Belgian Queen Mathilde, currently on a state visit to South Africa, has gone into mourning after learning of the death of her uncle, Count Raoul d’Udekem d’Acoz, who died on Saturday at the age of 87, RTL Info reports.
Raoul was the second son of Baron Charles Joseph d’Udekem d’Acoz, former lord Mayor of Proven. The noble family was known to be active in Belgian politics since the country’s independence in 1830.
First born in Uccle, the Queen’s uncle moved to Herne, Flemish Brabant, in the 1990s. There, he became a Christian Democrats and Flemish (CD&V) councillor between 2001-2007, before becoming an honorary councillor in 2014. The same year he led the Flemish Christian Party’s regional elections list.
The mayor of Herne, Kris Poelaert, remembered the Queen’s uncle as a man who was “very committed to the town.”
The count also resided in Ypres, West Flanders, for many years and was a municipal councillor there for 24 years as part of the Christian People’s Party (CVP).
The funeral of the Count will take place on 30 March at 11:00 in the Saint-Nicolas church in Enghien, Hainaut province, the mayor of Herne announced on Monday.
