By Wonderwall.com Editors
January 3, 2024 4:00 AM PST
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Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Europe’s longest-reigning monarch, announced in a speech on December 31, 2023 that she will step down after more than 50 years on the throne. Her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederick, will succeed her after her abdication on January 14th.
In her New Year’s speech, Margrethe said, “So many years go by without anyone noticing, not even me. As time passes, illnesses increase.” After the surgery, he said, “I started thinking about the future.” The time has come to pass on the responsibility to the next generation. ”
Margret, 83, the eldest daughter of King Frederick IX and Queen Ingrid and third cousin of Britain’s late Queen Elizabeth II, ascended the throne in 1972 after King Frederick’s death. According to CNN, she will be the first monarch to abdicate the Danish throne since 1146, when Eric III abdicated to enter a monastery.
“I have decided that now is the right time,” Malgas said in a speech. “Fifty-two years after succeeding her beloved father, I am stepping down as Queen of Denmark.”
Read on to find out more, then click to see photos of Queen Margrethe II and the next monarch of Denmark, their wives and children.
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The Danish royal family has had a number of health problems over the years, some of which were cited in the announcement. She reportedly underwent treatment for cervical cancer in 1994, followed by lower back surgery for spinal stenosis in 2003. Most recently, she contracted COVID-19 and underwent surgery on her back again to treat ongoing pain.
Queen Margrethe II inherited the throne on January 15, 1972, at the age of 31, the day after her father died after a short illness. When she abdicates on January 14, her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederick, 55, will become King Frederick X. Her wife, Crown Princess Mary, will become Queen Consort, making her Australia’s first Australian-born Queen.
Frederick and Mary, who met in a Sydney pub during the 2000 Olympics and married in 2004, have four children: Prince Christian (18), Princess Isabella (16), and twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine (12). I have a child.
When Frederick becomes king, Christian becomes Crown Prince Christian and becomes the next heir to the throne. Christian was followed by Isabella, Vincent, and Josephine (born shortly after her twin brother) as heirs to the Danish royal family.
Click to see more stunning photos of Denmark’s long-reigning queen, future king, and her family…
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On December 31, 2023, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark delivers a New Year’s speech at Christian IX Palace in Amalienborg Castle, Copenhagen, announcing that she will abdicate on January 14, 2024 after 52 years on the throne. announced.
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Crown Prince Frederick, pictured here in an undated file photo, will become King Frederick X when his mother abdicates the throne in January 2024.
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Crown Princess Mary, who was born in Tasmania, attended a banquet celebrating Queen Margrethe II’s Golden Jubilee in Copenhagen. According to CNN, she was working at a real estate company in Sydney when she met her future husband, Prince Frederick.
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Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik arrive at the Royal Theater in Copenhagen for a gala performance celebrating the wedding of Crown Prince Frederick and Mary Elizabeth Donaldson on May 13, 2004.
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Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and her son Crown Prince Frederik attend a reception at Copenhagen City Hall during Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko’s state visit to Denmark, June 3, 1998.
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A photo from August 2002 shows Prince Frederick with his then-girlfriend Mary Elizabeth Donaldson. On September 24, 2003, the Danish Palace announced that Queen Margrethe II had approved their engagement.
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Crown Princess Mary of Denmark and her son Prince Christian pose with the couple’s second child, Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe, after the baby’s christening at Fredensborg Palace in Copenhagen on July 1, 2007. , her husband Crown Prince Frederick.
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Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik and his wife Princess Mary proudly hold their twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine outside Holmes Church in Copenhagen on April 14, 2011, as they attend the baby’s christening.
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Denmark’s future royal family, Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary, and their two children, Prince Christian and Princess Isabella, arrive on September 10, 2022 for a gala performance to commemorate Queen Margrethe’s 50th anniversary on the throne. It will arrive at the Royal Danish Theater in Copenhagen on the same day. The accession of the second generation.
