In a move no one saw coming, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark has announced she will abdicate the Danish throne on January 14 2024, according to Sky News. Her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik, will succeed her as King. Her reasoning was she felt it was the right time and that her recovery from her back surgery gave her time to reflect.
Frederik’s wife, Crown Princess Mary, will take her place as Queen, making her the first Australian in history to sit on the Danish throne as consort.
The 2023 Scandals And Hiccups For The Danish Monarchy
2023 was a little rough for the Danish Royals. Queen Margrethe pulled the princely titles from her grandchildren by her younger son, Prince Joachim, on January 1 2023. She then apologised but kept to her guns and didn’t reverse her decision. Later, she had to undergo back surgery, prompting her to miss King Charles III’s coronation in England.
To make the situation worse, Crown Prince Frederik was accused of cheating after being photographed coming out of an apartment complex in Spain with a woman who was not his wife.
Queen Margrethe’s decision to abdicate has come as a surprise as it was widely believed that she would remain monarch until her death. As the Sky News story says, the Queen of Denmark is in her early 80s. Her son is in his mid-50s.
However, there has been another theory, which was shared by Jane Barr of the blog From Berkshire to Buckingham. She believes that Queen Margrethe’s decision to abdicate had to do with ‘saving Frederik and Mary’s marriage’ rather than her health. While possible, it is unlikely the Queen would interfere in her son’s marriage unless she were asked.
Queen Margrethe Decides To Voluntary Abdicate
Voluntary abdication is not something that most monarchs do. It is a tradition in the Netherlands, where monarchs rule for as long as they like before handing the crown to the heir. Princess Beatrix, the former Queen of the Netherlands, did it for her son, King Willem-Alexander, and her mother did it for her.
The 1936 abdication of Edward VIII was a massive scandal in England at the time. A monarch had never stepped aside before this. According to the Sky News story (linked above), the last abdication of a Danish monarch was in the 1400s.
When Frederik does ascend the throne on January 14, he will be King Frederik X. Mary will be Queen Mary. Their eldest son, Christian, will become Crown Prince Christian. It’ll be interesting to see if she maintains her title as queen or if she will take a lesser title.
