| Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands | |||||
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 Princess Laurentien in 2012 | |||||
| Born | 25 May 1966 Leiden, Netherlands | ||||
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| Father | Laurens Jan Brinkhorst | ||||
| Mother | Jantien Brinkhorst-Heringa | ||||
| Dutch royal family |
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| * Member of the Dutch royal house |
Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands (born Petra Laurentien Brinkhorst, 25 May 1966) [3] is the wife of Prince Constantijn and sister-in-law of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands.
 | This section of a biography of a living person does not include any references or sources .(June 2018) |
Petra Laurentien Brinkhorst was born in Leiden, Netherlands on 25 May 1966, the daughter of the former Dutch minister of Economic Affairs, Laurens Jan Brinkhorst and Jantien Brinkhorst-Heringa. She has an older brother, Marius. She is known by her middle name, Laurentien, a portmanteau of her parents' given names.
Princess Laurentien started primary school in Groningen. Her family then moved to The Hague, where she completed her primary education. She attended her secondary education in The Hague, of which four years at the Christelijk Gymnasium Sorghvliet and one year at the Eerste Vrijzinnige Christelijk Lyceum, and later in Kita, Tokyo at the Lycée Français International de Tokyo, where she obtained her Baccalauréat diploma in 1984. Her father was working in Japan at the time, being the Ambassador of the European Union to Japan between 1982 and 1987.
Princess Laurentien studied history at the University of Groningen, where she completed her Propaedeutics in 1986. She then studied at Queen Mary College, University of London where she received a BA degree in political science in 1989, and subsequently at the University of California, Berkeley where she obtained an MJ degree in 1991.
In 2009, she was designated UNESCO Special Envoy on "Literacy for Development" in recognition of her "outstanding commitment to the promotion of education and her profound dedication to the Organization's ideals and objectives". In 2010 she was co-recipient of the Major Bosshardt Prize for her work in combating illiteracy. [4]
She is also the current president of wildlife conservation NGO Fauna and Flora International. [5]
The engagement of Prince Constantijn and Laurentien Brinkhorst was announced on 16 December 2000. The civil marriage was conducted by Wim Deetman, the mayor of the Hague, in the Oude Raadzaal, Javastraat, the Hague, on 17 May 2001. The church wedding took place two days later on 19 May in the Grote of St Jacobskerk, with Reverend Carel ter Linden officiating.
Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien have three children: Eloise (born 2002), Claus-Casimir (born 2004), and Leonore (born 2006).
In 2015, Prince Constantijn, Princess Laurentien, and their children moved from Brussels to The Hague.
Laurentien's full title and style is: Her Royal Highness Princess Petra Laurentien of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange-Nassau, Mrs. van Amsberg.
Laurentien was not legally created a princess, but custom allows a wife to use her husband's titles. All children of the marriage hold the titles Count or Countess of Orange-Nassau and Jonkheer or Jonkvrouw van Amsberg.
By Royal Decree of 15 January 2003, nr. 36, Princess Laurentien was granted her own personal standard. [6]
Netherlands: 
Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the House of Orange (17 May 2001) [7] 
Recipient of the Royal Wedding Medal 2002 (2 February 2002)
Recipient of the King Willem-Alexander Investiture Medal (30 April 2013)
Belgium: Dame Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (28 November 2016) [8] 
France: Grand Officer of the Order of the Legion of Honour (11 April 2023) [9] 
Jordan: Dame Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Renaissance (30 October 2006) [10] [11] 
Beatrix is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013.
Willem-Alexander is King of the Netherlands.
Prince Friso of Orange-Nassau was the second son of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and Claus von Amsberg, and younger brother of King Willem-Alexander. Friso was a member of the Dutch Royal Family, but because of his marriage without an Act of Consent in 2004, he lost his membership of the Dutch Royal House and was no longer in the line of succession to the throne.
Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands is the third and youngest son of the former Dutch queen, Beatrix, and her husband, Claus von Amsberg, and is the younger brother of the reigning Dutch king, Willem-Alexander. He is a member of the Dutch Royal House and currently fourth in the line of succession to the Dutch throne behind his nieces.
