Category Archives: Belgian Royals

King Albert I of the Belgians

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Albert I, King of the Belgians: Credit – Wikipedia

King Albert I of the Belgians

King Albert I of Belgians was the third Belgian monarch, a grandson of King Leopold I of the Belgians (born Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg and Saalfeld). He was born Prince Albert Léopold Clément Marie Meinrad of Belgium on April 8, 1875, at the Palais de la Régence in Brussels, Belgium. Albert was the second son, and fifth child, of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders (the third son of King Leopold I), and Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen. At the time of his birth, his father’s brother was reigning as King Leopold II of the Belgians. As Leopold II’s only son had died, Albert’s father was the heir-presumptive, followed by Albert’s older brother Baudouin, and then Albert. At the age of 16, he became second in line, following the death of his brother.

Albert was raised and educated with the expectation that he would one day become King. He attended the Belgian Royal Military Academy and served with the Belgian forces. He served in the Belgian Senate from 1893 until his accession (a position accorded to all children of the sovereign) and represented his uncle throughout Europe and abroad. It was on such a trip that he met his future wife.

Engagement photo of Albert and Elisabeth. photo: Wikipedia

In 1897, Albert met Duchess Elisabeth in Bavaria, daughter of Karl-Theodor, Duke in Bavaria, and his wife Infanta Maria Josepha of Portugal, while attending the funeral of the Duchess of Alençon in Paris. The Duchess of Alençon was born Duchess Sophie Charlotte in Bavaria and was Elisabeth’s aunt. Several months later, having become quite smitten, Albert proposed to Elisabeth, reportedly by asking her, “Do you think you could stand the air in Belgium?” She quickly accepted, and the couple was married on October 2, 1900, in Munich, Kingdom of Bavaria, now in the German state of Bavaria. Following a honeymoon in Italy, they settled in Brussels. They had three children:

 

In early 1909, Albert took an extensive tour of the Belgian Congo, which had been annexed by Belgium the previous year. Finding the conditions horrendous, he returned to Belgium and began proposing reforms to protect the land and its people, as well as developing means of technological progress. This would become a cause that Albert promoted for the remainder of his life. Later that year, on December 17, 1909, King Leopold II died. Albert, who had become heir-presumptive upon his father’s death in 1905, succeeded his uncle as King Albert I of the Belgians.

 

When Germany invaded Belgium (which was guaranteed neutrality under the terms of the Treaty of London 1839), King Albert took command of his troops as directed by the Belgian constitution, and held off the German forces long enough for the British and French to prepare for the Battle of the Marne. For the next four years, Albert fought on the front lines with his troops, refusing to follow his government into exile in France. During this time, his wife worked as a nurse, and his elder son, Leopold, who had enlisted at the age of 14, fought on the front lines with the Belgian army. The King also tried to work secretly for a negotiated peace between Germany and the Entente (the Russians, French, and British). Finally, at the end of the war, King Albert and his wife and family returned triumphantly to Brussels. Thus began the King’s efforts to rebuild the Belgian kingdom. In sweeping reforms, King Albert announced plans to introduce universal suffrage, equality of the two national languages in Belgium, and recognition of trade union freedoms. Accompanied by his wife and elder son, he made an official visit to the United States in 1919. He also continued his efforts in the Belgian Congo, and in 1925 established Africa’s first national park – Albert National Park (now called Virunga National Park). In 1928, he established the National Fund for Scientific Research, to encourage industrial development in Belgium.

King Albert I mountain climbing; Credit – Wikipedia

In addition to being a lifelong conservationist, King Albert was also an avid mountain climber. Sadly, this would bring about his early death. On February 17, 1934, while climbing alone on the Roche de Vieux Bon Dieu at Marche-les-Dames, in the Ardennes region of Belgium, King Albert I fell to his death. He was just 58 years old. His tragic death brought about great mourning in Belgium and around the world. Following a few days of laying in state at the Royal Palace in Brussels, a state funeral was held at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula in Brussels, Belgium on February 22nd. After the funeral, the king’s remains were interred in the Royal Crypt at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Laeken in Brussels, Belgium. King Albert I was succeeded by his eldest son, King Leopold III.

Tomb of King Albert I and Queen Elisabeth. photo: Wikipedia

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Kingdom of Belgium Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Lilian of Belgium, Princess de Réthy

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Princess Lilian of Belgium, Princess de Réthy – photo: Wikipedia

Princess Lilian of Belgium, Princess de Réthy, was the second wife of King Leopold III of Belgium. She was born Mary Lilian Baels, on November 28, 1916, in Highbury, London, England. Lilian was one of eight children of Henri Baels and Anne Marie de Visscher. Henri Baels was a shipowner from Belgium and later rose in the ranks of government, becoming Governor of West Flanders in 1936. He was also a close friend of Albert I, King of the Belgians, and later an advisor to King Leopold III.

