The Kingdom of Denmark, the Scandinavian country of nearly 6 million people that includes the Faroe Islands and Greenland in the Atlantic, is ushering in a new monarchical era. After 52 years on the throne, Queen Margaret II will hand over the crown this Sunday to her first-born son, who will be named Frederick X in Copenhagen. The announcement of the 83-year-old monarch's abdication on December 31 caused great surprise in all parts of the country. His own family found out a few days earlier. The Queen is very popular and has managed to maintain her own personality without disappearing behind the position she has held for half a century. The new monarch, 55 years old, faces the challenge of maintaining the lightness that characterizes him without endangering the dignity of the monarchy.
“Federico likes sports and pop music and had more freedom to pursue his hobbies. The question is whether all this is enough and worthy for a king,” explains Sebastian Olden-Jørgensen, historian and expert on the royal family from the University of Copenhagen, on the phone. The queen has greater intellectual interests than her son, “and so far they have been a good combination of closeness and seriousness.” “Now he has to face the situation himself, because as king people expect more than a strategy of closeness and normality.”
Prince Frederick André Henrik Christian attended elementary school in Copenhagen and was interned in France, the homeland of his father, the late Prince Henry. He studied political science at Aarhus University in Denmark and spent a year at Harvard University in the United States. During this stay he worked in the Danish delegation to the United Nations in 1994, where he was also able to use his knowledge of French, English and German. In 1998 he was First Secretary of his country's embassy in France. He graduated from the three army academies (land, sea and air) and took part in the marathons in Copenhagen, Paris and New York. His great love of sport led him into the social sector and in 2018, on the occasion of his 50th birthday, he launched the Royal Race: a competition that brings together more than 80,000 participants every year. His former love of parties and his relative ease in speaking to the public are well known. Today he assures that he is comfortable with his fate. And Princess Mary, Frederick's wife and queen consort in a few hours? “It’s also very popular. And if there was friction between her and Margarita II in the past, this does not affect their functions. “Both are great professionals,” says the historian.
Having barely overcome the surprise of the abdication, both the royal family and the government of Social Democratic Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen made a real sprint to prepare Frederick X's proclamation in 14 days. It is not a coronation like in the United Kingdom. It is closer to the enthronement of King William of the Netherlands, who succeeded his mother, now Princess Beatrice, in 2013. “For 150 years, Danish kings have simply been proclaimed from the balcony of Parliament after taking an oath – or signing – the constitution. A short and sober ceremony,” recalls the same expert. “The last coronation took place in 1648 in a medieval European style, similar to what we see in London with Charles III. saw.” According to him, the British tradition is reasonable because it has not been broken over time. “Even if you don't identify with it, this is how monarchs were crowned in the UK, with pomp and circumstance, non-stop.” In Denmark, however, “that would mean reintroducing a medieval ritual, and that makes no sense in a modern society .”
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The Crown's accounts, a potentially sensitive issue even in Denmark, where polls show only 15% of Republican sentiment, are always a source of debate. This year, the Queen and the royal family (Prince Frederick and his brother Joachim and Princesses Mary and Benedicta) received a total of 121 million Danish crowns: about 16 million euros. The royal family knows that there is talk of the costs of the monarchy, so in the future only Prince Christian (18 years old), Friedrich's eldest son, will receive a scholarship. Not so his three siblings Isabella (16) and the twins Vincent and Josephine (13). Although they will continue to be princes, they must look for a professional outlet. Prince Joachim lives with his family in the United States and is a defense industry attaché at the Danish embassy. It remains to be seen whether he will keep his share of the official sum he now receives. This calculation must be reviewed by Parliament along with the rest of the official resources allocated to the Crown. He will attend the proclamation while his wife, Marie, will remain in Washington with their children.
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Margaret II is the eldest daughter of Frederick IX. of Denmark and Ingrid of Sweden. Since she has no male brothers, it took a referendum and approval of a constitutional amendment to allow women to rule. Frederick came to the throne with significantly less institutional upheaval. The monarchy was popular when his mother was proclaimed on January 14, 1972 after his father's death. Over time, the appeal of the mother, who will retain the title of queen after the abdication, has increased. She managed to be “not just the queen, but herself,” says Olden-Jørgensen. And this is something that other monarchs have not managed to do to the same extent. “Think of the British Queen Elizabeth II. “He identified completely with his task, which he fulfilled perfectly, and almost disappeared as a person.”
The historian attributes part of the monarch's health to luck. “In the Danish royal family there have been no tragedies like that of Diana of Wales or disasters like that of Meghan Markle, wife of Prince Henry of England,” he points out. Yes, a crisis has broken out and is still ongoing because Prince Joaquín's four sons were stripped of their princely titles. The explanation given is that these grandchildren, Nicolás (24 years old), Felix (21), Henrik (14) and Athena (11), had to live their lives freely. The system has not convinced this damaged part of the family.
Today's Danish dynasty belongs to the House of Glücksburg, a branch of the Royal House of Oldenburg, both of which come from Germany. Its members have been on the throne since 1863. A year later, Denmark lost the so-called Duchy War against the Austrian and Prussian Empires. The Danes had to give up Schleswig, Holstein and Saxe-Lauenburg, which were annexed by the other two powers, and this marked what the monarchy would be from now on.
“Of course it’s much older. But the recent history of the monarchy and Denmark as a state begins with the devastating war of 1864,” explains Olden-Jørgensen. In his opinion, the current version is an expression of this recent past and not an imperial memory, although there were Danish colonies in Africa, the Caribbean and India. “After 1864, Denmark was a small power and there was no monarchical political agenda; “That’s his strength,” he continues. “The successful and remaining monarchies in Europe are those that have distanced themselves from daily politics. With some exceptions, such as Spain, where it has occasionally played a more political role,” he says. In Denmark it is “free to act in the cultural and social spheres”.
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