The romantic wedding of Prince Felix and Princess Claire of Luxembourg

As they’re set to become parents for a third time, let’s take a look back at the wedding of Prince Felix and Princess Claire, who were married in the autumn of 2013.

The Grand Ducal Household announced that Prince Felix was engaged to his German girlfriend, Claire Lademacher, on 17 December 2012. The statement read: “The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess have the very great joy of announcing the engagement of their son, His Royal Highness Prince Félix, to Miss Claire Lademacher.”

The couple had first met at the Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil, a private boarding school in Switzerland, and while their paths veered as they continued their education—with Felix attending military school and various other programs after he was forced to drop out due to health problems; and Claire attending the American University in Paris and the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome—they reunited and were spotted at several high profile events before their engagement was officially announced. They attended the wedding of Felix’s brother, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume to Stéphanie de Lannoy in October 2012 together.

Following their engagement announcement, the future princess was presented to the public on 27 December 2012. The press were told at the time that their wedding might not take place in Luxembourg, as the tradition was to celebrate in the bride’s hometown. The only reason Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume’s wedding was in Luxembourg instead of Belgium, his bride’s home country, was due to his position as heir to the throne.

On 17 September 2013, Prince Felix and Princess Claire were married in Königstein im Taunus, Germany, in a civil service presided over by the mayor of Königstein, Leonhard Helm.

For the civil service, Princess Claire wore a white lace peplum dress designed by Jan Taminiau, her hair in a beehive updo, and modest jewellery. The church was decorated with platinum roses and white hydrangeas arranged by local florist Blumen Maiglöckchen.

On 21 September 2013, the couple held their religious wedding ceremony at the Sainte Marie-Madeleine Basilica in Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, France. The couple were married in the presence of their families and friends, as well as members of the public who were allowed to enter and fill empty seats. The couple were married by His Excellency Monsignor Jean-Claude Hollerich S.J., the Archbishop of Luxembourg.

For the religious ceremony, Princess Claire followed in her sister-in-law’s footsteps and wore a custom Elie Saab wedding dress. The Grand Ducal Court website states that Claire’s wedding dress was embroidered with plant motifs in cream and silver silk threads and also featured transparent crystals and pearl sequins. The train was made of ivory Chantilly lace.

Her veil was ivory silk tulle and also featured plant motifs, stylised in the neo-baroque design, and was anchored by a diamond floral vine tiara gifted to the new princess by her mother-in-law, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa. The diamond tiara featured floral and vine motifs that complemented Claire’s plant-motif wedding dress.

The tiara was first owned by Grand Duchess Charlotte and worn by all four of her daughters on their wedding days. These daughters were Princess Elizabeth, Princess Marie Adelaide, Princess Marie Gabrielle and Princess Alix.

The couple exchanged fair trade yellow gold wedding bands in order to observe ethical jewellery practices. After the ceremony, they held a reception at the Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume Convent.

While the couple return to Luxembourg for official events like National Day, they reside in France at the Château Les Crostes, a Lademacher-owned castle and winery in Lorgues, France; and Frankfurt am Main, in Germany.

Prince Felix and Princess Claire are parents to two children, Princess Amalia (born in 2014) and Prince Liam (born in 2016). The couple announced in the summer of 2023 that they are expecting their third child.