Lilian began her studies in London, and then attended the College of the Sacred Heart in Ostend, following her family’s return to Belgium. She later studied French in Brussels and attended a finishing school in London. In the late 1930s, Lilian encountered her future husband several times, often accompanying her father to official events. Later, she was often invited by Leopold’s mother Dowager Queen Elisabeth, who saw an opportunity to bring the couple together. Following several visits to Laeken, where King Leopold III was under house arrest by the Nazis, the King proposed in July 1941. Lilian accepted but declined the title of Queen. Instead, Leopold gave her the title ‘Princess de Réthy’, and it was decided that any children would not have succession rights. They would, however, be styled and titled HRH Prince/Princess of Belgium.

Lilian and Leopold married in a religious ceremony held in the chapel at the Palace of Laeken in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium on September 11, 1941. This was against Belgian law which required a civil ceremony to be held first. They had planned to wait until after the war to hold a civil ceremony, but Lilian’s pregnancy led them to hold the civil ceremony on December 6, 1941, at which point their marriage was made public. The announcement was met with mixed reactions from the Belgian people. While some sent congratulations, many others felt that the marriage sullied the memory of Leopold’s first wife, their beloved Queen Astrid who had died in a car accident, and that Lilian was nothing more than a “social climber.” Despite this, the couple had a very close and happy marriage. She also had a close relationship with Leopold’s three children – Josephine-Charlotte, Baudouin, and Albert.

Leopold and Lilian had three children who were Prince/Princess of Belgium but did not have any rights of succession:

In 1944, King Leopold and his family were deported to Germany and then Austria before being freed by US forces in 1945. However, due to questions about Leopold’s actions during the war, they were unable to return to Belgium and settled in Switzerland. Finally, in 1950, they returned, but King Leopold’s reign was short-lived. He quickly transferred most of his duties to his eldest son, and in July 1951, formally abdicated in his favor.

Leopold, Lilian, and their children remained at the Palace of Laeken until 1960 when King Baudouin married. Having been pressured to move elsewhere by the government who felt that King Leopold was exerting too much influence on his son, and with Baudouin now married, the couple moved to the estate of Argenteuil in Belgium, a government-owned property.

Over the years, Lilian’s relationships with her stepchildren deteriorated to a certain degree, specifically around the time of their marriages. When Josephine-Charlotte married Hereditary Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, Lilian caused a stir by insisting, unsuccessfully, that she should take precedence over her mother-in-law Dowager Queen Elisabeth. This caused the bride much stress and caused a rift between the two for the rest of their lives. When Baudouin married in 1960, his new wife, Queen Fabiola clashed with Lilian in taking her rightful place as First Lady of Belgium. This relationship deteriorated to the point that they were only seen together publicly on one occasion, the funeral of Queen Elisabeth in 1965.

However, Lilian did maintain a closer relationship with Albert and his wife Queen Paola. This was tested when she sold off some of the jewelry she’d been given by King Leopold, following his death in 1983. Most notable was the Cartier tiara originally owned by her mother-in-law, Queen Elisabeth. She sold the tiara back to Cartier in 1987. In her defense, however, it should be noted that these were not jewels owned by the family or a family foundation like many other royal houses have. Belgium does not have anything like that established, meaning that most of the jewelry is privately owned and sadly, often leaves the family through marriages or auctions. Despite this, Albert remained close to his stepmother for the remainder of her life.

 

Despite surviving her husband by nearly 20 years, it was at his funeral that Princess Lilian made her last official public appearance. She spent the remaining years of her life pursuing her interests in medicine, having established a Cardiology Foundation in 1958 following her son Alexandre’s heart surgery the previous year in the United States and editing her husband’s memoirs “Pour l’Histoire” (For History), published in 2001.

Princess Lilian remained at Argenteuil where she died on June 7, 2002. Her funeral was held at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken in Brussels, Belgium, attended by all of the Belgian royal family except for her elder daughter Marie-Christine, who had completely severed all ties with her family. Princess Lilian was interred in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, beside her husband and his first wife Queen Astrid.

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Astrid of Sweden, Queen of Belgium

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Queen Astrid of Belgium – photo: Wikipedia

Queen Astrid of Belgium was the first wife of King Leopold III of Belgium. She was born Princess Astrid Sofia Lovisa Thyra of Sweden, on November 17, 1905, at the Arvfurstens palats (Hereditary Prince’s Palace) in Stockholm, Sweden. Astrid was the third of four children of Prince Carl of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland, and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark. Through both of her parents, she was closely related to the Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian royal families. Her father was the son of King Oscar II of Sweden and the brother of King Gustav V of Sweden. Her mother was the daughter of King Frederik VIII of Denmark, and sister to King Christian X of Denmark and King Haakon VII of Norway.

