Danes cheer Mary and Fred’s ascension
They may not yet be king and queen, but Danish Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik looked every inch the part in the their first public appearance since their looming ascension was announced.
They may not yet be king and queen, but Danish Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik looked every inch the part in the their first public appearance since their looming ascension was announced.
The couple – who will assume the Danish throne on January 14 – were dressed in full royal regalia for their first public appearance since the new year announcement of Queen Margrethe II’s abdication.
Looking decidedly regal in a dazzling tiara and formal burgundy velvet dress, the soon-to-be queen Mary arrived, smiling, with the future king at the Queen’s traditional new year feast at Copenhagen’s Amalienborg Palace.
The couple reportedly exchanged greetings with journalists and were applauded by onlookers, but did not answer questions.
Queen Margrethe’s abdication, after 52 years on the throne, follows a period of reflection in the wake of back surgery. It will be the first such abdication in Denmark in almost 900 years.
A statement by the Kongehuset, or royal house, said while there was “no tradition” of abdication in Denmark, it was a possibility anticipated by the Act of Succession to the Throne.
“The last time a Danish sovereign voluntarily gave up the throne before his death was in 1146, when the king Erik the 3rd Lam stepped down,” the statement read.
“Even though abdication is not Danish constitutional practice, the Act on Succession to the Throne … presumes that abdication can take place, as section six of the act stipulates that the act’s other provisions – which are based on the death of the sovereign – also apply in case the sovereign relinquishes the throne.”
Frederik and Mary’s succession to the throne is expected to be a relatively modest affair, compared to the pomp of a British coronation.
An opinion poll for a Danish radio station found the royal couple are strongly supported by Danes, with 85 per cent support for Frederik and 84 per cent for Tasmanian-born Mary.
Additional reporting: Agencies
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