Margrethe of Denmark felt ‘compelled’ to apologise following criticism by her son Prince Joachim over the stripping of his children’s titles because she didn’t want the public to see her as an ‘ice queen’ amid ‘huge conflict’, royal experts claim
- Denmark’s Queen Margrethe last night publicly apologised for removing royal titles from her grandchildren
- Prince Nikolai, Prince Felix, Prince Henrik and Princess Athena, the children of Prince Joachim, are affected
- Royal experts claim the monarch fears being seen as an ‘ice queen’ and was ‘compelled’ to say somehing
- Prince Joachim said on Thursday that his children had been ‘hurt’ by their grandmother’s decision
Queen Margrethe of Denmark’s public apology after making the decision to strip her grandchildren of their royal titles suggests there is a ‘huge conflict’ and she is frightened of appearing like an ‘ice queen’, royal experts have claimed.
Amid apparent turmoil within the Danish royal family, the Queen, 82, took the unprecedented step of issuing a public statement explaining her decision to remove prince and princess titles from Prince Joachim’s four children, in which she said sorry for making the ‘difficult decision’ – but insisted it was the right choice.
And according to Danish royal commentators, the public statement is ‘completely unusual’ and shows how serious the conflict within the family has become.
Speaking to Danish publication Ekstra Bladet, royal house expert Lars Hovbakke Sørensen said: ‘It is a completely unusual situation, it is historic, and it shows something about the seriousness that the Queen feels called to make such a personal announcement in a press release.
Queen Margrethe (pictured in blue) made the decision to strip princely titles from Prince Nikolai (left), Prince Felix (second from left), Prince Henrik (right) and Princess Athena (second from right). Also pictured: Prince Joachim and Princess Marie
The Queen, 82, took the unprecedented step of issuing a public statement last night to apologise for the ‘difficult decision’ to remove the princely titles from her grandchildren – but insisted her choice was the right one
‘It is quite unusual and she has never done this before. It shows that there is a huge conflict.’
Mr Sørensen added the Queen’s statement was a way of ‘trying to close this conflict’ and draw a line under it, following several days of turbulence between the monarch and her youngest son.
Last Thursday Prince Joachim told Ekstra Bladet his children, Prince Nikolai, 23, Prince Felix, 20, Prince Henrik, 13, and Princess Athena, 10, had been ‘hurt’ by their grandmother’s decision to remove their princely titles and make them counts and countesses as of 1 January 2023, adding he had only had a few days to break the news to them before it was announced publicly.
He also admitted his relationship with his brother Crown Prince Frederik is ‘complicated’ – and that he hadn’t heard from his mother Queen Margrethe II after she stripped his children of their royal titles.
However, according to Mr Sørensen: ‘You cannot have members or former members of the royal house constantly speaking in the press about the Queen’s decision and discussing back and forth with each other in full public view.’
He added Queen Margrethe ‘had to say something’ following Prince Joachim’s public comments.
Queen Margrethe of Denmark last night apologised to her family for the ‘difficult’ decision of stripping them of their royal titles – but insisted that it was the right choice
In a statement released online, the Queen said she had made the decision as ‘a mother, grandmother and monarch’ and ‘no one should doubt’ her family are ‘her great pride and joy’
In a statement last night, the monarch admitted she had ‘underestimated’ the impact of her actions but said was ‘a long time coming’ and it had been made as ‘a Queen, mother and grandmother.’
Another royal expert, Jacob Heinel Jensen, agreed the Queen felt ‘compelled’ to issue a public statement about the reported animosity and told B.T. the Queen’s statement reflected the ‘crazy situation’ the Danish Royal Household finds itself in.
He added it is likely she did not want to make a public apology about her decision, but that Prince Joachim’s public comments left her with no choice but to address the accusations.
Mr Heinel Jensen said: ‘Queen Margrethe has felt compelled to [issue a statement], and it is because the Royal House is of course afraid that she will appear like an ice queen, which she has become in the past week. This is of course an attempt to say that she is not, she also feels it and is upset about the situation.’
He added he thought the Queen’s decision was the right one – although he was unsure if it would calm Prince Joachim’s strong feelings about his mother’s decision.
The Queen’s statement read: ‘In recent days, there have been strong reactions to my decision on the future use of titles for Prince Joachim’s four children. It obviously affects me.
‘My decision has been a long time coming. With my 50 years on the throne, it is natural both to look back and to look forward.
‘It is my duty and my wish as Queen to ensure that the monarchy continues to shape itself in keeping with the times.
‘It sometimes requires difficult decisions to be made, and it will always be difficult to find the right moment.
