Belgium's Prince Laurent Formally Recognises Secret Son — A 26-Year-Old Former Car Salesman Now a Prince

Prince Laurent of Belgium has legally recognised his secret son, making Clément Vandenkerckhove a prince by right and a legal heir to his father. The 26-year-old, a former car salesman, is Laurent's son from a relationship with Flemish model Wendy van Wanten — whose real name is Iris Vandenkerckhove — before the prince's marriage to Princess Claire in 2003. The formal recognition came in a town hall ceremony roughly six months before details were made public, according to Hello! magazine.

Prince Laurent, the younger brother of King Philippe and son of former King Albert II — who abdicated in 2013 — issued a direct statement: "With this announcement, I acknowledge that I am the biological father of Clément Vandenkerckhove." The Telegraph reported the recognition on 19 August 2026, noting it followed 26 years during which Clément's parentage had been unacknowledged.

The story of how father and son arrived at this point is its own chapter. Clément's mother told him the truth when he was 16, according to Hello! magazine. Her words were simple: "Your daddy is a Prince." Four years later, Clément made contact with Laurent, and paternity was later confirmed by a DNA test. He had actually first met his father years earlier, in 2013, in a shopping centre — without realising who the man was.

The news became public knowledge in stages. A documentary titled Clement, Son of… aired on the Flemish TV channel VTM in September 2025, in which Clément identified himself as Laurent's son. Prince Laurent first acknowledged that Clément was his son after the documentary aired, as reported by Town & Country. The formal legal recognition followed roughly a year later.

Being recognised as a prince carries a title but not the full apparatus of royalty. Clément will not receive a royal allowance and will not be part of the Belgian royal line of succession — the ordered list of those in line to inherit the throne, determined by statute. He does have the option to change his surname to Saxe-Coburg, the royal house's family name, but is not expected to do so. Clément told the newspaper Nieuwsblad he is proud of the Vandenkerckhove name and would consider renouncing it a betrayal of his mother.

This is not the first time paternity has reshaped the Belgian royal family's public story. In 2020, former King Albert II admitted he was the father of artist Delphine Boël after a seven-year legal battle, which concluded with Boël being granted the title of Princess of Belgium.

Prince Laurent has three children with Princess Claire: Princess Louise, Prince Aymeric, and Prince Nicolas. Clément, now legally recognised as Laurent's son and heir alongside them, has chosen to keep the name he grew up with.