Denmark’s Queen Margrethe abdicates, King Frederik X and Queen Mary ascend throne
After 20 years as a princess, Tasmanian-born Mary Donaldson is now officially the Queen of Denmark. See the pics.
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Denmark has an Australian queen.
With a stroke of her pen, former Queen Margrethe offered her abdication after 52 years on the throne, making way for her son King Frederik and his Tasmanian-born wife, Queen Mary.
While the moment was in some ways bittersweet for many Danes, given their longstanding affection for the previous monarch, celebrations were expected to go long into the night, with giant fireworks and parties.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the historic event would bring an enormous sense of pride to all Australians.
“Every one of those reports will mention the fact that Mary was a very proud Hobart person before becoming very much proud of her role as the Queen of Denmark, where she has carried herself in a way that I think just brings enormous support and pride to all Australians,” he said on Monday.
Images of the moment when the former queen abdicated showed a solemn occasion.
Queen Margrethe, dressed in a burgundy suit, signed the abdication at the head of the table during a meeting of the Council of State.
New King Frederik sat by her side.
A poignant photo showed Queen Margrethe departing the room with a walking stick for support, while Frederik sat at the head of the table.
Crown Prince Christian, who is now heir to the throne, sat next to King Frederik.
It was not immediately apparent where Queen Mary stood at the moment of abdication - an event that has not happened in Denmark for 900 years.
King Frederik wiped away a tear as he acknowledged the cheers of Danes when he emerged on the balcony at Christiansborg Palace.
He was joined after a few moments by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who proclaimed him as the new King of Denmark.
“Long live His Majesty King Frederik the Tenth,” she told the crowd, before leading them in a chant of support for the new monarch.
King Frederik then spoke, honouring the service of his mother Queen Margrethe.
Reading from a prepared speech, King Frederik said it was “my hope to be a great king”.
“I have respect, pride, I need all the support I can get,” he said.
After King Frederik’s speech the Danish people got their first look at their new Queen, Mary.
She emerged on to the balcony at Christiansborg Palace amid a great roar from the crowd and smiled and waved happily.
Queen Mary’s white dress was designed by the Danish Søren Le Schmidt. King Frederik wore the world’s oldest naval officer’s uniform.
She was followed by the heir, Crown Prince Christian, then Princesses Isabella and Jospehine, and Prince Vincent.
Queen Mary and King Frederik were both seen to feel the emotion of the moment, holding their hands above their chests. They also joined hands above their heads.
The rest of the family vacated the balcony for a brief time before rejoining King Frederik while a cannon salute fired over the harbour.
And then the moment the crowd was waiting for: King Frederik and Queen Mary leant in for a heartfelt kiss.
Upon their return to Amalienborg Palace the royal family made another balcony appearance, with King Frederik seen embracing Princess Jospehine and Prince Vincent.
While the King was moved to tears during the balcony appearance at Christiansborg, the moment at the residential palace was a more relaxed affair, with the King beaming with happiness.
Meanwhile Queen Mary stood next to Princess Isabella, their stark white and red dresses matching the colours of the Danish flag.
Later the King and Queen returned for another wave to the crowd, and shared a tender moment when Frederik planted a kiss on Mary’s temple.
📸Mikael Rieck & Jesper Sunesen // Billed Bladet pic.twitter.com/dhAUkVHoFV
— ChristinZ (@ChristinsQueens) January 14, 2024
It comes as Britain’s King Charles was among the other monarchs who sent a message of congratulations, saying that along with his wife, Queen Camilla, “I look forward to working with you on ensuring that the enduring bond between our countries, and our families, remains strong, and to working together with you on issues which matter so much for our countries and the wider world.”
A message from His Majesty The King to Their Majesties King Frederik X and Queen Mary on the day of their accession to the throne of the Kingdom of Denmark.
— The Royal Family (@RoyalFamily) January 14, 2024
(1/2 - continued in thread ⬇ï¸) pic.twitter.com/JPJ7RupV1g
He paid tribute to the “many years of service” of Queen Margrethe in his public statement, and wrote to her privately, as well.
It comes as Margrethe II announced her decision to abdicate in favour of her son in a televised address on New Year’s Day after 52 years on the throne, which had made her the world’s longest-serving monarch, a record she had held since the death of her third cousin, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, in September 2022.