Astrid had two older sisters and a younger brother:

Considered a potential bride for several royals, including the future King Edward VIII of the United Kingdom, and the future King Olav V of Norway (who ended up marrying her sister Märtha), Astrid fell in love with the future King Leopold III of Belgium. The two were third cousins once removed, through their mutual descent from King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria.

 

Their engagement was announced in September 1926 and the couple was married two months later. A civil ceremony was held first, on November 4, 1926, in Stockholm, Sweden, and a religious ceremony followed on November 10, 1926 at the Cathedral of St Michael and St Gudula in Brussels, Belgium.

The couple eventually settled at Stuyvenberg Palace and had three children:

Astrid was quickly embraced by the Belgian people and worked very hard to support causes and efforts that brought her into contact with them. The country celebrated the birth of their children, particularly when their first son, Baudouin, was born. In 1934, just months before the birth of their youngest son, Leopold’s father King Albert I passed away, and they became the new King and Queen of the Belgians. Just 28 at the time, Astrid threw herself into her royal duties, while continuing to raise her young family. Sadly, it would be just a year later that Astrid’s life would come to an end.

Queen Astrid Chapel, Küssnacht am Rigi, Switzerland. photo: Wikipedia

In August 1935, the family was on holiday in Switzerland. On August 29, 1935, having sent the children ahead, Leopold and Astrid decided to take one last outing before returning to Belgium. On a drive in the mountains near Lake Lucerne, with King Leopold at the wheel, and Astrid beside him, the king was distracted by something Astrid pointed out to him and lost control of the car. The convertible went off the road and down a steep slope, crashing into a tree. Both of them were thrown from the car, but Leopold was not seriously injured. Astrid, however, was thrown into another tree and died from her injuries. She was just 29 years old. Later, a chapel and memorial were built in her honor in Küssnacht am Rigi, at the scene of the accident.

Tomb of Leopold III and his two wives Astrid and Lilian; Credit –  Wikipedia

Following a state funeral in Brussels, Queen Astrid was buried in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium. Her husband King Leopold III and his second wife Princess Lilian were buried alongside her.

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Kingdom of Belgium Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Leopold III, King of the Belgians

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

Leopold III, King of the Belgians; photo: Wikipedia

King Leopold III, King of the Belgian was born Prince Léopold Philippe Charles Albert Meinrad Hubert Marie Miguel, on November 3, 1901, at the Palace of the Marquis d’Assche (link in French) in Brussels, Belgium. He was the eldest of three children of the future Albert I, King of the Belgians and Duchess Elisabeth in Bavaria. His younger siblings were:

In 1909, Leopold’s father became King of the Belgians, and as heir to the throne, Leopold was given the title Duke of Brabant. He enrolled in the Belgian army at the age of 14, later attended the military academy, and served with the 1st Grenadiers.

Princess Astrid and Leopold; photo: Wikipedia

On November 4, 1926, in a civil ceremony held in the throne room of the Royal Palace of Stockholm in Sweden, Leopold married Princess Astrid of Sweden, daughter of  Prince Carl of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland, and Princess Ingeborg of Denmark.  A religious ceremony was held on November 10, 1926, at St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral in Brussels, Belgium.

The couple had three children:

King Albert I died In February 1934, and Leopold took the throne as Leopold III, King of the Belgians. With his wife and children, he was popular with the Belgian people. Sadly, in August 1935, Queen Astrid was killed in a car accident while the family was on vacation in Switzerland. While driving their convertible, with Queen Astrid at his side, and the chauffeur in the back seat, Leopold was distracted by something his wife pointed out to him and lost control of the car. Astrid was thrown from the convertible and killed. She was just 29 years old.

Following the beginning of World War II, Belgium declared its neutrality. Germany invaded in May 1940 and quickly took control of Belgium. Unlike other sovereigns, Leopold vowed to remain in the country, while the Belgian government fled. Despite the Belgian government’s pleas, Leopold refused to leave, saying he would stand with his troops, regardless of the outcome. His courageous choice would come back to haunt him. On May 27, 1940, Leopold formally surrendered to the German forces. The Belgian government in exile quickly issued statements condemning Leopold and his actions, stating that it was for them to make that decision, not the Sovereign. The government declared that by acting without their advice, Leopold had gone against the Belgian constitution. Unfortunately, the government could not assemble both chambers, necessary for them to formally declare Leopold was unable to reign and to appoint a Regent. For the next several years, they instead campaigned against Leopold and his actions, from afar.

