Queen Margrethe, currently Europe’s longest-reigning monarch, has been on the Danish throne for 52 years.
advertisementQueen Margrethe, Europe’s longest-reigning monarch, rode through the Danish capital on Thursday in a golden chariot as she concluded her final New Year’s celebrations before abdicating later this month.
This is expected to be her last public appearance before stepping down.
Thousands of people braved Copenhagen’s freezing temperatures, high winds, snow and sleet to cheer on the popular queen along the roadside.
She is scheduled to abdicate on January 14 after 52 years on the throne.
The 83-year-old monarch will hand over the throne to her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederick. It is the first such resignation in Europe’s oldest monarchy in nearly 900 years.
Margrethe rode in a golden carriage pulled by six white horses, which is used to transport the king from his royal residence at Amalienborg Palace to Christiansborg Palace during traditional New Year’s celebrations, along with military officers.
The monarch wore a fur coat and white gloves and rode in a 19th-century closed carriage covered in 24-carat gold leaf and topped with four golden crowns. They were escorted by members of a light cavalry regiment in blue uniforms with red jackets.
Earlier this week, Queen Margrethe hosted a series of events welcoming the Danish government, parliament, top civilian and military officials, and diplomats.
Christiansborg Palace is used for official royal functions such as gala dinners and public audiences, and also houses the Danish Parliament, the Prime Minister’s Office, and the Danish Supreme Court. It is located about 800 meters from Amalienborg Palace.
The Queen will officially sign her abdication on January 14 at the Council of State, a meeting with the Danish government, making Frederick, 55, and his Australian-born wife Mary, 51, King and Queen of Denmark.
In some European countries, monarchs have abdicated to allow younger royals to take over, but Denmark has no such tradition.
For years, Margrethe has insisted she would not quit.
But her health changed that.
In her annual televised New Year’s address on December 31, Margrethe said that following back surgery in early 2023, she would “think about the future” and consider when she would hand over the responsibilities of the throne to her son. He said it had become.
“We decided now was the right time,” she said.
When she took the throne in 1972, succeeding her late father Frederick IX, only 42% of Danes supported the monarchy. She was very popular. The latest survey shows that 84% of Danish girlfriends somewhat or somewhat approve of it.