[imagesource: Instagram / @hshprincesscharlene]
A week on from reports of Prince Albert being pressured to divulge the truth of his marriage to Charlene Wittstock, he has finally said something.
Apparently, he is rather “appalled” at the rumours and is emphasising that “she didn’t go into exile” but that “it was absolutely just a medical problem which had to be treated”.
Princess Charlene came to South Africa on a conservation trip in March this year and has been staying in a lodge in KwaZulu-Natal.
She has been away from her husband and their children, six-year-old twins Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, missing big events like her and Prince Albert’s 10th wedding anniversary in July.
Rumours about her reasons for staying in South Africa have been flung far and wide, with headlines like “Albert and Charlene on the verge of splitting up?” adding to the noise.
The couple’s wedding photos have even been revisited, with many recalling how devastated Charlene looked on the big day.
Of course, there was also speculation that she might have left Monaco, seeking sanctuary in her home country, because of news about Prince Albert’s possible third love child.
Meanwhile, there are also numerous reports of her plight with a serious ear, nose, and throat infection that has kept her from flying home to her family in Europe.
PEOPLE has referred to it as “complications related to a sinus lift and bone graft procedure she’d undergone prior to her arrival in preparation for dental implants”:
As result, she has since had several corrective procedures, including one in late June that caused her to miss her 10th wedding anniversary on July 1, and a four-hour-long surgery on August 13.
Prince Albert hopes to sets the record straight:
“She didn’t leave Monaco in a huff!” Albert, 63, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue.
“She didn’t leave because she was mad at me or at anybody else. She was going down to South Africa to reassess her Foundation’s work down there and to take a little time off with her brother and some friends.”
He continues, “It was only supposed to be a weeklong, 10-day maximum stay, and [she is still there now] because she had this infection all these medical complications arose.”
Charlene also landed up in hospital for a “medical emergency” late last week, so her health does actually seem to be a contributing factor to her not returning to Monaco.
Albert acknowledges that he “probably should have addressed” the rumours earlier on, but said he was “concentrating on taking care of the kids”:
“And I thought it would just probably go [away]. You know if you try to answer everything that comes out then you’re constantly [responding], you’re wasting your time.”
If anything, he says the noise about their marriage has taken a toll:
“Of course it affects her, Of course, it affects me. Misreading events is always detrimental. … We’re an easy target, easily hit, because we’re in the public eye a lot.”
Albert added that she is definitely ready to come home, though, adding that she’s even “jokingly said that she’s ready to stow away on a ship to come back to Europe”.
I’m sure a private plane can be arranged.
[source:people]
