21 AUGUST 2003
As congratulations pour in following the birth of Crown Prince Phillipe and Crown Princess Mathilde of Belgium's newborn son, there was also a warm welcome from someone who will hold a special place in the infant royal's life – his big sister, Princess Elisabeth.

On Thursday, the two-year-old future queen –accompanied by her father and maternal grandmother, Countess Anne Komorowski – visited the Brussels hospital where her baby brother Prince Gabriel came into the world the day before.

The little girl, dressed in a white dress with matching t-strap shoes, held her grandmother's hand as she toddled up the ramp leading to the hospital doors to meet her new sibling.

While royal watchers await their own introduction to the new arrival with a public presentation, the palace has announced who will serve as the prince's godparents. Prince Gabriel's godmother will be Baroness Hans-Ulrich von Freyberg, Prince Philippe's second cousin, while Princess Mathilde’s brother, Count Charles-Henri d’Udekem d’Acoz, will serve as godfather.