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Queen Margrethe II of Denmark arrives at the New Year reception at Amalienborg Palace on January 1, 2020 in Copenhagen, Denmark.
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This photo taken on May 16, 1979 shows Britain’s Prince Philip, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and Queen Elizabeth II waving from the balcony of Amalienborg Castle during the royal couple’s visit to Copenhagen. , showing Prince Henrik of Denmark.
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On January 16, 2023, Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, Prince Joachim and Queen Margrethe, sister of Greece’s last queen Anne-Marie, arrived at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Athens to attend the funeral of Constantine II, the last king of Greece. arrived at.
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King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden escorted Queen Margrethe II of Denmark (they are cousins) to the 50th anniversary banquet at Stockholm Royal Palace, Sweden, on September 15, 2023.
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Queen Margrethe II arrives for a performance at the Royal Theater Old Stage during the 50th anniversary celebrations of her coronation in Copenhagen, September 10, 2022.
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Queen Margrethe II of Denmark attends a celebration celebrating her 50th anniversary on the throne at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen on September 11, 2022.
Like other Golden Jubilee events scheduled for the same month, the banquet was scaled back in size following the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8, 2022, as Margrethe and Elizabeth were third cousins and close friends. Shrunk.
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Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary arrive at the Drottningholm Palace Theater in Stockholm on September 14, 2023, for the Royal Opera’s Jubilee Theater performance commemorating King Carl XVI Gustaf’s 50th anniversary on the throne.
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Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik attend a banquet celebrating Queen Margrethe II’s 50th anniversary on the throne in Copenhagen on September 11, 2022.
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Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary and their children, Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, Princess Josephine, attended the service commemorating the 50th anniversary of Queen Margrethe II’s accession to the throne, held at Copenhagen Cathedral on September 11, 2022. Prince Vincent. .
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Crown Princess Mary attends celebrations celebrating Queen Margrethe’s 50th anniversary on the throne at the Royal Danish Theater in Copenhagan on September 10, 2022.
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Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik (left) and Queen Margrethe II attend the King’s 83rd birthday celebrations at King Christian VII’s Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen on April 16, 2023.
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Queen Margrethe II and members of the Danish royal family wave from the balcony during her 83rd birthday celebrations at King Christian VII’s Palace at Amalienborg Castle in Copenhagen on April 16, 2023.
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Queen Margrethe II of Denmark waves from the balcony during her 83rd birthday celebrations at Christian VII Palace at Amalienborg Castle in Copenhagen, April 16, 2023.
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Denmark poses with family members including grandmother Queen Margrethe, father Crown Prince Frederik, mother Crown Prince Mary, and siblings Princess Isabella, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine during a confirmation ceremony in Fredensborg, Denmark, May 15, 2021. Prince Christian.
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Queen Margrethe II of Denmark attends the confirmation ceremony of her grandson Prince Christian in Fredensborg, Denmark, on May 15, 2021.
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Crown Princess Mary attends the Golden Jubilee Banquet of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in Stockholm on September 15, 2023.
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On April 16, 2023, Prince Vincent, Princess Isabella, Prince Christian, Princess Josephine, Crown Princess Mary, and Crown Prince Frederik appeared at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark, to commemorate Queen Margrethe’s 83rd birthday. manifest
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Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark sits in the Royal Box on Center Court during the opening day of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships at the All British Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London on July 1, 2019.
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Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark arrive for a New Year reception at Amalienborg Palace on January 1, 2020 in Copenhagen, Denmark.
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Queen Margrethe II attends a gala to commemorate her grandson Prince Christian’s 18th birthday at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen on October 15, 2023.
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Crown Prince Frederik, his wife Crown Princess Mary, and their children (Princess Josephine, Princess Isabella, Prince Vincent, and Prince Christian) attended an event in honor of Crown Prince Frederik on May 27, 2018 in Copenhagen, Denmark.