Leopold and his family found themselves under house arrest, primarily at the Royal Palace of Laeken. Leopold attempted to assert his position as King of the Belgians, but the Germans were having no part of that, and his own Belgian government, now settled in London, was not either.

 

In September 1941, Leopold married Lilian Baels, in a religious ceremony held in the chapel of the Palace of Laeken. The couple planned to hold a civil ceremony after the war, but instead held it in December of the same year, after discovering that they were expecting a child. There were several issues with the marriage that further damaged Leopold’s reputation with the Belgian people. First, the order of the ceremonies went against Belgian law, which states that a civil ceremony must occur before a religious one. Secondly, and perhaps most impactful, was the fact that he remarried at all. The Belgian people loved the late Queen Astrid, and perceived Lilian Baels as simply a “social climber”. Following the marriage, Lilian was given the title Princess de Réthy and was not styled as Queen. It was also decided that any children would be Prince/Princess of Belgium but without any rights of succession. They had three children:

In 1944, the Nazis moved Leopold and his family to Germany, and later Austria, where they were kept under heavy guard. In May 1945, they were freed by United States forces, but due to the questions about his actions during the war, they were unable to return to Belgium. They settled in Switzerland, while Belgium began to rebuild from the war, under the leadership of Leopold’s brother Prince Charles, Count of Flanders who had been named Regent in 1944. It would be six years before Leopold could return to his country and throne. After much debate within the Belgian government over the “royal question”, Leopld was cleared of any charges of treason. Following a public referendum in 1950, with 57% in favor of his return, Leopold and his family returned to Belgium, on July 20, 1951.

However, Leopold was met with a violent general strike. Within just ten days, Leopold, probably urged by the Belgian government, chose to step down from the throne. On August 1, 1950, he formally ceded many of his responsibilities to his eldest son Baudouin who was created Prince Royal. But for all intents and purposes, he was beginning the process of abdicating. King Leopold III formally abdicated on July 16, 1951. His son became King Baudouin of the Belgians.

Leopold III signing the abdication papers, Photo Credit: http://crossoflaeken.blogspot.co.uk

Following the abdication, Leopold continued to advise King Baudouin, and the two maintained a close relationship. They all continued to live at the Royal Palace of Laeken until Baudouin’s marriage in 1960. Due to the marriage and the government’s insistence that the former King move to a separate residence, Leopold and Lilian moved to another property owned by the government, Château d’Argenteuil, in Brabant. Leopold spent his remaining years exploring his interests in anthropology and entomology.

King Leopold III died on September 25, 1983, a few hours after undergoing emergency heart surgery. He was buried in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, alongside his first wife, Queen Astrid, and later his second wife, Princess Lilian, who died in 2002.

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Kingdom of Belgium Resources at Unofficial Royalty

King Baudouin of the Belgians

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2015

King Baudouin of the Belgians – photo: Wikipedia

King Baudouin of the Belgians reigned from July 1951 until July 1993, making him the longest-reigning Belgian monarch. He was born Prince Baudouin Albert Charles Léopold Axel Marie Gustave of Belgium on September 7, 1930, at Stuyvenberg Castle in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium, son of the future King Leopold III and Princess Astrid of Sweden. As the eldest son of the heir to the throne, he was given the traditional title of Count of Hainaut. He had two siblings:

Baudouin also had three half-siblings from his father’s second marriage to Lilian Baels:

 

Baudouin was not yet four years old when his grandfather King Albert I was killed in a mountain climbing accident in February 1934. Baudouin’s father became King Leopold III, and Baudouin was now heir-apparent to the Belgian throne and titled Duke of Brabant. The following year, on August 29, 1935, tragedy would once again come to the Belgian royal family when Baudouin’s mother Queen Astrid was killed in a car accident in Switzerland. Soon after his mother’s death, the family moved from Stuyvenberg Castle to the Royal Palace of Laeken, where he would live for the rest of his life.

In May 1940, when the German forces were invading Belgium, Baudouin and his siblings were evacuated from Belgium, settling in France and then Spain, before returning in August of the same year. For much of the next four years, the family was under house arrest at the Palace of Laeken, where they were schooled privately. In 1944, the family was sent to Germany and then to Austria by the Germans, where they would remain until being liberated by American forces in 1945. Because of the tense political situation in Belgium, the family settled in Switzerland for several years, while King Leopold III’s brother Prince Charles, Count of Flanders served as Regent. While in Switzerland, Baudouin attended the Institut Le Rosey, in Rolle. The family returned to Belgium in July 1950, however, the political situation was still very tense and many questions were raised about King Leopold’s actions relating to the war. Due to this, the following month, King Leopold III transferred much of his authority to Baudouin, creating him ‘Prince Royal’. Despite this, King Leopold III abdicated less than a year later, and Baudouin succeeded as King of the Belgians, in July 1951.

