Frederick
The queen confirmed her abdication by signing the corresponding declaration to the Parliament of Copenhagen at Christiansborg Palace at 2:00 p.m. Frederick X has become regent at the exact time of the same.
An hour later, Frederick X was proclaimed king on the balcony of the palace by the Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, and with a large crowd present.
There will be no coronation ceremony as such, since it has not been held in the country for more than a century. In its place is an artillery salvo and fireworks planned for Sunday. On Monday there will be a formal reception in the Danish Parliament and on Tuesday a religious ceremony will take place in Aarhus Cathedral.
Margaret, 83, ascended the throne in 1972, coinciding with the death of her father, Frederick IX. She believes “the time is right,” as she expressed out loud in a recent speech to the nation in which she acknowledged that her recent health problems had taken their toll, particularly back surgery in February 2023. .
With the aim of “giving responsibility to the next generation”, he set a date for his abdication this Sunday, January 14, coinciding with the anniversary of the beginning of his reign. The eldest of his two sons takes the crown at 55 years of age.
The announcement surprised everyone, as it was made taking advantage of the queen’s traditional New Year’s speech, following in the footsteps of the monarchs of Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium.
After her abdication, Margaret will retain the title of queen and majesty. The last time a Danish sovereign voluntarily renounced the throne was in 1146, when Eric III of Denmark, known as ‘the Lamb’ abdicated to retire to a monastery.
Margaret II had a symbolic farewell to citizens on January 4, when she traveled for the last time in a carriage on the snowy streets of Copenhagen from Amalienborg Palace, the official residence, to Christiansborg Palace, seat of the executive powers. , legislative and judicial and the scene of a traditional reception at the beginning of the year attended by about a thousand guests. In January 2025, it will be Federico X who will carry out this symbolic journey.
The outgoing queen also celebrated her last official reception this week, after accumulating around a thousand in her more than half a century on the throne.
Federico has been married since 2004 to Mary Donaldson, an Australian whom he met at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. They have four children. The eldest, Prince Christian, 18, is now officially the heir to the throne.
Since 2009, Danish laws have established gender equality in the succession to the crown, the result of a modernization that saw its first major step in 1953, when a reform was introduced that eliminated the requirement that only male descendants could reign, which that paved the way precisely for the outgoing monarch.
Federico has a master’s degree in Political Science from the University of Arhus and a long military career. He is a sports fan and has run several marathons and it is not unusual to see him at rock concerts.
84 percent of the population has a positive opinion of the monarch, similar numbers to those of his mother.