, she was in a relationship for three months. Even though she may have been unlucky in love so far, she already has some visions for her wedding day. Amalia is a romantic. She already has her dream wedding dress in mind and even knows which carriage from the royal stables she would like best: a cream white carriage, a beautiful open carriage where everyone could get a good look at her and her husband. she. Despite the rumours, she is very clear about her future with a man, although her parents would definitely have supported her otherwise.

"I don't think it would have been a big deal. Certainly not in my family. My parents also have quite a few different friends, so I grew up with not only 'uncle and aunt,' but also 'uncle and uncle and aunt and aunt.'" Amalia finds it strange that there are still no royals who are openly gay. But as far as she is concerned, she will marry a man. And then there will be children, "Much later." But just like the day Amalia becomes queen, she hopes this is still a long, long way off. "If something happened to my father now, I would ask my mother to take over for a few years first. But I told my father: he just keeps eating healthy and exercising a lot."