A Belgian artist was granted the title "Princess of Belgium" on Thursday after proving she was related to the former monarch King Albert II.

Delphine Boel finally won a seven-year legal battle when Belgium's appeals court granted her the designation of "princess." Her lawyers said a DNA test proved that Albert II was her father, adding Boel was "fully satisfied" the ruling.

The ruling came as a surprise as its decision had been scheduled for October 29.

Boel is to change her surname to her father's, Saxe-Cobourg, and her two children, Josephine and Oscar, will also receive royal titles.

Albert II had long contested Boel's claim to the royal family. He abdicated from the throne six years ago in favor of his son Philippe.

"A legal victory will never replace the love of a father, but does offer a sense of justice, further reinforced by the fact that many children who have gone through the same ordeal will find strength to face them there," Boel's lawyers said.

dv/sms (AFP, Reuters)