Danish Queen Margrethe II made a surprise announcement on Live TV, unveiling her abdication of the throne 52 years after her father's death, King Frederick IX.
The queen of Denmark is Europe's longest-serving monarch and her abdication will take effect on Jan. 14. Her son, Crown Prince Frederik, will then succeed the 83-year-old. Queen Margrethe II ascended the throne in 1972, and her latest announcement was viewed on TV by many in the country, which has a population of roughly 5.9 million.
Danish Queen Announces Abdication
Queen Margrethe II referred to a successful back operation that she underwent in February, adding that the surgery naturally gave rise to thinking about the future. This was on whether or not the time has come to leave the responsibility to the next generation of leaders.
She then said that she had decided that now was the right time to step down as Denmark's Queen, more than five decades after succeeding her father. Queen Margrethe became the longest-serving monarch in Europe following the death of British Queen Elizabeth II in September last year, as per Reuters.
In July last year, the royal also became the longest-sitting monarch in the history of Denmark. Within the country, formal power resides with the elected parliament and its government. On the other hand, the monarch is expected to stay above partisan politics and represent the nation with traditional duties that range from state visits to national day celebrations.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen thanked Queen Margrethe II for her life-long dedication to duty. He noted that it is difficult to understand that the time has come for a change on the throne. He noted that many of the country's people have never known another monarch.
Frederiksen said that the queen is the epitome of Denmark and noted that throughout the years, the royal has put words and feelings into who the country is as a people and nation. Queen Margrethe was born in 1940 to King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid.
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Taking Over the Throne
This month, the Danish Prime Minister's office said that Crown Prince Frederik will take over the throne as His Majesty King Frederik X. After Frederiksen attends a meeting in the Council of State, she will proclaim the change of throne at Christiansborg Castle, according to CNN.
In the early 1990s, Denmark's people viewed the crown prince as a party prince. However, their perception changed after he graduated from Aarhus University in 1995 with a master's in political science. He became the first Danish royal to complete a university education.
During the crown prince's studies, he studied at Harvard in the United States, where he enrolled under the pseudonym Frederik Henriksen. He later served in the Danish Navy and got the nickname "Pingo."
The nickname was given to him after his wetsuit filled up with water during a scuba diving course and he was forced to waddle like a penguin. According to BBC, the 55-year-old royal also earned his name as a daredevil after participating in a four-month ski expedition across Greenland in 2000.
