Royal families are always susceptible to rumors, but is it true that Princess Charlene has
tried to escape Prince Albert multiple times?
And was her stay in South Africa truly prolonged for medical reasons?
Keep watching to find out!
Prince Albert and Charlene Wittstock met for the first time when she was fresh off her
stint at the 2000 Olympics, but they went on their first official date on New Year's
Eve in 2005.
While she usually doesn't offer much by way of details, in 2011, Charlene did give Vogue
a little bit of insight into what the very early days of their relationship were like.
After the two made their first joint appearance at the 2006 Winter Olympics, things got official.
Charlene said that they were able to bond quickly over sports, and even found themselves
becoming worked up as they watched the athletes compete.
She explained,
"Albert put me at ease.
It was clear that we shared the same passions; we both became very emotional watching the
athletes.
Sport is the common denominator of our lives."
Charlene's close friend Bridgette Radebe has opened up a bit about the woman who would
eventually become royalty, telling Swim History that her friend was as authentic as they come.
Radebe said,
"Charlene has never stopped being who she is.
With Charlene, what you see is what you get."
"I avoided princess parties, and um, it was hard to keep me in a dress, my hero was Zorro
so I wanted to be him."
Just as Prince Albert and Princess Charlene were getting into the groove of their relationship,
Albert was hit with a major paternity scandal that threatened the entire thing.
In fact, the couple has had to deal with multiple paternity scandals, though the births of the
children predate the relationship between Albert and Charlene.
The first lawsuit was filed by a former flight attendant who claimed that she and Albert
had a short-lived relationship that resulted in the birth of their son.
According to the Daily Mail, in 2005, Albert formally claimed paternity of his son.
He later underwent another DNA test for a daughter, who was born in the 1990s.
As People magazine reported, there have been rumors that Charlene hasn't been the most
welcoming of stepmothers to the two children.
But it seems that by now, whatever negativity might have existed has largely been extinguished.
In September 2021, a friend of the couple even credited Charlene with being the glue
between Albert and his two older children.
Despite those challenging ups and downs, Prince Albert and Princess Charlene got married in
a lavish ceremony in July 2011.
The bride was visibly emotional during the televised wedding and much was made about
the fact that she was captured crying as she and Albert exchanged vows.
According to the Daily Mail, so much attention was paid to Charlene's crying that she later
had to clarify that the tears seen by millions were happy ones.
She said,
"Everything was just so overwhelming and there were all the mixed emotions because of the
rumors, and obviously the tension built up and I burst into tears."
According to People mag, the twosome actually enjoyed a luxurious four-day-long event that
included a live performance by classic rock band The Eagles and plenty of fireworks.
The wedding festivities cost $70 million, and it was the first royal wedding in Monaco
in over 50 years.
"My father was called the boss as well, I view it as an endearing term…Bosses usually
do…(laughs)"
Despite insisting that she was completely happy on her wedding day, there were several
reports that Princess Charlene made three separate attempts to leave her relationship
ahead of the pair's 2011 wedding.
The French paper Le Journal du Dimanche reported that Charlene and Prince Albert came to some
sort of an agreement ahead of their wedding after she had attempted to find refuge in
the South African embassy in Paris, France.
CBS News also ran a story about Charlene's reported attempts to escape, alleging that
once her passport had been taken away by Monaco palace authorities, she was, as the publication
stated:
"persuaded by senior Palace officials to move on with her wedding."
She reportedly also tried to escape during the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix the following
May, and she again lost her passport after allegedly being apprehended on her way to
make a one-way flight to South Africa.
However, Albert's top advisor later told People magazine that the stories were false, saying,
"Charlene never left to go to the airport, nothing like that ever happened.
She was never upset and never wanted to stop the wedding."
Prince Albert and Princess Charlene welcomed their twins Gabriella and Jacques on December
10th, 2014.
The palace issued a short statement confirming the news, saying,
"The births took place [...] at the Maternity of the Princess Grace Hospital Monaco.
The princess and the children are doing well."
Despite the fact that Prince Jacques was born two minutes after his sister Gabriella, he
is ahead of her in line for the throne.
Albert had previously explained that in Monaco, if a set of twins is made up of a boy and
a girl, the boy is the one who inherits the throne.
Hello!
magazine also noted that the twins were celebrated throughout the country with church bells,
boat horns, and the firing of 21 cannons for each baby.
