Queen Paola of Belgium

Queen Paola Of Belgium

Paola, Queen of the Belgians (née Donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria; born 11 September 1937), is the wife of King Albert II of Belgium.

She was born in Forte dei Marmi, Tuscany, Italy, the seventh and youngest child of the World War I Italian flying ace Fulco, Prince Ruffo di Calabria, 6th Duke of Guardia Lombarda (1884–1946). Her mother was Luisa Gazelli dei Conti Rossana e di Sebastiano (1896–1989), a matrilineal descendant of Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette. She is of Italian and Belgian ancestry and was hailed as one of the leading beauties of Europe in her youth.

Queen Paola is fluent in Italian, French and English. Less fluent, and the cause of occasional criticism, is her Dutch, the mother tongue of nearly 60% of Belgians.