Danish Royal House Announces New Titles amid Queen Margrethe's Shock Abdication

The new year is beginning with a bang for the Danish royal family

The Danish Royal House has announced the new titles that the central members of the Danish royal family will go by when Crown Prince Frederik accedes to the throne in twelve days.

On Tuesday, courtiers released a statement about the title changes that will affect Queen Margrethe, Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary and Prince Christian. The update comes after Queen Margrethe, 83, shockingly revealed in her New Year’s Address on Sunday that she will step down to abdicate on Jan. 14 after 52 years on the throne.

As expected, courtiers confirmed that Queen Margrethe’s eldest son and successor will be known as King Frederik, and his wife will be known as Queen Mary.

“On Sunday, 14 January 2024, HRH The Crown Prince assumes the Danish throne as HM King Frederik the 10th. At the same time, HRH The Crown Princess will be known as HM Queen Mary,” the Danish Royal Court said in a statement, per an English translation. “The Royal Couple will henceforth bear the title The King and The Queen of Denmark.”

Related: Did Queen Margrethe of Denmark Abdicate to Save Son Prince Frederik's Marriage amid Affair Rumors?

“HRH Prince Christian becomes the heir to the throne and will henceforth be referred to as HRH Crown Prince Christian,” the palace continued, referring to Frederik and Mary’s 18-year-old son.

“After the succession to the throne, HM The Queen will continue to be Majesty and bear the title HM Queen Margrethe,” the statement concluded, clarifying Queen Margrethe’s royal styling after the abdication.

A second statement from the Danish Royal House on Tuesday gave another glimpse into what’s happening behind the scenes. A release about new leadership for The Royal House of Denmark amid the reign change revealed that the current Lord Chamberlain will become the Chief of Court for “the newly established Court of Her Majesty Queen Margrethe.”

Queen Margrethe’s abdication announcement on New Year’s Eve was highly unexpected, and longtime author and royal commentator Phil Dampier told The Telegraph it came as a shock to most Danes. Margrethe will reportedly become the first Danish sovereign to abdicate since 1523 and had previously hinted she intended to reign for life, and Damier speculated the decision was driven to save the marriage of Frederik and Mary.

Related: Queen Margrethe of Denmark Announces She Will Abdicate in January After 52 Years on Throne

In November 2023, reports swirled that the Crown Prince, 55, was having an affair with socialite Geneveva Casanova after they were photographed together during his private trip to Madrid. Casanova denied allegations of a romantic relationship with Frederik and the Crown Prince couple continued to display a united front — though Mary’s solo start to the holidays didn’t go unnoticed.

In early December, Mary traveled without her husband to her native Australia to visit her family ahead of Christmas. She was joined by her two youngest children. According to the palace, Frederik had plans to join her the following week.

Frederik and Mary famously met in a bar in during the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, tied the knot in 2004 and went on to welcome four children: Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, 16, and 12-year-old twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine.

Christian arrived as second in line to the Danish throne behind his father, and his 18th birthday in October was marked with plenty of royal pomp befitting a future King.

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While Queen Margrethe did not reference her grandson’s banner birthday or official coming of age in her New Year’s Address relating to her abdication, she emphasized her wish that the public will welcome her eldest son and his wife into their elevated royal roles.

“The support and assistance which I have received throughout the years, have been crucial to the success of my task. It is my hope that the new King and Queen will be met with the same trust and devotion which have fallen to my lot,” Queen Margrethe said on Sunday.

“They deserve it! Denmark deserves it!,” she continued, signing off with salutations for a prosperous new year.

In an interesting twist, the shakeup comes one year after Queen Margrethe stripped four of her eight grandchildren, the three sons and daughter of her second son, Prince Joachim, of the royal titles they inherited at birth.

In September 2022, Queen Margrethe unexpectedly announced that she was stripping Nikolai, 24, Felix, 21, Henrik, 13, and Athena, 12, of their prince or princess and "His/Her Highness" titles. The Royal House of Denmark said that the siblings would retain their places in the line of succession and would be known instead by His Excellency Count of Monpezat or Her Excellency Countess of Monpezat starting on Jan. 1, 2023.

Prince Joachim spoke out to the press about the way the situation was handled, claiming that he received “five days' notice” of the major shakeup and that his whole family was upset.

Queen Margrethe later made another statement saying she "underestimated" how the news would affect her second son and his kids, but she maintained that the plans were long in motion and stripping the royal titles was “necessary future-proofing of the monarchy.”

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