Yo I am preparing a new life. I would like to change my current position. I want to be less involved in public activities. “It’s no secret that one day I want to live abroad.”
These words might seem attributable to a disgraced politician caught with his hand (or other appendage) in the cookie jar, but they were actually spoken by Prince Laurent of Belgium, 60, distinguishing him as another member royal who, like the United Kingdom's Prince Harry, would rather get the hell out of Dodge than remain subject to the whims of an overzealous, controlling institution.
As King Philip's younger brother and “deputy” rather than heir to Belgium, Laurent has perhaps been even more vilified by his country's press than our own Duke of Sussex. Accused of the unflattering nickname “cursed prince” after a series of controversies and failed deals, he has not even vaguely attempted to hide his displeasure at being part of Belgium's response to the Firm.
Did you think Harry's autobiography was damning? Laurent's extremely public outbursts have previously included comparing life as a Belgian royal to living under a dictatorship; accusing his father and brother of “sabotaging” his life and observing him “like the Stasi”; and he revealed that he sought exile in Libya before the fall of his companion, Colonel Gaddafi, a path he would have infinitely preferred to his current “job” (even with his annual salary of 307,000 euros).
More recently, he claimed that royal protocol was violating his human rights, saying: “I have a cousin who is head of state. [Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg]. If I want to see it, I have to ask the government for permission. Isn't it illegal to prohibit human contact?”
But while Laurent has been a staunch supporter of Harry – condemning the “unacceptable” treatment of him by the British royals – and would certainly like to emulate the Sussexes by swapping his duties for a slice of la dolce vita in Italy, he insists his plans They are based on business, not bitterness. “I think I can do more for society and be more useful if I can live that new life,” he said. “I'm not proclaiming this because I'm angry.”
While Laurent may have been branded “cursed,” a quick look at the weird, wonderful, and extravagant catalog of members of the European monarchy reveals that if someone compiled a list of royals vying for sheep status black, you'd be lucky to even make it to the top 10. In fact, the sheer number of them involved in crazy soap opera-worthy scandals is truly impressive.
Monaco has perhaps the richest vein of salacious stories; Prince Albert's wedding to South African Olympic swimmer Charlene Wittstock in 2011 was notable for the fact that she was crying her eyes out throughout the entire process, amid rampant rumors that she had attempted to flee the country several times in the lead-up to their nuptials. Andrea Albert Pierre Casiraghi, eldest grandson of Prince Rainier III and American actress Grace Kelly, earned the media nickname “enfant terrible” after a series of sensational exploits, including the revocation of his driving license for speeding. Only this year corruption allegations emerged after he and his brother Pierre allegedly “by force” came to own some of Monaco's most lucrative business interests. And that's before even getting into the mind-blowing backstory of Princess Stephanie, Grace Kelly's daughter, who there simply isn't time or space to do justice to here: romances with Rob Lowe and Jean-Claude Van Damme; a song with Michael Jackson; literally running away from the circus after getting into a relationship with an elephant trainer, whom she later swapped for an acrobat 10 years her junior… The word “icon” comes to mind.
Heading to the south of Spain, you will find a family ruined by not one but two tasty tax fraud scandals. Former King Juan Carlos I abdicated in 2014 and went into exile in 2020 after allegations surfaced (his son, current King Felipe, cut off his pension and inheritance in response), while the apple doesn't seem to fall far from the tree when it comes to of dubious finances. Juan Carlos's daughter, Princess Cristina, and her ex-husband, Iñaki Urdangarin Liebaert, were tried for tax fraud in 2017. Although she was acquitted, he was sentenced to six years in prison.
Then there's Sweden's former wild child, Prince Carl Philip, who raised eyebrows in some quarters when he married a glamor model and reality TV star in 2015. His marriage to Sofia Hellqvist, who once posed topless with a python wrapped around his neck, still continues. him strong and resulted in three children, proving that perhaps love really does conquer all. Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik finally managed to shed his “party prince” image when he married Australian-born Princess Mary, but last year he was rocked by rumors of a sordid affair after photos emerged of him on a night out in Madrid with Mexicans. The socialite Genoveva Casanova.
Meanwhile, the popularity of Dutch royalty has plummeted since the pandemic, when King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima vacationed in Greece while the rest of the country was forced to comply with strict travel bans. They made it worse by throwing his daughter a lavish 18th birthday party that also broke Covid rules, just to rub it in everyone's face. Misjudged, to be sure, but their bad decisions pale somewhat in comparison to Prince Johan Friso of Orange-Nassau's decision to marry Mabel Wisse Smit in 2004, a union that was mired in scandal thanks to rumors from his exes. romantic ties with a known drug trafficker. . Parliament did not grant permission for the marriage, causing the prince to renounce his place in the line of succession. He tragically died aged just 44 in 2013, after being caught in an avalanche while skiing.
But by far the most deserving of being crowned the most surprising royal in the game today: meet Princess Martha Louise of Norway. The eldest daughter of King Harald V and Queen Sonja, and ineligible to inherit the throne because the laws of royal succession were not changed until she was a teenager, Martha Louise has fully embraced her gambling “reserve” status. low. How, you ask? Claiming he can talk to angels, establishing an “angel school” where other people can also learn to converse with them, and engaging with an American shaman, Durek Verrett, whose side activities include selling “spirit optimizer” medallions for 200 dollars that supposedly helped cure him of Covid. Can I get a “yas, kween”?
