House Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Father Leopold III of Belgium | Mother Lilian Baels Name Princess of | |
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Born 6 February 1951 (age 73)
Brussels, Belgium ( 1951-02-06 ) Spouse Jean Paul Gourges (m. 1989) Parents Lilian, Princess of Rethy, Leopold III of Belgium Siblings Princess Josephine Charlotte of Belgium Grandparents Albert I of Belgium, Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Belgium, Henri Baels Nephews Henri - Grand Duke of L, Prince Guillaume of Luxem, Prince Jean of Luxembourg Similar People Lilian - Princess of Rethy, Princess Marie‑Esmeralda of Belgium, Leopold III of Belgium, Prince Alexander of Belgium, Princess Josephine Charlotte | ||
Princess Marie-Christine of Belgium, Mrs Gourgues (Marie-Christine Daphné Astrid Elisabeth Léopoldine; born 6 February 1951) is a half-sister of King Albert II and aunt of King Philippe of Belgium.
Contents
Life
Her father was King Leopold III, and her mother was his second wife, Lilian Baels. Lilian was never recognized as queen, but she and her children, including Marie-Christine, received the style of Royal Highness and Prince/Princess of Belgium.
Marie-Christine was born in Laeken, Belgium. Her godparents were her half-brother King Baudouin and Infanta María Cristina of Spain.
Marie-Christine was named after her godmother, her father popular first wife, her paternal grandmother, and her father.
Her full siblings are the late Prince Alexandre of Belgium and Princess Marie-Esméralda of Belgium. Her half-siblings include the late King Baudouin of Belgium, Belgium's former monarch King Albert II, and the late Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium (Grand Duchess of Luxembourg).
On 9 May 1962, she received her solemn holy communion and confirmation, officiated by Bishop Fulton Sheen.
Her first marriage, to Paul Drucker (1 November 1937 – 1 April 2008) in Coral Gables, Florida, on 23 May 1981, lasted 40 days (though they weren't formally divorced till 1985); she subsequently married Jean-Paul Gourgues, a French restaurateur, in Westwood, California, on 28 September 1989. American actor James Coburn was best man in her wedding to Jean-Paul Gourgues. Princess Marie-Christine worked as an actress in Los Angeles using her third name "Daphné". Marie-Christine and her husband live in Washington.
Over the years, Marie-Christine has moved around quite a bit, living, at different times, in Toronto, Las Vegas and San Diego.
She is a controversial person in Belgium. The Princess in the past claimed to have been raped as a teenager and beaten by her mother. She has lived a jet-set life but in recent years has said she spent away her entire inheritance. When she was a guest in a Belgian Embassy abroad, Marie-Christine refused to drink to her half-brother Baudouin saying "He is not my king". In 1993, when Baudouin died, she did not attend the funeral. On 17 April 2007, in a rare interview, she said "abolishing the monarchy might prove to be of benefit to Belgium". The princess did not attend the funeral of her brother Alexandre in December 2009.