Love child of former King of Belgium writes to the government demanding to be treated like royalty

The love child of the former king of Belgium has asked to be officially considered royal.

Delphine Boël, 55, who was legally named as King Albert II of Belgium's daughter three years ago, has written a legal letter to the government asking it to invite her to government events.

The princess is the half-sister of the current King Philippe, 63, and his two siblings, Princess Astrid, 61, and Prince Laurent, 60.

She is the result of an 18-year affair between the former monarch, 89, who abdicated in 2013, and Belgian aristocrat Sybille de Selys Longchamps, 81, that began in the 1960s.

After a court officially recognized her as the love child of Belgium's former king in October 2020, Delphine said her fight to be recognized as a royal was not about money or status.

Her lawyer, Marc Uyttendaele, has now written to Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, demanding that she be invited to public occasions and treated with the same pomp and circumstance as Astrid and Laurent.

Princess Astrid of Belgium (left), Prince Laurent of Belgium (2nd left), Queen Paola of Belgium (2nd right) and King Albert II of Belgium (right)

“My client has been concerned for months about her role in official events,” the lawyer wrote, noting that she is only invited to a few ceremonies, such as the Belgian national holiday and royal funerals.

He added: “But even there she is treated differently from her brother and sister. It's just a matter of respect.'

The lawyer further stated that she has no interest in a financial donation, in reference to her siblings' annual allowances of more than €260,000.

However, the Prime Minister argued that Delphine is a private citizen and that the Royal Family has official duties in these functions.

He said: 'The people who are invited to these events are people who have official functions in our country, some of the royal family have official functions. Princess Delphine doesn't have one.'

For decades, the former king distanced himself from Princess Delphine and her mother to maintain his marriage.

After the birth of Princess Delphine in 1968, the king initially remained in frequent contact with his child and her mother. But when Delphine reached her 16th birthday, the king began to distance himself.

Delphine, right, meets her biological father King Albert II, center, and Queen Paola, left, during an informal meeting in Brussels 2020

Now Delphine has the right to bear the royal name de Saxe-Cobourg and is formally recognized as a member of the Belgian royal family

In 2013, the same year that King Albert abdicated for health reasons and was succeeded by his son King Philip, Princess Delphine launched a legal bid to be officially recognized as Albert's daughter – which she won in October 2020.

Now Delphine has the right to bear the royal name de Saxe-Cobourg and is formally recognized as a member of the Belgian royal family, as are her two children, Princess Joséphine of Belgium, 19, and Prince Oscar of Belgium, 14, with whom she shares with partner James O'Hare.

Speaking to Tatler last year, the princess, an artist, revealed that her father's rejection when she was young still hurts, but added that she does not blame him or harbor any ill intentions towards him.

She argued that royal life is “isolating” and she believed her father was ill-advised at the time.

However, she said, “You don't just have a kid and kick it.”

Reflecting on her seven-year legal battle, Delphine said the case she brought was not about money or status, but about “principles.”

Now Delphine has attended royal engagements and says her relationship with her father has healed after years of bitterness.

King Philippe of Belgium (right) met his half-sister Princess Delphine of Saxe-Cobourg Gotha (left) for the first time in 2020 – after she was finally recognized as the daughter of former King Albert II after a lengthy legal battle

Delphine (left, with her mother, center, in 2000). She first claimed to be Albert's love child in 1999, after an unofficial biography of the Queen claimed he had an affair and an illegitimate child

When she started her legal proceedings in 2013, she told the Belgian radio program Matin Premiere: 'I feel like I have a right to exist. Not to exist in the royal family, but as me.

“My decision to seek help through the law, I feel today that it was the right thing to do… The legal system said I was right and that I had a right to exist.”

Since the legal proceedings were settled, Princess Delphine has slowly integrated into the Belgian royal family.

She met her brother, King Philippe of Belgium, one of 20 Belgian royals she is related to, in 2020, where they posted a socially distanced photo on Facebook and described it as a “warm meeting.” Her other royal half-siblings are Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent.

When she received her royal title, Princess Delphine was also invited to Belvédère Castle in Brussels, where she had an official meeting with her father and his wife, Queen Paola.