King Frederik X and Queen Mary arrived at Fredensborg Palace (2024)

FAQs

How old was Princess Mary when she met Frederik? ›

The then-prince had traveled to Sydney in September 2000 to support Denmark's sailing team in the summer Olympic Games. While there, the then-32-year-old royal visited a pub called the Slip Inn in Sydney's Darling Harbor — and met Mary Donaldson, a 28-year-old advertising executive who hailed from Tasmania.

His godparents are Count Etienne de Laborde de Monpezat, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, the late Prince George of Denmark, the late Grand duch*ess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg, Baron Christian de Watteville-Berckheim, and Birgitta Hillingsø.

Frederik X (born May 26, 1968, Copenhagen, Denmark) is Denmark's king, who ascended to the throne at age 55, on January 14, 2024, following the abdication of his 83-year-old mother, Queen Margrethe II, who was the longest-serving European monarch still reigning.

Born in 1968 in Copenhagen, Frederik was named in the tradition of Danish male heirs being called either Frederik or Christian. This Frederik will be the 10th King Frederik to sit on the Danish throne, making him Frederik X.

Her Royal Highness also speaks Danish, English, Italian and Spanish.

The (first) engagement ring Prince Frederik gave Princess Mary consisted of a white gold ring with a central emerald-cut diamond, flanked by two emerald-cut rubies. The decision to use red and white precious stones was to represent the colours of the Danish flag.

Grace Van-Cutsem - Prince William's goddaughter

The daughter of Prince William's close friend, Hugh Van-Cutsem and his wife, Rose Astor of the wealthy Astor family, Grace Van-Cutsem was just three-years-old when she stole the show at her godfather's wedding.

The list of what Denmark is famous for ranges from impeccable modernist design to baroque palaces, a popular, long-reigning royal family to an equally popular quasi-anarchist Copenhagen community, and so much more. Above all, this small nation is proud of its welcoming spirit, which makes it a joy to visit.

The monarch of Denmark must be a member of the Danish National Church, or Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark (Danish Constitution, II,6). The National Church is by law the State Church.

Who is King Frederik in 2024? ›

Frederik X (Frederik André Henrik Christian; born 26 May 1968) is King of Denmark. He acceded to the throne following his mother's abdication on 14 January 2024. Frederik is the elder son of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik.

She first crossed paths with Fred at Sydney CBD pub the Slip Inn during the 2000 Olympics. But the then 28-year-old had no idea she'd just met a Danish royal. “The first time we met we shook hands,” she recalled.

The king concluded his short speech by revealing his royal motto: “Bonded, committed, for the Kingdom of Denmark,” said King Frederik X. Australia's Queen Mary stepped out onto the balcony and received the people's tribute.

Some scholars hold the view that among them it typically happened between their mid and late teen years or late teens and early twenties.

Aged 37 at her accession, Mary wished to marry and have children, thus leaving a Roman Catholic heir to consolidate her religious reforms, and removing her half-sister Elizabeth (a focus for Protestant opposition) from direct succession.

On 9 October 1514, an 18-year-old English princess married a 52-year-old French King in Abbeville, France. The bride was Mary Tudor, younger sister of Henry VIII. A renowned beauty, Mary's red-gold hair glowed beneath a coronet of precious stones, worn long and loose as a symbol of purity.

The 'Sailors & Soldiers Christmas Fund' was created by Princess Mary, the 17-year-old daughter of King George V and Queen Mary, with the purpose of providing everyone wearing the King's uniform and serving overseas on Christmas Day 1914 with a 'gift from the nation'.