Prince Joachim and Princess Marie of Denmark (pictured) have admitted their relationship with Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary is ‘complicated’ – and that they still haven’t heard from Margrethe II after she stripped four of her grandchildren of their royal titles
‘Carrying a royal title entails a number of obligations and duties, which will in future be the responsibility of fewer members of the royal family.
‘This adaptation, which I see as a necessary safeguard for the future of the monarchy, I want to make in my time.’
She continued: ‘I have made my decision as Queen, mother and grandmother, but as a mother and grandmother I have underestimated how much my youngest son and his family feel affected. It makes a big impression, and I’m sorry for that.
‘No one should be in doubt that my children, children-in-law and grandchildren are my great joy and pride.
‘I now hope that we as a family can find the peace to find our way through this situation ourselves.’
Meanwhile she signed off the note; ‘MARGRETHE R.’
According to Mr Sørensen, the incredibly personal statement, which includes the Queen’s admission she had ‘underestimated’ how seriously her grandchildren would be affected by the change, shows how serious the conflict within the family is.
The statement was released after it emerged Prince Frederik has spent the last week in St Tropez taking part in a sailing competition – while his brother expressed his sadness that his children were to be stripped of theit titles.
Prince Frederik joined friends to defend the prestigious BMW Trophy, which they also won in 2021.
Pictured together: Danish Crown Prince Frederik and Princess Mary, Princess Marie and Prince Joachim of Denmark pose at the Paris town hall in October 2019
Her&Nu reported the royal arrived in the exclusive St. Tropez last weekend to take part in the Les Voiles Saint Tropez race with the TP52 boat Nanoq.
In a photograph from the event which was taken on Friday, the royal can be seen posing on a boat topless in the sunshine.
The Crown Prince appeared to recline on the boat as he chatted with friends during his seven day visit to the country last week.
The news comes after Frederik’s brother Joachim and his second wife Marie admitted their relationship is ‘complicated’.
A bitter royal row within the household has unfolded in recent days after Queen Margrethe, 82, announced she would be removing princely titles from Joachim’s children, Prince Nikolai, 23, Prince Felix, 20, Prince Henrik, 13, and Princess Athena, 10. Pictured, Marie, Joachim, Mary and Frederik on 11 September 2022 in Denmark
As of January 1, Prince Nikolai, 23, Prince Felix, 20, Prince Henrik, 13, and Princess Athena, 10, will become Counts and Countesses, and will be known as Their Excellencies, it was announced on Wednesday. Pictured, the children with Prince Joachim and Princess Marie on September 11, 2022
Speaking to B.T. they also said Queen Margrethe has ‘unfortunately not’ tried to speak to them, with Joachim adding: ‘It’s also family. Or whatever we want to call it.’
During the interview, B.T reported that a French woman approached the royal couple and told them their children will ‘always be princes and princesses to her’, apparently leaving Marie and Joachim in tears.
Elsewhere, Marie, the mother of Joachim’s two youngest children, told the Danish news outlet that her daughter Athena is being bullied at school after the decision was publicly announced earlier this week.
‘They come and say (to Athena): Is it you who is no longer a princess?,’ she said, adding that her children were put under the public spotlight and so she feels the need to defend them.
Last week, Joachim hit out at his mother Margrethe’s decision, saying it ‘punished’ his children, as well as claiming he had only been told the news five days before it was made public – despite the Royal Household insisting the move ‘has been a long time coming’.
Front: Queen Margrethe, Middle Row (left to right): Prince Vincent, Princess Josephine, Princess Athena, Prince Henrik. Back row (left to right): Princess Benedikte, Princess Isabella, Crown Princess Mary, Crown Prince Frederik, Prince Christian, Prince Joachim, Princess Marie, Prince Felix and Prince Nikolai in a portrait celebrating Queen Margrethe’s Golden Jubilee
The Danish Royal Family tree. Prince Joachim’s children Nikolai, 23, Felix, 20, Henrik, 13, and Athena, 10, will all be losing their titles on January 1 2023
Meanwhile, Princess Mary came out in public support of her mother-in-law’s move while speaking in an interview with Ekstra Bladet in Copenhagen on Friday, saying that while ‘change can be extremely difficult and can really hurt… this does not mean that the decision is not the right one’.
The oldest son of Australian-born Princess Mary, 50, and Frederik is Prince Christian, 16, who is second-in-line to the throne.
Frederick and Mary’s four children – Prince Christian, 16, Princess Isabella, 15, and twins Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent, 11 – remain unaffected by the monarch’s decision as they are direct descendants of the future King.
