King Philippe and Queen Mathilde celebrate 25th wedding anniversary

The King and Queen of the Belgians are celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary with two brand-new photos.

The then Duke of Brabant and Mathilde d’Udekem d’Acoz were married on 4 December 1999. Before the wedding, Mathilde was created Duchess of Brabant and Princess of Belgium. This was published on 13 November and was effective from 4 December.

The civil wedding took place in the Brussels Town Hall, and the ceremony was held in French, Dutch and German. The couple then travelled to the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula for the religious ceremony.

Mathilde wore a wedding gown designed by Edouard Vermeulen, while Philippe wore the uniform of a Belgian Air Force colonel. Mathilde also wore her mother-in-law’s lace veil.

Mathilde later said in an interview, “The celebration was really beautiful. The songs we had chosen in preparation, do you remember? And the texts. One of the girls who had speech therapy with me read a text. And we were surrounded by those who are close to our hearts.”