Dutch Royal Family Targeted in Murder Plot

Princess Alexia and Princess Amalia waving in evening gowns — (Image credit: Getty Images)

The future queen of the Netherlands, Princess Catharina-Amalia, has already been the subject of threats on her life, and on May 4, a suspect will appear in court after he was found with two axes and a threatening note targeted at the royal and her younger sister, Princess Alexia.

Amalia, 22, and Alexia, 20, appeared to be the targets in a terrifying murder plot, with the Associated Press reporting that a man “was allegedly in possession of two axes in early February with the words ‘Alexia’, ‘Mossad’, and ‘Sieg Heil’ carved into them.” Mossad is Israel's national intelligence agency and “Sieg Heil” refers to a Nazi salute.

In addition to the weapons, the suspect “allegedly had a handwritten sheet with the words ‘Amalia’, ‘Alexia’, and ‘Bloodbath’” written on it, per the Associated Press.

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Princess Catharina Amalia and Princess Alexia walking in a car park — Princess Catharina-Amalia (left) and Princess Alexia attend the Dutch Grand Prix in August 2025.

Their younger sister’s name, Princess Ariane, did not appear in the note. The princesses are the daughters of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima, and Princess Amalia is next in line to the Dutch throne.

The future queen has faced other serious threats in the past and was forced to go into hiding in Madrid after she was targeted during her undergraduate years at the University of Amsterdam.

"No student life for her, like other students have. I'm very proud of her and how she keeps it all going," Queen Maxima told Dutch news outlet AD (via Hello!) "It makes me a bit emotional. It's not nice to see your child live like that. She can go to university, but that's it."

Kristin Contino is Marie Claire's Senior Royal and Celebrity editor. She's been covering royalty since 2018—including major moments such as the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II’s death and King Charles III's coronation—and places a particular focus on the British Royal Family's style and what it means.

Prior to working at Marie Claire, she wrote about celebrity and royal fashion at Page Six Style and covered royalty from around the world as chief reporter at Royal Central. Kristin has provided expert commentary for outlets including the BBC, Sky News, US Weekly, the Today Show and many others.

Kristin is also the published author of two novels, “The Legacy of Us” and “A House Full of Windsor.” She's passionate about travel, history, horses, and learning everything she can about her favorite city in the world, London.