The House of Ligne is one of the oldest Belgian noble families, dating back to the eleventh century.

[1] The family's name comes from the village of Ligne [fr] where it originated,[2] between Ath and Tournai in what is now the Hainaut province of Belgium.

[1] That principality was, however, sold to Prince Nikolaus Esterházy on 22 May 1804,[1] before the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire, of which Edelstetten had been a constituent Imperial state, in 1806.

[1] There have been cadet branches of this house: Barbançon, Barbançon-Arenberg, Moÿ, Ham and Arenberg, La Trémoïlle.

Her daughter is Princess Yolande de Ligne (b.1963), daughter-in-law of Peter Townsend (RAF officer), linked romantically with Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, sister of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.