Royal Profile: 30 Facts about Princess Maria-Laura of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este

1. Princess Maria Laura Zita Beatrix Gerhard of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este was born 26 August 1988, the second child and oldest daughter of Prince Lorenz, Archduke of Austria-Este and Princess Astrid of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este at the University Clinic St. Luc,Woluwe-St-Lambert, Belgium{Source}.
2. She is currently eighth in line to the Belgian throne after her four cousins, and mother, elder brother and niece.
3. At her birth she was not in line due to the laws at the time, however when the laws changed in 1991, she was placed 4th, eventually moving down the line after the births of her cousins who now occupy the 1st-4th positions for the succession.
4. She has one older brother, and a younger brother{Source}:
1. Prince Amedeo, Archduke of Austria-Este (1986)
2. Prince Joachim, Archduke of Austria-Este (1991)
5. She has two younger sisters {Source}:
1. Princess Luisa Maria, Archduchess of Austria-Este (1995)
2. Princess Laetitia Maria, Archduchess of Austria-Este (2003)
6.  Through her elder brother, she has a sister-in-law{Source}:
1. Archduchess Elisabetta "Lili" of Austria-Este (1987, m. 2014)
7. She is an aunt to{Source}:
1. Archduchess Anna Astrid of Austria-Este (2016)
8. Through her mother, Princess Maria Laura is a niece to:
1. King Philippe of The Belgians(1960)
1. Queen Mathilde of Belgium (1971)
2. Prince Laurent of Belgium (1963)
1. Princess Claire of Belgium (1974, m. 2003)
3. Jonkvrouw Delphine Boel (1968, alleged)
9. On her father's side, she is a niece to:
1. Archduchess Maria Beatrice of Austria-Este, Countess of Arco-Zunneberg (1954)
1. Count Riprand of Arco-Zinneberg (m. 1980)
2. Archduke Gerhard of Austria-Este (1957)
1. Archduchess Iris of Austria-Este (1961, m. 2015)
3. Archduke Martin of Austria-Este (1959)
1. Princess Katharina von Isenburg, Archduchess of Austria-Este 
4. Archduchess Isabella of Austria-Este, Countess Czarnocki-Lucheschi (1963)
1. Count Andrea Czarnocki-Lucheschi
10. Her paternal first cousins are:
1. Countess Anna Theresa von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (1981)
2. Countess Margherita von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (1983)
3. Countess Olympia von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (1988)
4. Countess Maximiliana Aimée Maria von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (1990)
5. Countess Marie Gabrielle von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (1992)
6. Countess Giorgiana von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (1997)
7. Alvise Czarnocki-Lucheschi (1999)
8. Carlo Czarnocki-Lucheschi (2000)
9. Maria Anna Czarnocki-Lucheschi (2002)
10. Alessandro Czarnocki-Lucheschi (2004)
11. Archduke Bartholomaeus of Austria (2006)
12. Archduke Emmanuel of Austria (2008)
13. Archduchess Helene of Austria (2009)
14. Archduke Luigi of Austria (2011)
11. Her maternal cousins are:
1. Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, The Duchess of Brabant (2001)
2. Miss Joséphine Boel O'Hare(2003, alleged)
3. Prince Gabriel of Belgium (2003)
4. Princess Louise of Belgium (2004)
5. Prince Emmanuel of Belgium (2005)
6. Prince Nicolas of Belgium (2005, twin)
7. Prince Aymeric of Belgium (2005, twin)
8. Princess Eléonore of Belgium (2008)
9. Master Oscar Boel O'Hare (2008, alleged)
12. Her godparents are her paternal uncle Archduke Gerhard of Austria-Este and her paternal aunt Archduchess Maria Beatrix of Austria-Este, Countess von und zu Arco-Zinneberg{Source}.
13. Until 1993, she resided in Basel, Switzerland, at which point her parents relocated to Belgium{Source}.
14. She was educated at the Jesuit school College Sint Jan Berghmans in Brussels{Source}.
15. She completed her secondary education at the St. John's International School in Waterloo, Belgium {Source}.
16. She then went to London, like her brother Amedeo (educated at the London School of Economics and Political Science), but attended SOAS in London, where she studied Chinese{Source}.
17. In 2007–2008, she spent time in China as part of her studies {Source}.
18.  She then enrolled at the Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales in Paris in 2008{Source}.
19. The Princess is fluent in French, Dutch, and German, the three official languages of Belgium, as well as English {Source}.
20. On 9 September 2005, Maria Laura, along with six other students, were riding home from St. John's International School in Waterloo when the bus collided into three cars and rolled over several times {Source}.
21.  All of the students managed to escape before the bus burst into flames {Source}.
22. The princess was unharmed but was taken to the hospital for observation and released to her parents after a few hours {Source}.
23. Because she is so distantly in line for the throne, her mother has guarded the private lives of her and her siblings, therefore, she and her siblings have rarely made public appearances.
24. She appeared infamily photos, at the baptism of her younger sister Princess Laetitia Maria,the wedding of Archduchess Marie-Christine of Austria and Count Rodolphe of Limburg-Stirum and her mother's 50th birthday celebrations.
25. She is the paternal granddaughter of Robert, Archduke of Austria-Este (1915–1996), and  Princess Margherita of Savoy-Aosta, Dowager Archduchess of Austria-Este (1930).
26. She is the maternal eldest granddaughter of King Albert II of Belgium & Queen Paola of Belgium.
27. She is among the following royals to turn 30 in 2018:
1. Countess Olympia Elena Maria von und zu Arco-Zinneberg (4 January)
2. Archduke Christoph Henri Alexander Maria Marcus d'Aviano of Austria (2 February)
3. Prince Constantin de Nassau (22 July)
4. Princess Beatrice of York (8 August)
5. Edward Edmund Maximilian George Windsor, Lord Downpatrick (2 December)
28. She is named:
1. Maria: popular amongst Catholic royals, for the Virgin Mary
2. Laura: Likely a name her parents liked.
3. Zita: for her great grandmother, Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma 
4. Beatrix: for her paternal aunt and godmother, Archduchess Maria Beatrix of Austria-Este, Countess von und zu Arco-Zinneberg
5.  Gerhard: For her uncle and godfather, Archduke Gerhard of Austria-Este
29. Since her birth, her title and style has changed three separate times:
1. 26 August 1988-2 December 1991: Her Imperial and Royal Highness Archduchess of Austria-Este, Princess Royal of Hungary and Bohemia
2. 2 December 1991-7 February 1996: Her Imperial and Royal Highness Princess of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este, Princess Royal of Hungary and Bohemia
3. 7 February 1996 – present: Her Imperial and Royal Highness Princess of Belgium, Archduchess of Austria-Este, Princess Royal of Hungary and Bohemia, Princess of Modena
30. Most recently, she was spotted supporting her mother's 20km run in support of the Belgian Paralympic team in May along side her sister, Princess Laetitia Maria {Source}