King Philippe of Belgium first met Delphine, his half-sister who has recently been allowed to call herself ‘princess of Belgium’. Delphine is the illegitimate daughter of Philip’s father, King Albert.
Delphine has spent years in a legal battle to get Albert to acknowledge that he is her biological father. Last Friday, Filip received her at the Castle of Laken, where he lives with his family.
“It was a warm meeting. This extensive and special conversation gave us the opportunity to get to know each other”, write Filip and Delphine on Facebook in a joint statement.
And the meeting seems to be continuing, as the two add that “this bond will develop further within the family”.
From Saxe-Coburg
Since two weeks ago, Delphine has been able to call herself Princess Van Saksen-Coburg, the name of the Belgian royal family. Until then she was a maiden and her name was Delphine Boël. After the appeal court ruling, she said she had received no response from the royal family. “I don’t expect anything more,” she said then.
Because of its history, which has long been a painful matter for the royal family, the meeting in Belgium is big news. Today’s joint announcement, which seems to indicate a more lasting contact, is an important element in this.
Little freedom of movement
Filip and Delphine have talked about common experiences, the de Flemish broadcaster VRT. They are both interested in art (Delphine is an artist) and they also noticed that there are common ground with regard to their youth, not always in a positive sense. It is known that King Albert and Queen Paola have a difficult marriage, although they are still married. Albert had a relationship with Sybille de Selys Longchamps, Delphine’s mother, for many years.
It took a long time for Filip and Delphine to meet. As crown prince, Filip had little freedom of movement and could not interfere with the matter, and Delphine’s going to court roughly coincided with Filip’s ascension to the throne in June 2013. Now that the last word seems to have been spoken legally, so space for contact, and that space the two also immediately used.
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