Queen Margrethe of Denmark, 84, hospitalized after fall at Fredensborg Castle
Queen Margrethe of Denmark has been hospitalised after a fall at Fredensborg Castle.
The 84-year-old queen abdicated in January in favor of her son King Frederik.
Her condition is stable, but she remains in hospital for monitoring, the palace said in a statement.
Margrethe, a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth, was due to attend an event at Aarhus University on Friday but has now cancelled.
Her Majesty, known for her chain smoking and love of dachshunds, was last seen on Monday when she attended the 2024 Rungstedlund Prize at the Karen Blixen Museum.
Queen Margrethe of Denmark has been hospitalized after falling at Fredensborg Castle
The Danish Queen (right) is succeeded by her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik (centre), pictured with his Australian-born wife, Crown Princess Mary
Despite resigning during her New Year’s speech last year, the monarch remains active and carries out her royal duties together with her son.
Fredensborg Castle on the Dutch island of Zeeland is the country residence of the royal family, where they spend the summer.
Margrethe shocked the nation with the announcement of her resignation during her live broadcast on New Year’s Eve.
Just 14 days later, Margaret, who had reigned for 52 years, abdicated at a meeting of the Council of State and her son Frederick was crowned King of Denmark.
She said that one of the reasons she decided to give up the throne was her health problems. In February 2023, she underwent surgery on her back.
She said: ‘It went well, thanks to the skilled care staff who looked after me. Of course, the operation also gave rise to thinking about the future – whether it was time to pass the responsibility on to the next generation.’
She is still known as Her Majesty Queen Margrethe and can act as regent when King Frederik, Queen Mary and Crown Prince Christian are abroad, ill or on holiday.
Queen Margrethe is pictured smiling as crowds gather to watch her journey to open the new Prince Henriks Skole
Former Queen of Denmark Margrethe smiled at the people in the pews of Aarhus Cathedral as she arrived for the service on January 21
Just a week after abdicating the crown, the royal family attended a special church service at Aarhus Cathedral together with her son, King Frederik, and his wife Queen Mary.
In Denmark, formal power lies with the elected parliament and government. The monarch is expected to stand above party politics and represent the nation with traditional duties ranging from state visits to national celebrations.
Margrethe was born in 1940 and has had a lot of support from Danes all her life. They love her tactful yet creative personality. The prime minister has previously described her as ‘the epitome of Denmark’.
The monarch made headlines in 2022 when she stripped the royal titles of the four children of her youngest son, Prince Joachim.
She was very close to her third cousin, Queen Elizabeth II, both descendants of Queen Victoria. They had built a strong bond during various state visits to each other’s countries over the decades. The last time Margrethe was received at Windsor was in 2000.
The six-foot tall Margrethe is one of Denmark’s most popular public figures. She often walked the streets of Copenhagen virtually unaccompanied, winning the admiration of Danes for her warm manner and her talents as a linguist and designer.
She was an avid skier and, as a princess, was part of a Danish women’s air force unit, taking part in judo lessons and endurance tests in the snow.
In her New Year’s Eve broadcast, Queen Margrethe II stated: “I have decided that now is the right time. On 14 January 2024, 52 years after I succeeded my beloved father, I will abdicate as Queen of Denmark.”
She is a chain smoker and is so “normal” that she shops in the supermarket – but Queen Margrethe of Denmark is also Europe’s longest-reigning head of state. Above: The Queen lights a cigarette in 1997 (left); and attends the annual New Year’s Eve dinner at Christian VII’s palace in Amalienborg, Copenhagen in January
Margrethe II was the eldest of the three daughters of King Frederick IX of Denmark and succeeded him to the throne in 1972.
In 2011, at the age of 70, she visited Danish troops in southern Afghanistan, dressed in military overalls.
As monarch, she travelled throughout the country, frequently visiting Greenland and the Faroe Islands, the two semi-independent territories that form part of the Danish Empire, and was greeted by cheering crowds everywhere.
Denmark has the oldest reigning monarchy in Europe, with its origins dating back to the Viking king Gorm the Old, who died in 958. Although Margrethe is head of state, her involvement in party politics is strictly prohibited under the Danish constitution.
Margrethe was born a week after Nazi Germany invaded Denmark. The occupation meant that the little princess became a symbol of hope for the Danes.
She ascended the throne on January 15, 1972, after the death of her father.
Although she was his eldest child, she did not become heir presumptive to the throne until 1953, when the Danish constitution was amended to allow women to ascend the throne.
This followed a referendum in which more than 85 percent of participants voted in favor of female succession to the throne.
She married a Frenchman, Henri Marie Jean André de Laborde de Monpezat, later called Prince Henrik, in 1967. They had two sons, Prince Frederick and Prince Joachim.
Despite being married for 50 years, her relationship with Henrik was plagued by controversy. Henrik stunned Danes by saying he felt he had been cast aside by his wife in his own home.
Prince Henrik died in 2018 at the age of 83.
On the day she became monarch, she appeared on the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Denmark and pledged allegiance to the nation.