However Princess Mary suggested that might not always be the case, saying they will ‘also look at [their] children’s titles when the time comes’.
Speaking about the monarch’s intention to slim down the Danish royal family, Joachim said: ‘The reality must still be: whether you modernize or slim down, it must be done in a proper way. It’s about children. Orderliness and children. It is a very heavy matter.’
Commenting on Princess Mary’s point that her children may too lose titles in the future, Joachim said: ‘I don’t know how they feel if they have to think it through. Now is preparation time. We didn’t have that.’
Last week, commenting on his children’s reaction to the move to B.T., Joachim said his children ‘don’t know which leg to stand on as their identity is removed’ – and questioned ‘why must they be punished in that way?’.
Prince Joachim of Denmark (pictured) has once again hit out at his mother Queen Margrethe II’s decision to strip his four children of their royal titles
Speaking in Copenhagen (pictured) Crown Princess Mary of Denmark defended her mother-in-law Queen Margrethe’s decision to strip four of her grandchildren of their royal titles, and suggested her own children’s positions might not be secure
Australian-born Princess Mary, 50, is the wife of Crown Prince Frederick of Denmark, who is Queen Margrethe II’s eldest son and heir. Their eldest son, Prince Christian, 16, is second-in-line to the throne behind his father Frederick. Pictured, Mary and Frederick with their children (from left) Isabella, Josephine, Christian and Vincent earlier this month
The prince, who is Margrethe’s youngest son, said: ‘I can say that my children are sad. My kids don’t know which leg to stand on. What they should believe. Why should their identity be removed? Why must they be punished in that way?’
‘I don’t want to engage in speculation and mudslinging,’ said Joachim. ‘I am telling the truth… I was given five days notice… I was given five days’ notice of this. To tell my children that on New Year’s their identity will be taken from them.’
He added that in May, he was presented with a plan that his ‘children’s identity should be taken from them when each of them turned 25’, to which he asked ‘to be allowed to come back with my proposal’.
But he said he was given just five days notice that the decision was to be accelerated, adding: ‘I am so sorry for my children. I just demand the truth.’
Speaking at a function at the National Museum in Copenhagen on Wednesday night, pictured, Margrethe said: ‘It is a consideration I have had for quite a long time and I think it will be good for them in their future. That is the reason’
Prince Nikolai said that he is sad, shocked and confused after his royal title was stripped ‘quickly’. Pictured modelling during the Dior Pre-Fall 2019 Men’s Collection show on November 30, 2018 in Tokyo
His ex-wife, Countess Alexandra, the mother of his two eldest children, added in a statement to Danish magazine Se og Hør: ‘This comes like a bolt from the blue. The children feel ostracized. They cannot understand why their identity is being taken away from them.’
Her spokesperson Helle von Wildenrath Løvgreen told another news organisation that Joachim learned of his children’s fate via an aide.
Queen Margrethe spoke neither to her sons nor her grandchildren, it is claimed.
Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix’s mother says she’s ‘in shock’ by move to strip them of their royal titles
Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg – Prince Joachim’s ex-wife and mother to Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix – said she is ‘in shock’ over Queen Margrethe II of Denmark’s decision to strip her sons of their royal titles.
Nikolai, 23, and Felix, 20, along with their younger siblings Prince Henri, 13, and Princess Athen, 10, from their father’s second marriage, will all have their titles of prince and princess removed from January 1 2023, the palace announced yesterday.
‘We are all confused by the decision. We are saddened and in shock,’ Alexandra said in a statement from her press advisor Helle von Wildenrath Løvgreen, reported Danish magazine Se og Hør.
The statement continued: ‘This comes like a bolt from the blue. The children feel ostracised. They cannot understand why their identity is being taken away from them.’
Earlier this month, Alexandra attended Queen Margrethe’s Golden Jubilee celebrations at the Danish Royal Theatre in Copenhagen.
Prince Joachim married his second wife Princess Marie in 2008, and they later welcomed Prince Henrik and Princess Athena
‘The children have received the message that they are losing their titles, delivered by their father, just as Countess Alexandra was told by Prince Joachim,’ the spokesperson added.
Meanwhile, speaking about the decision last Wednesday, Queen Margrethe said: ‘It is a consideration I have had for quite a long time and I think it will be good for them in their future. That is the reason.’
And the Royal Household released another statement, saying: ‘As the Queen stated yesterday, the decision has been a long time coming.
‘We understand that there are many emotions at stake at the moment, but we hope that the Queen’s wish to future-proof the Royal Household will be respected.’