While he stated that he believed Charlene knew the biological sex of the twins ahead
of time, Albert revealed that he chose to wait until their birth to find out.
He told the Monaco Matin,
"You know, one doesn't often have the opportunity to have such pleasant surprises in life, that
is why I prefer not to know the babies' gender before the birth."
"When you're- when you’re a parent, uh, you have a heightened sense of responsibility
toward these-toward these children."
Unfortunately for Prince Albert and Princess Charlene, 2021 proved to be a very challenging
year.
Albert and Charlene's marriage was hit with another heavy blow when yet another woman
accused Albert of having fathered her child.
According to the Telegraph, the allegations date back to 2004, when a woman said she and
Albert met in a nightclub in Brazil.
According to Town & Country magazine, the woman claimed that she didn't know who Prince
Albert was until years after their two-week affair was over; she had been led to believe
he was a diplomat from Canada.
Her teenage daughter is said to have sent Albert a letter in which she makes pleas such
as,
"I don't understand why I grew up without a father, and now that I've found you, you
don't want to see me."
Albert's lawyer has completely negated the story.
While Princess Charlene and Prince Albert never issued a personal statement regarding
Albert's first two paternity scandals, it seems that the third prompted at least one
of them to say something.
According to the Daily Mail, at the beginning of 2021, Charlene gave an interview to a French
publication and affirmed that she trusted and supported her husband completely.
Charlene explained that she is the first person Albert comes to with problems, adding,
"I often tell him, 'No matter what, no matter what, I'm a thousand percent behind you.
I'll stand by you whatever you do, in good times or in bad.'"
Charlene added that she feels she has to "protect" her husband and that she will be by his side
no matter what.
The publication also asked if she was happy, to which the royal simply replied,
"There are times more or less easy, it is the case for everyone."
In May 2021, Princess Charlene's planned trip to South Africa turned into a stay that ended
up lasting much longer than expected.
"I am African.
This is my home.
It will always be, it's in my, it's in my heart, it's in my veins."
According to People magazine, the trip began after Charlene underwent a sinus lift and
bone graft ahead of planned dental implants in mid-May.
Her trip to South Africa was ostensibly to support wildlife conservation, but Charlene
later shared that she ended up needing another surgery in June to address severe pain.
Amid speculation that she was prolonging her stay in South Africa because she didn't want
to return to Monaco, she spoke to Channel24 and asserted that nothing could be further
from the truth.
Charlene explained that she was relying heavily on her husband to get her through the experience,
saying,
"Albert is my rock and strength and without his love and support I would not have been
able to get through this painful time."
As a result of her prolonged stay in South Africa, Prince Albert and Princess Charlene
ended up observing their 10th wedding anniversary separately.
Though they weren't together, the pair did release a joint statement acknowledging the
day.
According to People mag, the statement read,
"[His Serene Highness] Prince Albert and [Her Serene Highness] Princess Charlene would like
to thank everyone for their continued love and support.
The generosity they have experienced during the ten years of their marriage is heart-warming."
According to Hello magazine, Princess Charlene also released her own statement, acknowledging
how difficult it was for her to be away from her husband on their anniversary for the first
time ever.
She explained that the decision had been left up to her medical team, who told her she was
unable to travel back home to Monaco.
She added that she looked forward to being home with her husband and children, saying,
"My daily conversations with Albert and my children help immensely to keep my spirits
up, but I miss being with them."
At long last, Princess Charlene came back home to Monaco in November 2021.
For his part, Prince Albert has appeared to be confused by and resentful of the rumors
that have dogged the couple about why she left.
He explained to People mag that the official story — Charlene's 10-day trip having to
last much longer due to necessary medical procedures — was true, adding,
"She didn't leave Monaco in a huff!
She didn't leave because she was mad at me or at anybody else."
However, Albert did understand why their prolonged separation led many to question the state
of their marriage, and he acknowledged that it would have been wise to address the issue
earlier than later.
He admitted that the ongoing rumors were tough on the couple, adding,
"Of course it affects her, of course it affects me.
Misreading events is always detrimental."
Charlene's sister-in-law also addressed the rumors, explaining to Channel24,
"The princess is extremely happy to be back home with her family."
Not long after, Prince Albert revealed that his wife was not currently living at home
with their family, but instead had been staying at an undisclosed location as she recovers
from fatigue that he's described as, quote, "not just physical."
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