Delphine Boël can call herself Princess of Belgium. A paternity dispute with Albert II, former King of Belgium, lies behind her.
Delphine Boël (52) can now call herself Princess von Sachsen-Coburg-Gotha: The illegitimate daughter of Belgium's ex-King Albert II (86) has won a legal dispute. Her lawyer confirmed this to the Belgian newspaper "Het Nieuwsblad". Boël's children Joséphine and Oscar will from now on also go through life as "Princess and Prince of Belgium". The Brussels court had also awarded the 52-year-old equal rights to her brothers and sister from the royal family. A decision in the legal dispute was not actually expected until October 29th.
Delphine Boël has been fighting since 2013 to be recognized as his child by the former Belgian king. According to Boël, the former monarch is said to have had an affair with her mother, Baroness Sybille de Sélys Longchamps (79), decades ago. He always denied this. In 2019 Albert II finally underwent a DNA test, as he faced a daily fine of 5,000 euros if he had refused. In January 2020 he recognized paternity.
Albert II has been married to Paola Ruffo di Calabria (83) since 1959. The couple have three children, Philippe (60), Astrid (58) and Laurent (56) from Belgium. Philippe has been King of Belgium since Albert II's abdication in July 2013.