“I have decided that now is the right time. On 14 January 2024 – 52 years after I succeeded my beloved father – I will step down as queen of Denmark,” she said.

“I leave the throne to my son, Crown Prince Frederik,” she said.

Who is Crown Prince Frederik?

Frederik André Henrik Christian is next in line to inherit the Danish throne as the heir apparent. He is the eldest child of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik. With Queen Margrethe’s declaration on December 31, 2023, about her plans to abdicate, it is anticipated that Frederik will ascend to the throne on January 14, 2024, as King Frederik X.

Early Life and Education

According to reports, Born in Copenhagen on May 26, 1968, he was given the name Frederik in honour of his maternal grandfather, King Frederick IX, thereby upholding the Danish royal custom of naming the heir apparent either Frederick or Christian.

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While attending college, he spent a period studying at Harvard in the United States, using the pseudonym Frederik Henriksen.

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Frederik completed his education at Øregård Gymnasium and achieved a notable milestone as the first royal to earn a master’s degree, holding an MSc in political science from Aarhus University.

Military Career

Frederik maintained his involvement in the defence services, serving as a staff officer at Defense Command Denmark from 2002 to 2003. Subsequently, from 2003 onward, he took on the role of a senior lecturer at the Institute of Strategy within the Royal Danish Defense College.

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The prince, known by the nickname “Pingo” (Penguin), was a member of the navy’s Frogmen Corps. In the challenging selection process of 1995, he distinguished himself as one of only four recruits out of the 300 who successfully passed all the tests.

Marriage

Crown Prince Frederik married Mary Elizabeth Donaldson, an Australian marketing consultant whom the prince had encountered during the Sydney Olympics in 2000. The couple exchanged vows on May 14, 2004, at Copenhagen Cathedral in Copenhagen.

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As per a report by AFP, “When the time comes, I will guide the ship,” Frederik said in a speech celebrating his chain-smoking mother’s half-century on the throne in 2022.

As reported by Reuters, in Denmark, the ultimate authority lies in the elected parliament and its government, while the monarch is anticipated to remain neutral in political matters, fulfilling traditional responsibilities that include state visits and national day celebrations.

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen expressed gratitude to the queen for her lifelong commitment to her duties.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Published: 01 Jan 2024, 08:34 AM IST