Mathilde Marie Christine Ghislaine is the full name of Princess Mathilde of Belgium, Duchess of Brabant. She is the wife of the current heir apparent to the Belgian throne, Prince Philippe.
She was born Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz. Even though her grandfather and her uncle were barons, she and her father were members of the untitled nobility. As such, she has a right to the Dutch predicate Jonkvrouw.
The announcement of her engagement with the Belgian heir apparent, who had never been seriously linked with any woman, came as a big surprise. At the time of her wedding, she was given the title Princess of Belgium ad personam. The wife of a Belgian prince used to get this title automatically, but now there needs to be a special creation. Her family was elevated to the rank of Count. When her husband will become king, she will be the first Belgian-born Queen Consort.
She used to be a speech therapist and has studied psychology. She has one daughter, Princess Elisabeth, and one son, Prince Gabriel.
In 1997, one of her sisters and her grandmother, died in a car crash. She has two other sisters and one brother.
