What do you know about the Belgian Queen Mathilde?

She turned 50 in early 2023: Mathilde D'Udekem D'Acoz, Queen of the Belgians and wife of King Philippe. Even though she ascended the Belgian throne almost a decade ago, few people know her. Let's have a look at the exemplary monarch who is both discreet and involved in good causes.

Mathilde is the daughter of Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz, a squire who was the third son of a Belgian baron and who pursued a political career after opening one of the country's most famous nightclubs in the 1960s. Her father accustomed Mathilde to the peculiar environment of European aristocracy.

On the side of her mother Anna Maria Koromowska (on the right in the photo), the Queen of the Belgians is descended from Polish aristocrats. Her maternal grandfather was a count and her grandmother was from the Sapieha family, a famous line of Polish-Lithuanian nobility.

Mathilde had an active professional life before meeting her destiny with the crown of Belgium. She is a speech therapist by training, a profession she practiced for several years before her marriage. In fact, she was the first Queen of the Belgians to graduate from university.

Mathilde also often left with a backpack to volunteer in developing countries when she was young. She is both a listener and a hands-on person. Those are valuable assets for her current duties.

As noted by historian Vincent Dujardin in 'Paris Match Belgium', "speech therapy and psychology are choices of fields that reveal an interest for others. These social training courses have prepared her well for her role as queen because they are centered on people, helping people, empathy for those who are going through a difficult time, [and] being there with vulnerable people."

Her life changed dramatically when she met Philippe, the young Crown Prince of Belgium at the end of the 1990s. The future king has revealed that it was a spontaneous meeting and that no one had officially introduced Mathilde to him.

The couple married on December 4, 1999. Mathilde then interrupted her professional activities and became Princess of Belgium and Duchess of Brabant.

Photo: Belga-Herwig Vergult/ver.

Philippe and Mathilde had four children in the years following their marriage: Elisabeth, born in 2001 (the new Crown Princess), Gabriel, born in 2003, Emmanuel, born in 2005, and Éléonore, born in 2008.

Always committed to the social field, Philippe's wife created the Princess Mathilde Fund which offers yearly financial support for projects intended to improve the situation of the most vulnerable people.

As proof of her growing influence, she was ranked 29th among the 100 most powerful women in Belgium by the Dutch-language daily 'Het Laatste Nieuws' in 2012. At that time, she was still a princess, not a queen.

In July 2013, following the abdication of King Albert II, his son Philippe succeeded him on the throne. Mathilde became Queen of the Belgians.

Curiously, Mathilde is the first Belgian queen in history. From Louise d'Orléans in the 19th century to the Queens Fabiola and Paola (on either side of Mathilde in the photo), the six sovereigns who preceded her were all of foreign origin.

Mathilde is the godmother of several children of other European monarchs, such as Princess Alexia of the Netherlands, the daughter of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima (on the left in the photo), but also Isabella of Denmark, the daughter of Crown Prince Frederik and Mary Donaldson.

Queen Mathilde has had to devote herself to many representational tasks, but she never stopped doing humanitarian work. After granting her patronage to associations such as Handicap International Belgium, she became part of the UN Sustainable Development Goals Advocates Group while being honorary president of Unicef Belgium.

For Vincent Dujardin, Mathilde is "the first queen to exercise this role as a profession in her own right." For the historian, the queen gives "the image of someone conscientious, who masters her files, devoted to her task, discreet" but also someone who is "at ease and puts people at ease in being positive, encouraging." All of this with "an impressive memory of names and family situations."

As summarized by Vincent Dujardin, Mathilde "is clearly an asset for the king. She always has been. The other sovereigns are not all so lucky. In 23 years, she has not caused any controversy." She may not have made the tabloids often, but that is, of course, a good thing!

The future of the Belgian monarchy is now in the hands of her eldest daughter, Elisabeth, who is now in her early 20s. King Philippe plans to abdicate before his death, just like his father before him. At that moment, the Crown Princess will be called upon to become the first woman to reign over Belgium. A task that she will perform perfectly if she has inherited her mother's qualities!

Photo: Bas Bogaerts / Royal Palace Belgium