Highlights: Albert II abdication and King Philippe coronation

Crown Prince Philippe has been sworn in as the new Belgian king after the emotional abdication of his father Albert II.

In the abdication ceremony at the royal palace in Brussels, the former monarch told his son: "You have all the emotional and intellectual qualities to serve our country well."

His son, an Oxford- and Stanford-educated, trained air force pilot, took the oath as the country's seventh king in a ceremony in parliament.

To warm applause, King Philippe, 53, promised to uphold the constitution.