Prince Nikolai, a model, also spoke out last week, telling Ekstra Bladet: ‘My whole family and I are of course very sad. We are, as my parents have also stated, in shock at this decision and at how quickly it has actually gone.
‘I am very confused as to why it has to happen like this,’ he told reporters from outside the Copenhagen apartment where he lives with his girlfriend.
Countess Alexandra, Prince Joachim’s ex-wife and mother to Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix, is also ‘very sad’ and ‘shocked’ about the decision.
‘She can’t believe why and why now, because there’s no good reason,’ Helle von Wildenrath Løvgreen, press secretary to Countess Alexandra told CNN.
‘They would lose their titles anyway when they get married one day. Her sons are young men so maybe they might get married in the near future so why shouldn’t it wait until that day so that the titles would disappear on a happy day?’
Under the agreement, Nikolai, Felix, Henrik, and Athena will be known as either His Excellency Count of Monpezat or Her Excellency Countess of Monpezat from January 1, 2023.
However they will maintain their positions in the order of succession.
They are currently seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth, but would move down if any of Crown Prince Frederick’s children were to have children.
Margrethe, who is the world’s longest serving queen and celebrates her Golden Jubilee this year, is affectionately known as ‘aunt Daisy’ by European royals due to her close personal ties with many reigning monarchs.
She is a first cousin of Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf and a second cousin of Norway’s King Harald V.
She enjoyed a close relationship with the Queen, a distant cousin, and the Duke of Edinburgh, and shared deeply personal tributes following their deaths. She was joined by her son Crown Prince Frederick at the Queen’s funeral earlier this month.
The Queen seemingly enjoys a close relationship with both sons and all eight of her grandchildren, and makes regular appearances with both families. However there is now said to be an ‘ice-cold air’ between the Queen and her grandchildren.
Countess Alexandra’s press secretary questioned why the change could not have waited until their wedding day, when her sons would ‘lose their titles anyway’. Pictured, Alexandra Countess Of Frederiksborg
The move is said to have driven a wedge between Margrethe and her four grandchildren. Pictured, the Queen (centre) with sons Joachim (left) and Crown Prince Frederick (right). Also pictured: Crown Prince Frederick’s wife, Crown Princess Mary (right) and son Prince Christian (in his lap) and Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix (left) who will be affected by the change
Prince Nikolai, from left, Princess Marie, Prince Joachim and Prince Felix arrive for the command performance at the Danish Royal Theatre to mark the 50th anniversary of Danish Queen Margrethe II’s accession to the throne in Copenhagen, Saturday, September 10, 2022
Prince Nikolai of Denmark celebrated his 23rd birthday in August at home with his parents and siblings in Copenhagen. Pictured left with Prince Felxi, 20, Prince Henrick, 13 and Princess Athena, ten
Nikolai with his stepmother Princess Marie, siblings, and father Prince Joachim, on the balcony of Amalienborg palace during the Danish Queen’s 78th Birthday in April 2018
‘There is ice-cold air between Queen Margrethe and her grandchildren after she decided that they will lose their titles as prince and princess from the New Year,’ leading Danish publication Ekstra Bladet reported.
‘The news, which has crushed both the four children and their parents, was not delivered by the queen herself.
‘They have not been called to Amalienborg for a cold coke and an explanation as to why they must henceforth be addressed as counts and countesses. Not even that far.’
Out of a title: The four grandchildren who will no longer be TRHs
Nikolai of Denmark, 23: The Copenhagen Business School student and model regularly tops lists of the world’s most eligible bachelors. He lives in Denmark but has jetted around the world to walk for designers in Paris and London. Nikolai has also appeared on the cover of Vogue Scandinavia.
Felix of Denmark, 20: Following in his brother’s footsteps, Prince Felix has also had success as a model and has starred in an advertising campaign for Georg Jensen. He had a short stint at the Royal Danish Military Academy but quit after two months because it ‘wasn’t for him’.
Henrik, 13, and Athena, 10, of Denmark: The youngest of Prince Joachim’s four children, Henrik and Athena are the product of his second marriage to Princess Marie. They live with their parents in Paris.
Queen Margrethe has a well-cushioned allowance, with the Danish Civil List granting her £800,813 a month, or £9.6 million for the year to run the royal household – including staff, properties and administration, according to Business Insider.
Meanwhile, Celebrity Net Worth lists her net worth at around £37million.
Around £183,750 per month is reportedly given to the Queen’s children. Crown Prince Frederik receives the largest amount of this money, of which 10 per cent is given to his wife, Princess Mary.
Many of the Danish Royal Family’s properties are owned by the state, and run by the Agency for Palaces and Cultural Properties.
