17 MARCKX v. BELGIUM JUDGMENT 44. Under Belgian law, a "legitimate" child is fully integrated from the moment of his birth into the family of each of his parents, whereas a recognised "illegitimate" child, and even an adopted "illegitimate" child, remains in principle a stranger to his parents’ families (see paragraph 16 above). In fact, the legislation makes provision for some exceptions - and recent case-law is tending to add more - but it denies a child born out of wedlock any rights over the estates of his father’s or mother’s relatives (Article 756 in fine of the Civil Code), it does not expressly create any maintenance obligations between him and those relatives, and it empowers his guardian rather than those relatives to give consent, where appropriate, to his marriage (Article 159, as compared with Article 150), etc. It thus appears that in certain respects Alexandra never had a legal relationship with her mother’s family, for example with her maternal grandmother, Mrs. Victorine Libot, who died in August 1974, or with her aunt, Mrs. Blanche Marckx (see paragraph 12 above). The applicants regard this situation as incompatible with Article 8 of the Convention (art. 8), taken both alone and in conjunction with Article 14 (art. 14+8). This is contested by the Government. The Commission, for its part, finds a breach of the requirements of Article 8 (art. 8), taken both alone and in conjunction with Article 14 (art. 14+8), with respect to Alexandra, and a breach of Article 14 taken in conjunction with Article 8 (art. 14+8), with respect to Paula Marckx. 1. On the alleged violation of Article 8 (art. 8) of the Convention, taken alone 45. In the Court’s opinion, "family life", within the meaning of Article 8 (art. 8), includes at least the ties between near relatives, for instance those between grandparents and grandchildren, since such relatives may play a considerable part in family life. "Respect" for a family life so understood implies an obligation for the State to act in a manner calculated to allow these ties to develop normally (see, mutatis mutandis, paragraph 31 above). Yet the development of the family life of an unmarried mother and her child whom she has recognised may be hindered if the child does not become a member of the mother’s family and if the establishment of affiliation has effects only as between the two of them. 46. It is objected by the Government that Alexandra’s grandparents were not parties to the case and, furthermore, that there is no evidence before the Court as to the actual existence, now or in the past, of relations between Alexandra and her grandparents, the normal manifestations whereof were hampered by Belgian law. The Court does not agree. The fact that Mrs. Victorine Libot did not apply to the Commission in no way prevents the applicants from complaining, on their own account, of the exclusion of one of them from the