A beloved aide – who was ‘like a mother’ to Crown Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands – has ‘suddenly’ stopped working for the Dutch Royal Family, local media reports.
Eveline van den Bent had worked with King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima’s children for 18 years.
According to RTL, she was first hired as a nanny in 2006, and eventually became the couple’s personal assistant, being appointed as private secretary in 2020.
The Government Information Service (RVD), which handles the royals’ communications, has confirmed to the outlet that Eveline is no longer employed by the family, but it is not known why.
Amelia, now 20, has known the aide, who was by her side through some of the most challenging moments, since she was three years old.
When the young royal was forced to move to Madrid after being threatened by organised crime groups in the Netherlands shortly after she began her university studies in 2022, Eveline was a regular visitor.
In a book by Dutch author Claudia de Breij, Eveline was praised for her constant presence and unwavering loyalty.
‘She is always there,’ Amalia had said of the aide. ‘She knows what I don’t like, she sees when I’m tired of a photo shoot.’
Eveline van den Bent (right, stood up) had worked with King Willem-Alexander (left) and Queen Maxima ‘s (centre) children for 18 years. Right, sat down, Crown Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands. Pictured last year
According to RTL , she was first hired as a nanny in 2006, and eventually became the couple’s personal assistant, being appointed as private secretary in 2020. Pictured in 2018
Amelia, now 20, has known the aide, who was by her side through some of the most challenging moments, since she was three years old. Amalia and Eveline in 2018
Images from as recently as April show the royal’s ‘right hand woman’ anchored around the girls, be it to support with holding coats or simply being on standby to help out.
Eveline’s support to the family wasn’t limited to just the Crown Princess – she also saw Alexia, 19, and Ariane, 17, grow up.
Photos from the King’s birthday earlier this year saw the doting Eveline putting a jacket on Alexia when she was chilly.
A royal expert has expressed her shock at the move from Amalia’s ‘confidante’, revealing it’s a ‘striking’ surprise.
‘I saw with my own eyes how involved Eveline was,’ Annemarie de Kunder told RTL. ‘Wherever Amalia went, Eveline stood behind her. Like a mother, she kept an eye on Amalia.’
The presenter added that the aide was ‘always there’ for the princess, and that they grew ‘even closer to each other’ in recent years.
‘In addition to the good relationship they have, it would also have made sense workwise if she had stayed,’ she added, with Amalia taking on more royal duties in the future.
‘Eveline would have been the perfect person to guide Amalia in that.’
Photos from the King’s birthday earlier this year saw the doting Eveline putting a jacket on Alexia when she was chilly
A royal expert has expressed her shock at the move from Amalia’s ‘confidante’, revealing it’s a ‘striking’ surprise. Eveline pictured left, in April
However, blogger All Things Amalia has suggested that there may simply not be enough left for Eveline to do ‘with Ariane in Italy, Alexia in London and Amalia in Amsterdam’.
‘Maybe after eighteen years she wanted something different than the royal bubble of Orange,’ the writer penned.
‘In any case, it’s a somewhat mysterious exit for the woman who played a major role in the life of the Crown Princess in the background.’
FEMAIL has reached out to RVT, which handles the Royal House’s communications, for comment.
It comes as, in September, Amalia unveiled a dramatic new look as she returned to the Netherlands for the first time following a kidnap threat.
The future European Queen recently spent over a year living in Spain as a result of growing fears for her safety but has made two public appearances at The Hague this week.
The royal cut a glamorous figure in a bottle green caped gown by Safiyaa London – a designer favoured by the Princess of Wales and Duchess of York – to attend the opening of Dutch parliament two months ago.
Willem-Alexander and Maxima’s eldest daughter looked equally as sophisticated in a navy gown for a gala at Noordeinde Palace.
Maxima pictured with a young Princess Amalia in 2006 – the year Eveline was hired to work as a nanny
Maxima and Willem-Alexander pictured together with their young daughters in 2007, in the Netherlands
Amalia appeared visibly more confident in front of the camera – having been shielded from the public eye over her family’s concerns for her safety as well being the subject of cruel body shaming on social media.
In October 2022, she began a degree in Politics, Psychology, Law and Economics at Amsterdam University and moved into halls.
However, the high-profile student was forced to abandon her original living arrangements after being threatened with kidnap by Dutch organised crime gangs.
In April, the Dutch public broadcaster NOS revealed the ‘Princess of Orange’ did ultimately escape the confines of The Hague and spent a year studying in Madrid.
Amalia, who first in line to the throne, is said to speak fluent Spanish thanks to her mother, who is Argentine by birth.
Officials would not confirm details of Amalia’s initial departure from her studies in Amsterdam, but the move came weeks after reports that Amalia and Prime Minister Mark Rutte were mentioned in communications by organised crime groups – leading to fears of kidnappings.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte said at the time: ‘I’m very sorry for her and I’m obviously very concerned about it.’
He added that Dutch authorities were doing everything to ensure that the princess is safe.
It comes as, in September, Amalia unveiled a dramatic new look as she returned to the Netherlands for the first time following a kidnap threat
‘She can’t live in Amsterdam and she can’t really go outside (the palace)… It has enormous consequences on her life. There is no student life for her like others have,’ said an emotional Queen Maxima at the time.
Amalia herself told reporters during a royal family tour of the Caribbean early last year that she missed ‘the normal life of a student’, having hoped she would be able to enjoy the student experience like her peers.
‘Sadly the reality was different,’ she said.
Her father, King Willem-Alexander, said in the podcast Through the Eyes of the King that the situation had ‘had a very hard impact’ on his daughter and his family.
‘The uncertainty, the lack of freedom, that is not how you want to raise your children and what you want to pass on to your children,’ he said.
The Minister for Justice and Security, Dilan Yesilgöz, told reporters in the weeks following Amalia’s withdrawal from studies in Amsterdam: ‘I guarantee that our security services work hard day and night to guarantee her safety.
‘It is terrible that this is necessary, in the first place for the Crown Princess herself.’