Máxima is Queen of the Netherlands as the wife of King Willem-Alexander.
Princess Margriet of the Netherlands is the third daughter of Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard. As an aunt of the reigning monarch, King Willem-Alexander, she is a member of the Dutch Royal House and currently eighth and last in the line of succession to the throne.
Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange is the heir apparent to the throne of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the constituent countries of Aruba, Curaçao, the Netherlands, and Sint Maarten.
Count Claus-Casimir of Orange-Nassau, Jonkheer van Amsberg, is the second child of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands and their only son. He is a member of the Dutch royal family and is sixth in the line of succession to the Dutch throne.
Countess Eloise of Orange-Nassau, Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg, in the media often styled as simply Eloise van Oranje, is the first child and daughter of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands. She is the first grandchild of Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus of the Netherlands. She is a member of the Dutch royal family and currently fifth in the line of succession to the Dutch throne.
Princess Alexia of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange-Nassau is the second daughter of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. Princess Alexia is a member of the Dutch royal house and second in the line of succession to the Dutch throne.
In the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the monarchy of the Netherlands is a constitutional office and is controlled by the Constitution of the Netherlands. A distinction is made between members of the royal family and members of the royal house.
Countess Leonore of Orange-Nassau, Jonkvrouwe van Amsberg, is the third child and second daughter of Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands. She is a member of the Dutch royal family and currently seventh in the line of succession to the Dutch throne.
Princess Margarita of Bourbon-Parma, Countess of Colorno, is the eldest daughter of Princess Irene of the Netherlands and Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma. She is a member of the House of Bourbon-Parma as well an extended member of the Dutch royal family. Per a 1996 royal decree issued by Queen Beatrix, she is entitled to the style and title Her Royal HighnessPrincess Margarita de Bourbon de Parme in The Netherlands as a member of the extended royal family.
Princess Ariane of the Netherlands, Princess of Orange-Nassau is the third and youngest daughter of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima. Princess Ariane is a member of the Dutch Royal House and currently third in the line of succession to the Dutch throne.
The Christelijk Gymnasium Sorghvliet, commonly known simply as Sorghvliet, is an independent Protestant gymnasium in The Hague. Sorghvliet is consistently ranked among the best schools in the Netherlands by the influential magazine Elsevier. Sorghvliet has a long list of notable alumni, including multiple Dutch politicians, writers, athletes, entrepreneurs, members of the Dutch royal family, and scientists, including one Nobel laureate.
Princess Carolina of Bourbon-Parma, Marchioness of Sala, is the fourth and youngest child of Princess Irene of the Netherlands and Carlos Hugo, Duke of Parma. She is a member of the House of Bourbon-Parma as well an extended member of the Dutch royal family. Per a 1996 royal decree issued by Queen Beatrix, she is entitled to the style and title Her Royal HighnessPrincess Maria Carolina de Bourbon de Parme in The Netherlands as a member of the extended royal family.
The House of Amsberg is a German noble family of Polabian origin that originated in Mecklenburg and whose agnatic head is the present King of the Netherlands, Willem-Alexander. A great-grandson of a blacksmith and grandson of a baker, parish pastor August Amsberg (1747–1820) started calling himself "von Amsberg" in 1795, and the family's right to use this name was confirmed in 1891 by Frederick Francis III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. By this permission to use a nobiliary particle, the family effectively became part of the German untitled nobility of the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
Princess Mabel of Orange-Nassau, more commonly known as Mabel van Oranje, is the widow of Prince Friso and sister-in-law of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands. She spends her time in human rights activities such as co-founding War Child Netherlands, the European Council on Foreign Relations, and Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage.
The wedding of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, and Máxima Zorreguieta took place on 2 February 2002 at the Nieuwe Kerk, Amsterdam. Willem-Alexander and Máxima became king and queen on 30 April 2013 after the abdication of his mother, Beatrix.
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