 

King Baudouin maintained a very close connection with his father, who continued to reside at the Palace of Laeken despite his abdication. This led many to fear that Leopold and his second wife Lilian would exert too much influence on the new king, and calls for the former King to move elsewhere. However, this would not happen until after Baudouin’s marriage.

 

On December 15, 1960, King Baudouin married Doña Fabiola de Mora y Aragón. Fabiola was from an aristocratic family in Spain and had a close relationship with the Spanish royal family. The two were married in a civil ceremony, held in the Throne Room at the Royal Palace of Brussels, followed by a religious ceremony at the Cathedral of St Michael and St Gudula in Brussels, Belgium. After their marriage, they remained at the Palace of Laeken. Baudouin’s father and stepmother soon moved to another royal property, the Château Bellevue, where they remained until their deaths.

Despite several pregnancies, Baudouin and Fabiola never had any children, which greatly affected them. Fortunately, they maintained very close relationships with the children of Baudouin’s brother, particularly the future King Philippe, who was a frequent visitor to their homes. Although Baudouin’s heir was his brother Albert, he saw Philippe as his true successor and spent much time grooming him for his future role.

 

Although King Baudouin had heart surgery in March 1992 his death from heart failure still came unexpectedly and sent much of Belgium into a period of deep mourning. On July 31, 1993, he died at Villa Astrida, the couple’s private retreat in Motril, Spain. He was succeeded by his brother King Albert II, who would reign for the next 20 years until he abdicated in favor of his son Philippe. Baudouin’s funeral was held at the Cathedral of St Michael and St Gudula in Brussels, Belgium, attended by many royals from around the world. One notable guest was Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, who rarely attended royal funerals. Following the funeral, King Baudouin’s remains were entombed in the Royal Crypt at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, the traditional burial site of the Belgian monarchs. In December 2014, his beloved Fabiola passed away and was buried by his side.

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Kingdom of Belgium Resources at Unofficial Royalty

Princess Claire of Belgium

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

 

Princess Claire of Belgium (neé Claire Louise Coombs) is the wife of Prince Laurent of Belgium, the youngest child of King Albert II of Belgium and Paola Ruffo di Calabria. She was born on January 18, 1974, in Bath, England, the daughter of the British Nicholas Coombs and his Belgian wife Nicole Eva Mertens. She has an older sister Joanna, and a younger brother Matthew.

The family moved to Belgium when Claire was three years old. She completed her primary and secondary education at the Institut de la Providence, in Wavre, Belgium. She then studied as a surveyor, completing her training in 1999. She then worked for Brone & Oldenhove, a surveying firm in Wavre where she had also worked as an intern during her education.

In December 2002, the engagement of Claire Coombs and Prince Laurent was announced by the Royal Palace. The couple had first met in 2000 at the home of a mutual friend. Their marriage took place on April 12, 2003. A civil ceremony was held at Brussels Town Hall, followed by a religious ceremony at the Cathedral of St Michael and St Gudula in Brussels. By Royal Decree issued by the King, Claire was elevated to Princess of Belgium in her own right. Claire and Laurent live at Villa Clémentine in Tervuren, with their three children:

  • Princess Louise of Belgium (born 2004)
  • Prince Nicolas of Belgium (born 2005) – twin of Aymeric
  • Prince Aymeric of Belgium (born 2005) – twin of Nicolas

Princess Claire and her family in 2022; Credit – https://www.facebook.com/fondation.prince.stichting.prins.laurent/photos

In 2004, Princess Claire was chosen to serve as an assessor at a polling station in Tervuren during the regional and European elections. This was the first time a member of the Belgian Royal Family had taken on a position like this, and it was hailed as a sign of the modernization of the monarchy.

Unlike her two sisters-in-law, Queen Mathilde and Princess Astrid, Princess Claire has no official role. However, she is often in attendance at official events and state functions with her husband. She serves as Patron of The Brussels Choral Society and Green Spaces and Garden Arts and is the Honorary President of the Pro Renovassistance Foundation.

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Prince Laurent of Belgium

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

Embed from Getty Images 

Prince Laurent of Belgium (Laurent Benoît Baudouin Marie) was born on October 16, 1963, at the Château de Belvédère in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium. He is the youngest of the three children of King Albert II of the Belgians, who abdicated in favor of his son Philippe in 2013, and his wife Queen Paola (born Paola Ruffo di Calabria).

Laurent has an older brother and an older sister:

Laurent has a half-sister from his father’s affair with Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps. After years of legal battles, on October 1, 2020, the Belgian Court of Appeal ruled that Delphine and her children are entitled to the style and title of HRH Prince/Princess of Belgium, and can use the former King’s surname of Saxe-Coburg.

