Belgium's Princess Maria Laura to Wed British Investment Banker
The biggest royal wedding of the year will take place next month in Brussels, Belgium. Princess Maria Laura, the daughter of Princess Astrid and the granddaughter of King Albert II, is set to marry her French-British beau, William Isvy.
As Maria Laura is currently ninth in line to the throne, and had to seek permission from her uncle, King Philippe, to marry.
Permission was granted; Isvy proposed with a diamond and sapphire engagement ring; and at the end of 2021, the Belgian Royal Palace announced the couple's engagement, writing, "Princess Maria Laura and Mr William Isvy have become engaged. The wedding will take place in the second half of 2022. Congratulations to the future bride and groom!"
Isvy was born in Paris to a British mother and French Moroccan father, but was raised in London, which is where he met Maria Laura in 2015, and where they currently live. Isvy works as an analyst at Millennium Capital, and the Belgian princess is a climate analyst at the NGO Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF).
The two will be wed at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula in Brussels on September 10, 2022. "We are really delighted and eager to begin this new chapter in our life together," the couple told Dutch paper Nieuwsblad.
As Isvy is Jewish and the Princess is Catholic, the ceremony will incorporate both traditions. "The couple wanted songs to play an important role. Christian and Jewish songs are also performed. In addition to the parents, the bridal couple's brothers and sisters and some close friends will help organize the party and receive the guests," according to Hervé Verhoosel, a spokesperson.
Ahead of the wedding at the cathedral, the civil ceremony will take place in a town hall on the Grote Markt. "The couple insists that this civil ceremony be held in an intimate circle. Only close relatives will be present," Verhoosel shared. Laura chose her sisters as witnesses, and William chose his two siblings.
The last Belgian royal wedding took place in 2014; Princess Maria Laura's older brother Prince Amedeo married Elisabetta Maria Rosboch von Wolkenstein in the bride's hometown of Rome.
Princess Maria Laura follows Belgian royal tradition by tying the knot at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula. The entire Belgian royal family is expected to be in attendance, as are numerous members of other European royal houses.
"Five hundred Belgian and foreign guests have been invited to the service, including all members of the royal family," Verhoosel confirmed.
Cardinal Jozef De Kesel, Archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels will lead the ceremony, which will begin on September 10 at 2:30 p.m. local time at the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula.
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