BRUSSELS

Philippe I of Belgium took the oath in the Belgian Parliament as the new king following his father Albert II's abdication.

79-year-old father Albert handed over the trone to Philippe I, 53, who swore in the country's three official languages - French, Flemish and German on Sunday.

Earlier, Albert II signed away his rights as monarch at the royal palace.

Across Brussels, black-yellow-red striped flags fluttered as crowds in the streets shouted "Long Live the King" in farewell to Albert.

"Belgium is modernising itself and it gives me joy," said Albert, calling for continued "cohesion" between the country's 6 million Dutch-speaking Flemings and 4.5 million French-speakers.

The Oxford and Stanford-educated Philippe, has been trained as a Belgian air force pilot and led trade missions over the past two decades.

Phillipe and his wife Mathilde has four children.