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Princess Marilène |
Today, H.H. Princess Marilène of Orange-Nassau, van Vollenhoven-van den Broek celebrates her fiftieth birthday.
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Groningen University |
The princess was born at Dieren on 4 February 1970 as Marie-Hélène (
Marilène) Angela van den Broek, the younger daughter of (now retired) diplomat and politician Hans van den Broek (b.1936) and his wife Josée (née van Schendel). Marilène attended primary school in Velp, a town not far from where she was born. Beginning in 1988, Marilène went on to study Business Administration and Marketing at Groningen University. She also did a stent at Leuven University in Belgium. Marilène graduated from Groningen University in 1994.
While at university in 1989, Marilène van den Broek met Prince Maurits of Orange-Nassau, van Vollenhoven (b.1968), the eldest son of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands (b.1943) and her husband Pieter van Vollenhoven, Jr. (b.1939). A relationship developed between the Maurits and Marilène over the years, and they announced their engagement in November 1997. The couple were married in a civil ceremony on 29 May 1998, which was followed by a religious ceremony on 30 May. Princess Juliana, the former Queen and the grandmother of Maurits, as well as Queen Beatrix and Prince Claus along with their children all attended Maurits and Marilène's civil and religious wedding ceremonies.
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Marilène's workplace: Koninklijke Ahold NV headquarters at Zaandam. |
After her graduation, Marilène started her career as a management trainee at Dutch international retailer Koninklijke Ahold NV. She worked at the company in a variety of commercial and marketing positions until the end of 2005. Beginning in 2006, she started to a part-time position at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where she still works. Princess Marilène's hobbies include tennis, skating and running - in fact, she and Maurits ran the New York City marathon in 1997!
Princess Marilène and Prince Maurits have three children: Anna (b. 2001), Lucas (b. 2002), and Felicia (b. 2005). The couple's offspring use the surname "van Lippe-Biesterfeld van Vollenhoven."
We wish Princess Marilène many happy returns of the day!
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