Victoria Beckham thanks her children ‘for always believing in my vision’ as Romeo, Cruz and Harper all proudly watch her receive French arts honour – while son Brooklyn is an unsurprising no-show after bombshell statement

Victoria Beckham paid tribute to her husband David and their children as she was named a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in Paris on Monday – but not all of their brood turned out to support her.

The fashion designer, 51, was joined by David, 50, sons Romeo, 23, and Cruz, 20, and daughter Harper, 14, at the ceremony, as well as several of her close friends and Romeo and Cruz’s respective girlfriends Kim Turnbull and Jackie Apostel.

But, predictably, eldest son Brooklyn, 26, yet again skipped out on the occasion – a week after he severed all ties with his family in a bombshell statement, opting instead to build a new life with his heiress wife Nicola Peltz in the US.

It marks only the latest family event to be snubbed by the aspiring chef, after he was previously a no-show at his father’s milestone 50th birthday bash, the UK launch of his mother’s Netflix show and to see David be knighted at Windsor Castle.

However, the Beckham clan appeared determined not to allow their family drama to overshadow Victoria’s big day, as she was presented with the prestigious accolade by the French Ministry of Culture.

The award recognises the individual contributions of artists, writers, and cultural figures to the arts and literature, and previous recipients include Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez, Jude Law and Denis Villeneuve.

And in her acceptance speech, the Spice Girl made special mention of her children, as she thanked them for ‘always believing in my vision’, despite Brooklyn’s recent vitriolic claims against her.

She was presented the prestigious honour by the French Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, who introduced her with an effusive speech.

Praising her fashion talents, she said: ‘You offered millions of young girls a new representation of themselves. For many you were a true role model, inspiring for each and every one of us a taste of freedom and boldness.’

Taking to the podium in front of the star-studded crowd, with her family stood proudly in front, Victoria began: ‘I’d like to start by thanking the French ministry of culture and the Minister of Culture, Madame Rachida Dati. For this honour and for your kind words, I am extremely grateful.

‘I am so proud to be British, but France is one of the few places where fashion is treated with the seriousness it deserves as a form of art.’

While she then shared special thanks to her business partners and team at her fashion and makeup brand, Victoria Beckham, as well as her kids and beloved husband of 26 years.

‘This is not the achievement of just one person,’ she declared. ‘From design and the atelier, to the production and communication teams, and the many minds and hands working together – it is a collaborative effort, and this distinction isn’t mine alone. So I’d like to thank my incredible team for their dedication, creativity and trust.’

David beamed with pride as he watched on, with son Cruz seen laying a supportive hand on his shoulder, as Victoria thanked him ‘for seeing my passion for this business and my determination to build something that we could both be really proud of’.

‘Thank you to my parents and to my children who are always believing in my vision,’ she continued.

As Rachida pinned the medal to her dress, the crowd broke into a round of applause and cheers, with her delighted family clapping in front.

A slew of the biggest names in fashion were also on hand to support Victoria, including Vogue icon Anna Wintour, former British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful and French model Cindy Bruna.

While Danish supermodel Helena Christensen, 57, was also spotted making a stylish exit from the ceremony, looking radiant in a silk gown under a Victoria Beckham wool coat.

Taking to her Instagram following the ceremony, Victoria once again paid tribute to her family and to David, calling the former footballer ‘my everything’.

She shared a slew of snaps of her posing with the star-studded guests and her family, alongside a lengthy caption, where she gushed: ‘I’m so honoured to be named a Chevalière de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture. 

‘I have always deeply admired the French aesthetic and the seriousness with which it treats fashion: as a form of art.

‘So to be recognised here and embraced in this way, is a profound privilege — one that reflects decades of commitment and dedication. My sincere thanks to the French Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati for this honour.

‘Thank you also to business partners who believed in me, my family, and especially David — my husband, and original investor. I couldn’t be more grateful, you are my everything xx’. 

David, meanwhile, reposted the photos and wrote: ‘We are so proud of you and all that you have achieved @victoriabeckham ❤️ Being named a Chevalière de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture… nobody deserves it more than you x We love you’.

Romeo wrote ‘Proud of you mum’, while Cruz’s girlfriend Jackie told Victoria: ‘your drive, creativity, resilience but most importantly kindness and respect towards anyone around you are some of the many reasons why you deserve this and more. You lift us all up constantly and it’s so beautiful to witness your hard work be recognised. We love you!!’

Victoria’s eponymous fashion brand nearly collapsed after it racked up losses of over £66million following its launch in 2008, finally making a profit in 2023 – the first time in 15 years.

David kept the company afloat for years with millions in loans and bailouts to cover its losses, with reported cash injections reaching over £23million in 2019.

In her Netflix documentary in October, Victoria opened up about the difficult period, admitting: ‘The losses were so, so big. David was investing… a lot. It was like a snowball that was going down the mountain.