  • Princess Delphine of Belgium (born 1968), married James O’Hare, an American, had two children, now styled Princess Joséphine of Belgium and Prince Oscar of Belgium

Prince Laurent began his education at (link translated from French) in Brussels where he was educated in French and then attended school in Loppem where he was educated in Dutch. In 1977, he began his studies at the (link translated from Dutch) in Antwerp and completed his studies there in 1980. Laurent then studied at the Royal Cadet School in Laeken, Brussels. He then proceeded to the Royal Military Academy where he was educated as an officer of the armed forces. Upon completion, Laurent joined the Belgian Navy as a naval trainee on a minehunter. He trained to become a diver and helicopter pilot and his highest naval rank was Captain.

In 1996, Prince Laurent founded The Prince Laurent Foundation, a Belgian non-profit organization for the welfare of domestic and wild animals. The foundation focuses on veterinary dispensaries, alternative methods to animal experimentation, equine research, and welfare, and scientific prizes and awards.

On December 19, 2002, the engagement of Prince Laurent and British-born, but Belgian-raised Claire Coombs was announced. The couple met at a mutual friend’s dinner party in 2000. Laurent was helping wash the dishes when Claire came in to lend a hand. The two barely talked and did not see each other again for two months. After their second meeting, Claire was impressed with Laurent’s generosity and sensitivity and Laurent knew Claire was right for him because of her honesty, spontaneity, and love for children.  Laurent and Claire married on April 12, 2003, at the Cathedral of Saints Michael and Gudula in Brussels, Belgium.

photo: The Exiled Belgian Royalist

The couple had three children:

  • Princess Louise of Belgium (born 2004)
  • Prince Nicolas of Belgium (born 2005) – twin of Aymeric
  • Prince Aymeric of Belgium (born 2005) – twin of Nicolas

In 2018, the Belgian parliament cut Prince Laurent’s annual allowance by 15% for a year.  The sanction was imposed after Prince Laurent, in full naval uniform, attended a Chinese embassy reception in 2017 without government permission.  The government had warned Laurent to ask permission from the foreign ministry before conducting any diplomatic activity. Despite that, he went to the embassy event and tweeted a photo of himself there.

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Princess Astrid of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

Princess Astrid of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este; Credit https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73964267

Princess Astrid of Belgium was born on June 5, 1962, at Château de Belvédère in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium. She is the second of the three children of King Albert II of the Belgians, who abdicated in favor of his son Philippe in 2013, and his wife Queen Paola (born Paola Ruffo di Calabria). Her full name is Astrid Joséphine-Charlotte Fabrizia Elisabeth Paola Maria and she is named after her paternal grandmother Astrid of Sweden, wife of King Leopold III of the Belgians, who tragically died in a car accident at the age of 29. Her godparents were her maternal uncle Fabrizio, Prince Ruffo di Calabria-Santapau, and her paternal aunt Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg.

Princess Astrid has two brothers:

Astrid has a half-sister from her father’s affair with Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps. After years of legal battles, on October 1, 2020, the Belgian Court of Appeal ruled that Delphine and her children are entitled to the style and title of HRH Prince/Princess of Belgium, and can use the former King’s surname of Saxe-Coburg.

  • Princess Delphine of Belgium (born 1968), married James O’Hare, an American, had two children, now styled Princess Joséphine of Belgium and Prince Oscar of Belgium

After completing her primary and secondary education in Brussels, Astrid studied art history for a year at Leiden University in the Netherlands before continuing her art history studies at the Institute of European Studies in Geneva, Switzerland, and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States.

On May 13, 1984, the engagement of Princess Astrid and Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este was announced. Lorenz is the eldest son of Archduke Robert of Austria-Este, the second son of Karl I, the last Emperor of Austria and has been Head of the House of Austria-Este since 1996.

 

The couple was married on September 22, 1984, at the Church of Notre-Dame au Sablon in Brussels, Belgium.

Initially, Astrid’s children were not in the line of succession to the Belgian throne, as Belgium followed male-only primogeniture. They were born as Archdukes and Archduchess of Austria-Este. However, the laws were changed in 1991, and Astrid and their children were added to the line of succession. Their children were also granted the title of Prince/Princess of Belgium. In 1995, Astrid’s husband Lorenz was created Prince of Belgium in his own right.

