Queen Margrethe II: The Danish Queen made drastic decisions for her family. (Source: gettyimages/Maja Hitij)
Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II stripped some family members of their noble titles. But why actually? Now she is surprisingly open about her motives.
In an interview, Queen Margrethe II explains her much-discussed decision from last year. The 82-year-old monarch caused a stir when she announced that her son, Prince Joachim, would be deprived of the titles of prince and princess.
“It’s better that I did it”
In an interview with the Danish weekly “Weekendavisen”, the monarch tried to classify this step towards her grandchildren. Above all, she did not want her eldest son and heir to the throne, Prince Frederik, to be forced to take such a step. But what does the monarch mean by that?
“It’s better that I did it,” Queen Margrethe II told the newspaper. Then it was “the old lady” who made the decision. In general, however, she is not interested in speaking about this topic in public. You could of course name the exact reasons, “but you shouldn’t say everything”.
Prince Joachim was dismayed by his mother’s decision
Crown Prince Frederik spoke up in a TV interview with the Danish broadcaster TV2 in October and backed his mother at the time. But not every member of the royal family was so convinced of Margrethe’s decision. Frederik was saddened by how the loss of the title affected his younger brother Prince Joachim and his family.
There are differences of opinion within the family, but they want a “lean monarchy,” according to the future king. In a statement at the end of September, Prince Joachim expressed his surprise and dismay at the Queen’s decision to revoke the titles of prince and princess from his four children, 23-year-old Nikolai, three-year-old Felix, 13-year-old Henrik and ten-year-old Athena . Henceforth they may only call themselves Count and Countess.
- weekendavisen.dk: ” Dronningen uden filter ” (Danish)
- With material from the news agency Spot on news