Queen “Without Blame”

When Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz first appeared on the scene in Belgium in 1999, the then 26-year-old was largely unknown in the country. Today she is an integral part of the palace, together with King Philippe (62) she forms a well-rehearsed team at the head of the state. This Friday, the monarch from the old Flemish nobility celebrates her 50th birthday.

Until the engagement, the relationship between the then 39-year-old Crown Prince Philippe and his Mathilde had been kept secret for three years. Then on December 4, 1999, the royal wedding: Mathilde – a star was born, so it was said. There was talk of the “Mathilde effect”, a resemblance to the British Princess Diana and a new shine for the Belgian royal family.

The first daughter was born in 2001 – the 21-year-old Crown Princess Elisabeth. Gabriel (19), Emmanuel (17) and Eleonore (14) followed. Philippe and Mathilde have been the monarchs of the country between the North Sea and the Ardennes since 2013.

Together with her Elisabeth, Mathilde brings a little glamor to the palace – without having committed a single major misstep so far. The time when the Belgian royal family stood for scandals is over. And there were plenty of scandals.

Illegitimate children and parties

For example, Philippe’s father, the former King Albert (88), brought an illegitimate daughter to the palace. Only after years of paternity disputes did a court decide in 2020 in favor of the artist Delphine Boel – and made her a princess. Albert’s wife Paola was considered a “party princess” in the ’60s.

Under Philippe and Mathilde, on the other hand, the royal family is “highly professional,” Vincent Dujardin, professor of contemporary history at the University of Leuven, recently told Paris Match magazine. Mathilde embodies the palace’s philosophy of combining tradition and modernity quite well. At the same time, Dujardin raved about how well Mathilde complemented her husband. “Mathilde is clearly an asset for the king.”