Astrid and Lorenz had five children:

  • Prince Amedeo of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este (born 1986), married Elisabetta “Lili” Maria Rosboch von Wolkenstein, had two daughters and one son
  • Princess Maria Laura of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este (born 1988), married William Isvy
  • Prince Joachim of Belgium, Archduke of Austria-Este (1991)
  • Princess Luisa Maria of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este (born 1995)
  • Princess Laetitia Maria of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este (born 2003)

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Princess Astrid represents her brother King Philippe on foreign visits and gives her services to many organizations including:

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Princess Astrid and her husband; photo: Zimbio

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Fabiola de Mora y Aragón, Queen Fabiola of Belgium

by Susan Flantzer  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

Fabiola

Queen Fabiola of Belgium; Photo Credit – www.telegraph.co.uk

Queen Fabiola was Queen of the Belgians from the time of her marriage in 1960 until the death of her husband King Baudouin of the Belgians in 1993. Doña Fabiola Fernanda Maria de las Victorias Antonia Adelaïda de Mora y Aragón was born to a Spanish aristocratic family in Madrid, Spain on June 11, 1928. Fabiola was the fifth of the six children of Gonzalo de Mora y Fernández, Riera y del Olmo, 4th Marquess of Casa Riera, 2nd Count of Mora and his wife Blanca de Aragón y Carrillo de Albornoz, Barroeta-Aldamar y Elío. Queen Victoria Eugenie of Spain, a granddaughter of Queen Victoria, was her godmother.

Fabiola had six siblings:

  • Doña Maria de las Nieves de Mora y Aragon married Alfonso Escrivá de Romani y Patiño, Count of  Sástago, had seven children
  • Don Gonzalo de Mora y Aragon, 5th Marquess of Casa Riera (1919 – 2006), married Doña Mercedes Narváez Coello de Portugal, had fourteen children
  • Doña Ana Maria de Mora y Aragón (1921 – 2006), married Don Jaime de Silva y Agrela, 17th Duke of Lécera, had eigth children
  • Don Jaime de Mora y Aragón (1925 – 1995), married Margit Ohlson, one adopted son
  • Doña Maria-Luz de Mora y Aragón (1929 – 2011) , married Don José Maria Ruiz de Bucesta y Osorio de Moscoso, 13th Duke of Medina de las Torres , had three children

Fabiola trained as a nurse and worked in a Madrid hospital. She was fluent in six languages: Spanish, French, Dutch, English, German, and Italian. Fabiola was also the author of a children’s book Los Doce Cuentos Maravillosos (The Twelve Marvelous Tales), a book of 12 fairy tales, published in 1955 in her native Spain. The book was later translated into other languages and made into an attraction at a Dutch amusement park. See Unofficial Royalty: Queen Fabiola’s Indian Water Lilies.

On December 15, 1960, Fabiola married King Baudouin of the Belgians, who had been king since the abdication of his father King Leopold III in 1951 The couple married at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula in Brussels, Belgium. Fabiola wore a beautiful Art Deco tiara, the Nine Provinces Tiara, that had been a gift of the Belgian people to her husband’s mother Princess Astrid of Sweden upon her marriage to King Leopold III.

Fabiola_wedding

Photo Credit – http://orderofsplendor.blogspot.com

Unfortunately, King Baudouin and Queen Fabiola lost five children to miscarriages and upon King Baudouin’s unexpected death in 1993,  his younger brother succeeded him as King Albert II.  King Albert abdicated in 2013 in favor of his elder son King Philippe.

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Queen Fabiola and King Baudouin; Photo Credit – royalementblog.blogspot.com

Queen Fabiola was active in a number of charities including:

On December 5, 2014, Queen Fabiola, aged 86, died at her home Stuyvenberg Castle in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium. She was buried with her husband at the Church of Our Lady of Laeken, the traditional burial site of the Belgian monarchs.

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Kingdom of Belgium Resources at Unofficial Royalty

King Albert II of Belgium

by Scott Mehl  © Unofficial Royalty 2014

King Albert II of Belgium; Credit – Wikipedia

King Albert II of Belgium, who abdicated in favor of his son Philippe in 2013, was born at Stuyvenberg Castle in Laeken, Brussels, Belgium on June 6, 1934, the youngest child of the future King Leopold III and Princess Astrid of Sweden. He was given the name Albert in honor of his grandfather Albert I, King of the Belgians who was killed in a mountain climbing accident on February 17, 1934, four months before his birth. The day after his birth, he was created The Prince of Liège.

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Albert being carried into the church for his christening. He is followed by his father and mother and then his elder sister and elder brother.

Albert was christened with the names Albert Félix Humbert Théodore Christian Eugène Marie in June 1934 at the Church of Saint-Jacques-sur-Coudenberg in Brussels, Belgium. His godparents were:

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Albert on the left with his siblings

Albert had two older siblings:

Albert also had three half-siblings from his father’s second marriage to  Lilian Baels:

Albert’s early years were rather tumultuous, with several deaths in his immediate family, and the onset of World War II. Just a few months before his birth, his grandfather, King Albert I died in a mountain climbing accident, and his father became King Leopold III. The following year, on August 29, 1935, his mother Queen Astrid was killed in a car accident in Switzerland. In May 1940, when the German forces were invading Belgium, Albert and his siblings were evacuated from Belgium, settling in France and then Spain, before returning in August of the same year. During the next four years, the family was under house arrest at the Palace of Laeken, where Albert and his siblings were schooled privately.

