Prince Laurent of Belgium publicly recognizes that he is the father of a 25-year-old son, Clément Vandenkerckhove.
The 61-year-old prince's acknowledgement closes the door on the "widespread and long-running rumor" about his relationship with Flemish singer Wendy Van Wanten, whose real name is Iris Vandenkerckhove.
Laurent, the younger brother of King Philippe, released a statement to Belga, a Belgian news agency.
"With this announcement, I acknowledge that I am the biological father of Clément Vandenkerckhove. We have spoken openly and honestly about this in recent years," Prince Laurent said in a press release. "This announcement is based on a sense of understanding and respect for those involved. It is the result of joint consultation."
"I kindly request that you receive this information with the discretion that the nature of this intimate matter requires. I will not make any further statements or provide any further explanation on this matter."
Clément was born before Prince Laurent's marriage to Claire Coombs. They have three children, Princess Louise, Prince Aymeric, and Prince Nicolas. Laurent is the youngest of the children of King Albert II and Queen Paola.
Laurent and Wendy met at a Paris fashion show in the mid-1990s. According to van Wanten, their meeting was followed by "good times." The rumors about Laurent fathering a son began to circulate after Clément's birth on August 16, 2000. His name was a "clear reference" to Laurent's home, Villa Clémentine in Tervuren. Others have noticed the obvious physical resemblance between Laurent and Clément.
Wendy told a reporter: "I was in love and conquered. It was good. I felt safe with him. Time stood still. and I had a prince in my arms." In late 1999, she had a "little prince in her belly." Laurent was aware she had not used contraception. Clément "was certainly not unwanted."
"Laurent often caressed my stomach affectionately. We both enjoyed it. We fell for it, but of course, things turned out differently."
Soon, their relationship suffered as Laurent "was abroad and remained a bit distant." According to Wendy, "he was still trying to figure out his life."
Both realized that their relationship. He "still had to get married," according to Wendy, and she knew he would marry her.
It is understood that Laurent went public yesterday with a documentary, Clément de fils, in which Clément discussed his father, which was shown on Belgian TV last night.
In the documentary, Clément said that he wanted "to live normally." He was tired of being asked, "Do you really know who your father is?
"I want this to be behind me. I just want to be able to go and have a beer with my dad."
https://royalmusingsblogspotcom.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-natural-daughter-goes-public.html
6 comments:
Whats that.
Maybe Philippe has more children not with his wife Mathilde too, has he?
The "perfect" family of Belgium.
Cu
Andrea
I was surprised to see that you published a photo of a child.
Felipe is less likely to have father and child out of red lock or even by another woman during his marriage. Laurent has always been a difficult child.
John, it’s not illegal in the US . The photo is available from a photo agency as her other photos with both her children. It is rare to block out a child’s face in the US media. We also do not have the privacy laws European have. If you were outside, there is an unreasonable expectation of privacy. There’s nothing preventing someone from taking a picture of someone else just walking down the street or eating outside in a restaurant or a hotel lobby or even kids playing outside at school. There are some communities that have school regulations about not taking pictures but that is rare. The only places you are considered private are inside your house a hospital room, a store dressing room, but not outside your house or anywhere in public. Many years ago, Jackie Kennedy tried to stop Ron Galella from taking pictures of her children. The courts ruled. He was within his right, but put a 50 feet distance, which is not very far with a big lens. The judge could not tell him he was not allowed to take photos . California passed a law prohibiting stalking celebrities to take photos of their kids that means being up close and in their faces, but that does not prevent people from taking photos from a distance because they’re out in public on rare occasion, you’ll see a school photo with some kids blurred if one child had been murdered and that child’s face would be shot, but it’s rare.
Very interesting.
Thank you for your answer.
Cu
Andrea
Thanks for the clarification.
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