Controversy swirls as Belgian Royal Family releases Christmas card

Amidst the controversy from Princess Delphine, the Belgian Royal Palace has released the King and Queen’s family Christmas card.

King Philippe, Queen Mathilde, Princess Elisabeth, Prince Gabriel, Prince Emmanuel and Princess Eleonore are pictured on the steps outside the Castle of Laeken.

The image, taken this summer while Princess Elisabeth was on break from Oxford, is by a palace photographer.

The photograph will feature on the family’s Christmas card that will be sent in response to holiday wishes from well-wishers this festive season.

The Royal Palace released the image as controversy swirls around Princess Delphine’s letter to the Belgian Prime Minister, requesting her to be treated equally with her half-siblings, Prince Laurent and Princess Astrid.

Prime Minister Alexander de Croo has denied that she is treated differently than Laurent and Astrid: “Unlike Princess Astrid and Prince Laurent, she has no official role, and so she is not invited to King’s Day. We also do not ask her to do certain things.”

In response to accusations she only wants money, Delphine has stressed that she wants “respect, not money.” The Princess said her request to the government does not include a desire for an allowance.

Princess Delphine is King Albert’s daughter from an extramarital affair. Denying paternity for many years, a court-ordered DNA test proved Albert was the father of Delphine in 2020. The Belgian Court of Appeals then granted her and her children the styles and titles of prince/princess. She has since attended events alongside the Belgian Royal Family, including National Day and the Te Deum for deceased family members.