Former Dutch Queen Beatrix released from hospital after surgery

[News_Editor]

THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS (BNO NEWS) -- Dutch Princess Beatrix, who abdicated the throne earlier this year after more than three decades as head of state, was released from an undisclosed hospital on Monday after undergoing surgery on a broken cheekbone, the government said.

Renée Wesdorp, a spokeswoman for the Netherlands Government Information Service (RVD), said Beatrix, who is 75, was released from an undisclosed hospital on Monday morning and has returned to Huis ten Bosch royal palace in The Hague. "The RVD has currently nothing further to add to the previous statement," she said.

On Sunday, the Ministry of General Affairs said Beatrix broke a cheekbone during a fall in domestic environment, but did not say when or where the accident occurred. "She was operated on this morning and is expected to remain in hospital for several days," the ministry had said in a statement at the time.

The former queen, who was given the title of princess after her abdication, will now continue her recovery at Huis ten Bosch royal palace after Monday's discharge from hospital. "The consequences for official duties and other appointments will be determined on a case-by-case basis," the ministry said in Sunday's statement.

Beatrix abdicated as queen on April 30, allowing her eldest son Willem-Alexander to become the kingdom's first king since William III ruled the Netherlands from 1849 until 1890. The monarch said she chose to abdicate after 33 years on the throne to allow a new generation to take over.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands consists of the Netherlands in Western Europe and the countries Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten in the Caribbean.

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[Scott]

My best wishes for a full and speedy recovery.