In 1944, the family was sent to Germany and then to Austria by the Germans, where they would remain until being liberated by American forces in 1945. Because of the tense political situation in Belgium, the family settled in Switzerland for several years, while King Leopold III’s brother, Charles, served as Regent. While in Switzerland, Albert and his brother attended the Institut Le Rosey, in Rolle. Finally, in July 1950, Albert, his brother Baudouin, and their father returned to Belgium. However, the political situation was still tense, and there were many questions about King Leopold’s actions relating to the war. The following month, King Leopold transferred much of his authority to his elder son Baudouin and would ultimately abdicate in his favor in 1951. As Baudouin was unmarried and had no children, Albert became the heir-presumptive to the Belgian throne.

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In November 1958, while at a reception in Rome for the coronation of Pope John XXIII, Albert met Paola Ruffo di Calabria, from an Italian princely family.  Following a brief courtship, their engagement was announced in early 1959. The couple married on July 2, 1959, at the Cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint Gudula in Brussels.

They took up residence at the Château de Belvédère, in the Royal Park of Laeken, and had three children:

During his years as heir presumptive, Albert’s primary role was as Honorary President of the Board of Directors of the Belgian Foreign Trade Office. In this position, he traveled extensively on trade missions and promoting Belgian companies around the world. He held this position from 1962 until his accession in 1993 and was succeeded by his son, Prince Philippe. He was also President of the Belgian Red Cross from 1958 until 1993 and was succeeded by his daughter, Princess Astrid.

On July 31, 1993, King Baudouin died suddenly at his vacation home in Portugal. Albert became King Albert II of the Belgians and was formally sworn in on August 9th. Breaking with tradition, he chose to remain at the Château de Belvédère, and not move to the Palace of Laeken which had traditionally been the home of the sovereign.

In 1999, stories began to emerge that the King had fathered an illegitimate daughter. According to the allegations, Albert had an affair with Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps Boël, and a daughter was born in 1968. This daughter, Delphine Boël, attempted to prove legally that she was Albert’s daughter. However, King Albert never made any public acknowledgment of these allegations.  In November 2018, a court ruling ordered Albert to submit to a DNA test to determine whether he was Boël’s biological father.  In May 2019, a Brussels Court of Appeals sentenced the former king to pay a fine of 5,000 Euros per day for every day he refused to take a DNA test. Later in May 2019, Albert agreed to submit his DNA for a paternity test.  In January 2020, it was made public that Albert was Delphine Boël’s biological father.  In October 2020, the Belgian Court of Appeal ruled that Delphine is entitled to the title of Princess of Belgium and the style of Royal Highness.  This also applies to her children.  Delphine is also entitled to inherit one-quarter of the former King’s estate,  a share equal to his legitimate children.

King Albert’s illegitimate daughter with Baroness Sybille de Selys Longchamps Boël:

  • Princess Delphine of Belgium (born 1968), married James O’Hare, an American, had two children, now styled Princess Joséphine of Belgium and Prince Oscar of Belgium

A photo made available by the Belgian Royal Palace of Queen Paola, King Albert, and Princess Delphine; Credit – Belgium Royal Palace

On October 25, 2020, King Albert and his wife Queen Paola met with Princess Delphine for the first time since she was recognized as a royal at Belvédère Castle in Brussels. A joint statement by all three was released: “On Sunday, October 25, a new chapter began, filled with emotions, appeasement, understanding and also of hope. Our meeting took place at Belvédère Castle, a meeting during which each of us was able to express our feelings and experiences serenely and with empathy. After the turmoil, suffering, and hurt, it is time for forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation. Together we decided to take this new path. This will take patience and effort, but we are determined.”

 

In early July 2013, King Albert announced his intention to abdicate, citing health reasons. On July 21, 2013, Belgium’s National Day, he signed the formal document of abdication and was succeeded by his son, King Philippe. King Albert and Queen Paola have remained largely out of the public eye, preferring to live a quiet retirement, enjoying time with their children and twelve grandchildren.

King Albert and Queen Paola at the wedding of the grandson, Prince Amadeo, July 2014. photo: Zimbio

King Albert and Queen Paola at the wedding of their grandson Prince Amadeo, July 2014.  photo: Zimbio

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Kingdom of Belgium Resources at Unofficial Royalty