This includes the main residence of Amalienborg, their spring home of Fredensborg palace, their summer house of Gråsten Palace and the hunting lodge Eremitageslottet .
The Danish Queen’s personal properties include Marselisborg Castle, Château de Caix in France, and the royal hunting lodge in Jutland at Trend.
Prince Joachim lives with his second wife Princess Marie in Paris, where he has been working as a Defense Attaché at the Danish Embassy since September 2020 – but when he returns home to Denmark it is sometimes to the Schackenborg Castle in southern Jutland.
The estate was the prince’s private residence from 1993 to 2014, before he sold the property.
But since Prince Joachim and Princess Marie are on the board of the Schackenborg Castle Foundation, they occasionally return to live there for short periods of time.
In the summer of 2020, Prince Joachim suffered a stroke while holidaying in France with his family and had to be rushed into hospital for emergency brain surgery.
Prince Joachim’s eldest sons, Felix and Nikolai, are Margrethe’s eldest grandsons and have embraced a life in the public eye.
The 20-somethings, who both live in Denmark, both enrolled in the National Military Academy but dropped out before completing their studies.
They have enjoyed flourishing careers as models, posing for several advert campaigns and on the cover of magazines.
Both of Margrethe’s grandsons turned to modelling in their late teens. Pictured with their grandmother in May 2021
Princess Marie with Prince Joachim, Prince Felix, Prince Nikolai, Princess Athena and Prince Henrick with Joachim’s first wife’s Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg in 2020
Nikolai caught international attention in 2018 when he walked in the Burberry show at London Fashion week, before a front row that included Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell, Michelle Dockery, Naomi Watts, Zendaya, and Idris Elba.
He is signed to Scoop Models agency in Denmark and has been multiplying his modelling gigs.
He sent royal fans into a frenzy in February when he graced the cover of Vogue Scandinavia.
The 23-year-old oozed sophistication when appearing in the magazine and looked effortlessly stylish in a matching pink Dior jacket and trousers as he posed in front of a number of colourful flowers.
When he is not modelling, Nikolai is studying Business Administration and Service Management at the In 2019, Prince Nikolai began his B education at Copenhagen Business School.
Queen Margrethe and Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark at the State Funeral of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Margrethe tested positive for Covid-19 only 24 hours after Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral on Monday September 19
Queen Margrethe was pictured out and about for the first time on Monday after testing positive for Covid-19 last week. She attended a gala dinner at the Grand Hotel in Oslo after receiving the Nordic Association’s Language Award
Queen Margrethe of Denmark, 82, attended the ‘reception of the century’ at Buckingham Palace, which was hosted by King Charles and Camilla before Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral
Last year he was living in Paris as part of a school exchange, and could see his younger siblings and his dad more easily.
At the end of last year, he started training at the Royal Danish Military Academy to become an Army Lieutenant, but in October it was announced that he’d quit after just two months because it ‘wasn’t for him’.
Prince Felix chose to make his modelling debut for jeweller Georg Jensen, appearing in pictures and an advert promoting the new Reflect collection of necklaces, earrings and rings.
The royal is further down the line of succession, pursuing his own career path rather than being a ‘working royal’ was expected choice for Felix even before his grandmother’s announcement, and modelling is certainly a popular choice for minor royals across the globe.
While they are growing to be their own person, Felix and Nikolai do attend royal events on occasion.
They both looked very dapper as they attended the celebrations for their grandmother’s golden jubilee with their parents in early September.
Revealed: The Danish Royal Family’s VERY glamorous palaces
It’s perhaps no surprise that a European Royal Family enjoys several castles and palaces – however for the Danish household, many of the properties are owned by the state, and run by the Agency for Palaces and Cultural Properties.
This includes the main residence of Amalienborg, the family’s spring home of Fredensborg Palace, their summer house of Gråsten Palace and the hunting lodge Eremitageslottet .
The Danish Queen’s personal properties include Marselisborg Castle, Château de Caix in France, and the royal hunting lodge in Jutland at Trend.
Prince Joachim lives with his second wife in Paris – but when he returns home to Denmark it is sometimes to the Schackenborg Castle in southern Jutland.
The estate was the prince’s private residence from 1993 to 2014, before he sold the property.
But since Prince Joachim and Princess Marie are on the board of the Schackenborg Castle Foundation, they occasionally return to live there for short periods of time.
Amalienborg, the Danish household’s main residence, pictured
The family’s spring home of Fredensborg Palace, pictured
The Danish Queen’s personal properties include Marselisborg Castle, pictured
The Royal Danish family’s summer residence of Grasten Slot, pictured
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