‘We were millions of pounds in the red. I didn’t know what to do and I was so desperate to save this business that I cared so much about. I felt embarrassed… I was in a hole, it felt like I was in quicksand.’

While the former footballer admitted: ‘It made me panic. I was panicked by it because I never saw anything coming back. We always agreed that we would support each other no matter what, but it worried me. This isn’t sustainable.’

The ceremony marked the Beckham clan’s first public appearance since Brooklyn’s damning statement – with the family putting on a very united front.

They have maintained a stoic silence since the influencer claimed he has been ‘controlled by a family that values public promotion above all else’ and that since being with Nicola, 31, he has found ‘peace and relief’ after battling crippling anxiety. 

Among the long list of claims he made was that Victoria pulled out of designing his bride’s wedding dress at the ‘eleventh hour’ and then ‘hijacked’ the first dance at his wedding and ‘danced very inappropriately on me in front of everyone’.

Victoria is said to be ‘feeling betrayed’ by Brooklyn’s bombshell statement and dancing revelations after her years spent protecting him from ‘dark stories’.

The Daily Mail’s Katie Hind previously explained how the Beckhams’ camp ‘leapt into overdrive in Brooklyn’s defence’ when stories such as kiss and tells and tales of him being ‘involved with the wrong crowd’ surfaced. 

His parents have often instructed expensive lawyers to protect him against such stories. 

David and Victoria would ‘take Brooklyn back in a minute’ and are said to be ‘horrified’ by events this week, according to another source.

Following Brooklyn’s claims about his mother hijacking his first dance, the couple’s wedding DJ, Fat Tony, later recounted the exact detail of the incident during an appearance on This Morning. 

The 60-year-old branded the dance ‘really awkward’ and confirmed that Nicola fled the reception in tears.

Tony, a longtime friend of the Beckhams, claimed that Marc Anthony was to blame, revealing the musician had called Victoria to the dance floor with her son and instructed him, ‘place your hands on your mother’s hips’.  

He said: ‘There was no slut-dropping, there was no PVC cat suits, no Spice Girl action!

‘The word “inappropriate”, why I said it was as well, it was the timing, this is what happened.’

Tony continued: ‘What happened was, basically, Marc Anthony was performing on stage, he then called Brooklyn onto stage. 

‘Brooklyn went on to the stage, and the next minute everyone’s expecting Nicola to go up and do the first dance, and then Marc asked for the most beautiful woman in the room to come to the stage – and then he says “Victoria, come to the stage”.’ 

He revealed that Brooklyn looked ‘devastated’ at the fact his first dance was with Victoria and not his wife, adding that Nicola left the room ‘crying her eyes out’.

Tony went on: ‘Brooklyn is stuck there on stage, and they do this dance, and Marc Anthony says ‘put your hands on your mother’s hips’ and it was a Latin thing, and the whole situation was really awkward for everyone in the room…

‘I’ve done an awful lot of Beckham parties in the past, and they are a very dancing close-knit family and love to dance, right? So you know, what we deem as “inappropriate” is not how Brooklyn feels.

‘This is all about how Brooklyn feels. If he feels that it was inappropriate and awkward, it was inappropriate and awkward.

‘What’s sad is that this is the bit that everyone’s taken from the statement, and kind of whitewashed everything else that went on.’

Speaking exclusively to the Daily Mail, the DJ said at one point Brooklyn’s hands were on his mother’s waist while her arms were placed around his neck.

‘The timing was inappropriate for me. It was meant to be a bride and groom’s moment,’ he told us.

‘I’m not speaking bad about either party in it, I’m just putting the narrative straight about the dance.’ 

While Brooklyn’s explosive claim that Victoria ‘cancelled’ plans to make Nicola’s gown at the last minute, ‘forcing her to urgently find a new dress’ has also been called into doubt.

In an article published in Vogue four weeks after their April 2022 nuptials, Nicola’s stylist Leslie Fremar said the couture Valentino dress the bride wore on her big day had been a year in the making.

Nicola also denied the controversy in a Grazia interview in which she said that after Victoria said her atelier couldn’t make the gown in time, she travelled to Valentino’s headquarters to start the design process.

Hollywood stylist Leslie, who is behind the wardrobes of Demi Moore, Julianne Moore and Charlize Theron, took two trips to Valentino’s headquarters in Rome to see the design come to life with the brand’s creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli and his team.

There was then two US fittings with Nicola, with the head seamstresses even journeying to Miami to ensure it was tailored perfectly.

Leslie said: ‘It was the ultimate couture experience. The simplicity of it was magnificent. We didn’t have to overly detail the dress to accomplish the magnitude of it, so we ended up eliminating the embroidery.’

Tensions of a brewing feud began over Nicola’s choice of wedding dress, with rumours at the time claiming it was the actress who refused to wear one of Victoria’s eponymous designs.

She instead opted for various designs from Valentino, Christian Dior and Versace. Nicola later confirmed the rumours had begun after she didn’t wear Victoria’s design.