Who is who: the family d'Udekem d'Acoz

When Crown Prince Philippe of Belgium (then Duke of Brabant) married to 
Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz, the nobel family of Mathilde became immediately
famous. 

History

The history of the d'Udekem family went back to the Late Middle Ages.
The earliest records were dated in 1472 with the
ancestor of the family: Gooris van Udekem (who bought then a residence). 

Around 1716, the family d'Udekem was granted a noble title, but in 1795,
after the French revolution, the nobility lost their status. 

When King William I of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands reigned 

over The Netherlands and Belgium as well, he granted the d'Udekem family
their rightful titles. 

Jacques François Joseph d'Udekem (1758-1829) was lord of Acoz, Villers,
Potteries and Lasprelle, he lived in Louvain in "House den Arent",
was granted in 1816 as a Knight of the Province of Hainaut
with the title baron.

The d'Udekem family held the title of baron but in 2000, after the wedding of

Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz to the Duke of Brabant, King Albert II granted the
family of Mathilde - the brothers Henri, Raoul and Patrick - the title of Count,
just as for their descendants. 

After the death of Raoul d'Udekem d'Acoz, the current head of the family is:
Bernard graaf d'Udekem d'Acoz. He is married to Marie-Pierre Verhaegen, an
historian who writes books. 

Who is who?

Ferdinand Thomas Lambert d'Udekem (1798-1853)

Ferdinand was born in Louvain on 25 September 1798 and he died in Louvain on
28 March 1853. He is a Belgian politician. 

Ferdinand was the grandson of Ferdinand d'Udekem (1720-1770), the son of
François d'Udekem (1764-1833) and the father of Jules d'Udekem and Léon 
d'Udekem de Guertechin (1827-1891), the latter being the first of his branch to
obtain recognition of nobility (1891)  and the bearing of the name of
Udekem de Guertechin (1988). Ferdinand was married to Adèle van der Stegen
de Schrieck. He studied law at the University of Louvain. 

Later Ferdinand went into politics. He was municipal councillor of the city of
Louvain, alderman and mayor. He also was provincial councillor to the province
of Brabant. 

In the Belgian Senate he was a senator for the district of Louvain and from 
1851 until his death for the district of Brussels. 

Gérard François Xavier d'Udekem (1785-1866) 

Baron Gérard François Xavier d'Udekem lived in Louvain at the "Hotel
d'Udekem d'Acoz". He married to Justine de Posson de Wanfercée (1799-
1884). They had 7 children. 

Jacques-Albert Bernard Joseph Ghislain
d'Udekem d'Acoz (1828-1900)

In 1886 he had the right to add the name d'Acoz to his surname. 

👀 On May 25, 1915, Squire Henri d'Udekem d'Acoz disappeared
from his castle in Ruddervoorde. He was found dead on September
2, 1915, buried in a forest.

Charles d'Udekem d'Acoz (1885-1968)

Charles was the grandson of Jacques-Albert Bernard Joseph Ghislain d'Udekem
d'Acoz. He also was the grandfather of Queen Mathilde of the Belgians.

Charles married 2 times. First to Suzanne de Smet. When she died he remarried
to Suzanne van Outryve d'Ydewalle (1898-1983). They had three sons together:

Henri (1933-2021), Raoul (1835-2023) and Patrick (1936-2008). 

On 24 March 2023, Raoul d'Udekem d'Acoz died. He was not only the uncle of
Queen Mathilde but also her godfather. 

Queen Mathilde of the Belgians

Queen Mathilde of the Belgians is born as Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz. She is the
eldest daughter of Patrick d'Udekem d'Acoz and Anne Marie Komorowska. 

Queen Mathilde with the Nato Spourses in 2017

Conclusion

The family of Queen Mathilde of the Belgians really had an interesting history and

they still have. 

When her uncle Henri died on 30 August 2021 (see this link), lots of family 
quarrels were mentioned. 

I really find their family ties and history really important, that's why I wanted to 
mention them  in a blogpost. I hope you enjoyed it!

Source pictures: Wikipedia