COPENHAGEN, Denmark –
Hundreds of individuals gathered Sunday in downtown Copenhagen to witness a historic second in one of many world’s oldest monarchies.
Round 2 p.m. (1300 GMT), Queen Margrethe II will signal her abdication at a gathering with the Danish Cupboard following over 5 a long time of service. About an hour later, her 55-year-old son and crown prince Frederik will probably be proclaimed king earlier than the individuals on the balcony of Christiansborg Palace within the coronary heart of the Danish capital. Denmark’s nationwide tv stations will do a reside broadcast of the occasion.
Margrethe, 83, will turn out to be the primary Danish monarch to voluntarily relinquish the throne in almost 900 years.
Citing well being points, Margrethe introduced on New Yr’s Eve that she would step down, gorgeous a nation that had anticipated her to reside out her days on the throne, as is custom within the Danish monarchy.
Margrethe underwent main again surgical procedure final February and did not return to work till April.
Even Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was unaware of the queen’s intentions till proper earlier than the announcement. Margrethe had knowledgeable Frederik and his youthful brother Joachim simply three days earlier, the Berlingske newspaper wrote, citing the royal palace.
“The queen has been right here and he or she has been on the throne for greater than 50 years. And she or he is an especially revered and in style determine, so individuals hadn’t anticipated this they usually have been in shock,” Danish royal skilled Thomas Larsen stated.
The final time a Danish monarch voluntarily resigned was in 1146 when King Erik III Lam stepped right down to enter a monastery. Margrethe will probably be abdicating on the identical day she ascended the throne following the demise of her father, King Frederik IX.
Denmark’s monarchy traces its origins to Tenth-century Viking king Gorm the Outdated, making it the oldest in Europe and one of many oldest on this planet. At this time the royal household’s duties are largely ceremonial.
Individuals started gathering early Sunday outdoors parliament, with many swarming the streets of Copenhagen’s essential procuring avenue, the Pedestrian Stroeget, which was adorned with the crimson and white Danish flags. A number of retailers hung pictures of the Queen and king-to-be. Native media stated lots of have been heading to the Danish capital from throughout the nation and others have been following the reside TV broadcast to witness the monumental occasion.
Metropolis buses have been adorned with smaller replicas of the Danish flag as is customary throughout royal occasions.
The royal guards’ music band made their each day parade by means of downtown Copenhagen however wore crimson jackets, as a substitute of their regular black, to mark main occasions. Individuals, bundled in heat garments due to the chilly regardless of it being a sunny day, excitedly waved flags because the band carried out.
In contrast to within the U.Okay., there isn’t a coronation ceremony in Denmark. The prime minister will formally proclaim Frederik king from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace, which homes authorities places of work, Parliament and the Supreme Court docket in addition to the Royal Stables and Royal Reception Rooms.
The abdication will go away Denmark with two queens: Margrethe will preserve her title whereas Frederik’s Australian-born spouse will turn out to be Queen Mary. Frederik and Mary’s eldest son Christian, 18, will turn out to be crown prince and inheritor to the throne.
The brand new king and queen will go away Christiansborg Palace in a horse-drawn coach and return to the royal residence, Amalienborg, the place Margrethe additionally lives however in a separate constructing. The royal customary will probably be lowered on Margrethe’s residence and raised on the constructing the place Frederik and Mary reside.
4 weapons on the Copenhagen harbor will fireplace 3 times 27 rounds to mark the succession. Within the late afternoon, Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens amusement park plans to rejoice the brand new king and queen with the most important fireworks present within the park’s 180-year historical past.
A survey — commissioned by Denmark’s public broadcaster DR — revealed Friday confirmed that 79 per cent of the 1,037 individuals polled by the Epinion polling institute stated that they believed Frederik was ready to take the reigns and 83 per cent stated they thought his spouse Mary was able to turn out to be queen. The survey margin of error was 3 proportion factors, DR stated.