An estimated 150,000 Danes braved freezing temperatures to line the streets on Sunday to catch a glimpse of Queen Margrethe in her last act as monarch, making her way to Christiansborg Castle in a mahogany carriage escorted by 48 horses from the Guard Hussar Regiment’s Mounted Squadron. Media from 79 countries covered the event, with the huge crowds and the spectacle contradicting earlier predictions it would be an event without much pomp and ceremony.
Perth resident Dennis Konig was one of many Australian spectators, saying: “We have a royal queen from Australia who we’re all proud of”.
Former Melburnian Lucas Kraeddergaard, 33, from Copenhagen, was also in the crowd at Christiansborg Palace.
“Queen Margrethe’s abdication is a moment in history I’ll never see again in my lifetime,” he said. “Everyone loves Queen Mary, I’ve met her several times and whenever she hears my Aussie accent she tells me ‘that’s so nice.’
Sydney-born Andrew Mina, 43, and his daughter Annika, 12, who live in Copenhagen, said they had camped out early to see the celebrations. They had both met the Royal Couple, and Annika plays football with the couple’s youngest twin daughter, Princess Josephine.
“We’re excited to be getting a new reign and an Australian Queen,” Mr Mina said.
Annika said of her teammate: “Princess Josephine has been training hard and is really quite good at football and plays attacker. She’s really friendly and nice.”
“I sometimes see her mum sitting in the car waiting to pick her up after football – they’re a pretty cool family,” she said.
The transition was put into immediate effect when Queen Margrethe signed a declaration of her abdication in front of the Danish Council of State, as well as Frederik and Mary and their eldest son, Christian, 18, who is now the direct heir to the throne.
While there was no official Australian presence at a brief levée (ceremony) following the Council of State meeting, Queen Mary had a reminder of her former home in the presence of her sister Jane Stephens, a Hobart-based pharmacist who is also godmother to Crown Prince Christian. Her father John was unable to attend because of poor health.
Danes got their first glimpse of King Frederik X and Queen Mary when they were proclaimed on the balcony by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.
Afterwards, the royal couple were transported to the family abode within Amalienborg Palace.
Crowds jammed the octagonal square outside Amalienborg hoping for a glimpse of their new-look royal family, with the photogenic and still-young ruling couple (Frederik is 55, Mary 51) at its heart.
The occasion was marked by cannon shots at the entrance to Copenhagen Harbour, the raising of the royal flag, and later, a massive fireworks display over the city.
Celebrations are set to continue with a parliamentary reception on Monday, and a mass next Sunday.
Hobart-born Mary’s path to the Danish crown began in the year 2000, soon after she met the then Prince Frederik in a Sydney bar during the Olympic Games. Their courtship stayed secret until November 2001, when a Danish magazine revealed Mary’s identity.
Mary officially became a princess in 2004 upon her marriage to Frederik, and she came to be highly regarded by both the Danish people and Queen Margrethe, who saw her as a rock anchoring her previously flighty husband.
With three in four Danes in support of the current system, Mary takes her place at the head of one of Europe’s most beloved monarchies, at a time when support for royalty in Holland, Sweden and Spain is plummeting. Of Europe’s major royal houses, only Norway eclipses Denmark in favourable polling numbers.
But the timing is awkward. Queen Margrethe’s surprise decision to abdicate, after earlier saying she intended never to do so, and the haste with which the handover happened, fuelled rival conspiracy theories: one that she is in poorer health than previously believed; and the other suggesting the transition was done to sideline recent gossip that Frederik had had an affair with a Mexican socialite in Spain, a claim which that woman denied.
The crowning of the new King and Queen is already creating speculation that a state visit to Australia could be on the cards, although a 2024 trip is considered unlikely because of the planned official visit by King Charles and Queen Camilla.
While state visits by non-British royals are not common in Australia, they do occur. In 2016 the Dutch King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima visited Perth, Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane as the guest of then Governor-General Peter Cosgrove. They also met with then Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
A government spokesperson said: “Denmark and Australia are great friends. King Frederick and Queen Mary will always be welcome to visit Australia.”
- Additional reporting by AFP
Originally published as Denmark’s Queen Margrethe abdicates, King Frederik X and Queen Mary ascend throne
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