15 January 2012

Queen Margrethe II of Denmark's 40th anniversary as regent


King Frederik IX of Denmark died on Friday 14 January 1972 and was succeeded by his eldest daughter, Margrethe. The 40th anniversary as Queen of Denmark has been marked by a rather tightly-packed programme which can be viewed here (and in English here).

The main events took place on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 January. On Saturday morning the royal family attended the wreath laying ceremony at King Frederik IX's and Queen Ingrid's graves outside Roskilde Cathedral (the photo was taken in July 2011, I will return with a blog article later).

Well back in Copenhagen Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik travelled by coach from Amalienborg through the pedestrian street with escort by the Royal Danish Hussar Guard Regiment to the City Hall were they attended the official reception. The guest list included among others (and I have for the most part followed the order given by the court):
  • HM Queen Margrethe II and HRH Prince Henrik
  • HRH Crown Prince Frederik and HRH Crown Princess Mary
  • HRH Prince Joachim
  • HRH Prince Benedikte and HSH Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
  • HM King Constantin and HM Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes
  • HSH Prince Gustav of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and his partner Ms. Carina Axelsson
  • HSH Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and her husband Count Jefferson-Friedrich von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth
  • HSH Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and her husband Alexander Johannsmann
  • HRH Crown Prince Pavlos and HRH Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece
  • HRH Princess Theodora of Greece
  • HRH Prince Philippos
  • HM King Carl Gustaf and HM Queen Silvia of Sweden
  • HM King Harald and HM Queen Sonja of Norway
  • HE Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, President of Iceland, and his wife Dorrit Moussaieff
  • Thomas Beauvillain and Mie Beauvillian (members of Prince Henrik's family)
I haven't been able to follow the events this weekend this closely, so I cannot say if the list concerning royals is complete or not.

The Regent Couple also greeted the people outside the City Hall from the balcony. In the evening the Queen and her guests attended a gala performance in DR's Concert Hall. Among the people in attendance were:
  • HM Queen Margrethe and HRH Prince Henrik
  • HRH Crown Prince Frederik and HRH Crown Princess Mary
  • HRH Prince Joachim
  • HH Prince Nikolai
  • HH Prince Felix
  • HRH Princess Benedikte and HSH Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
  • HM King Constantin and HM Queen Anne-Marie of the Hellenes
  • HSH Prince Gustav of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Ms. Carina Axelsson
  • HSH Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Count Jefferson-Friedrich von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth
  • HSH Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Alexander Johannsmann
  • HRH Crown Prince Pavlos and HRH Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece
  • HRH Princess Theodora of Greece
  • HRH Prince Philippos of Greece
  • HH Princess Elisabeth
  • HE Count Ingolf and Countess Sussie of Rosenborg
  • HE Count Christian and Countess Anne Dorte of Rosenborg
  • Camilla af Rosenborg and her husband Mikael Rosanes
  • Josephine af Rosenborg and her husband Thomas Christian Schmidt
  • Feodora af Rosenborg and her husband Morten Rønnow (Camilla, Josephine and Feodora are all daughters of Count Christian)
  • HM King Carl Gustaf and HM Queen Silvia of Sweden
  • HM King Harald and HM Queen Sonja of Norway
  • HE Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, President of Iceland, and his wife Dorrit Moussaieff
In addition also members of the government, the Parliament and other parts of the official Denmark were present, as well as representatives of the court and from Greenland and Faro Islands. Also Prince Joachim's former wife, Countess Alexandra of Fredensborg and her husband Martin Jørgensen were present.

Today, Sunday 15 January 2012, the changing of the guard took place at noon and the royal family greeted the people from the balcony of Christian IX's Palace, Amalienborg. The twins, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine were there too! The heavily pregnant Princess Marie, wife of Prince Joachim, was absent from the festivities in general, but appeared at the balcony.

Later on Sunday the Crown Prince couple hosted a buffet luncheon for foreign guests and the family in Frederik VIII's Palace, Amalienborg. The guest list can be found here. I am not going to repeat all the names, as for the most part they were identical with the names listed yesterday, but it should be added that the Crown Prince couple of Norway had joined the party, together with the President of Finland, Tarja Halonen, and her husband, Pentti Arajärvi. Crown Prince Frederik's oldest children Prince Christian and Princess Isabella were also listed.

After lunch the Danish royal family and the guests went to Christiansborg Palace Church for the celebratory service. The guest list can be viewed here. In the evening there was a gala dinner at Christiansborg Palace for the extended royal family and foreign guests as well as Danish officials. The guest list can be viewed here. Most of the people mentioned earlier were present, but I note that the President of Iceland had returned home. See photos at Berlingske's website.

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