Queen Mary of Denmark has provided an update on her mother-in-law’s health after she suffered a fall that led to her being hospitalized.
Queen Margrethe, 84, who made the shock decision to abdicate in January to allow her son King Frederik to succeed her, was discharged from hospital last week after falling during her stay at Fredensborg Castle.
Addressing a National Health Visitors Conference in Copenhagen yesterday, Mary gave an update on Margrethe’s condition, saying: ‘In the circumstances, she is doing very well.
“I’ve had the opportunity to visit her several times since she returned home. She’s very friendly and keeps my spirits up. Thanks for the question.”
Last Friday, Danish publication DRAn official statement from the Danish Royal Palace updated the Queen’s condition, saying she had been discharged but had suffered an injury to her neck vertebrae and a fracture to her left hand during the fall.
Queen Mary of Denmark yesterday gave an update on the health of her mother-in-law, Queen Margrethe of Denmark.
Mary said Margrethe is doing well under the circumstances, adding that she is “super calm” and keeps her spirits high.
The statement said: “Queen Margaret is in good spirits and doing well under the circumstances, but will be on sick leave for a longer period.”
Yesterday, Maria attended the National Health Visitors Conference with The Mary Foundation, which was probably their first outing since Margrethe was discharged from hospital.
Following Queen Margaret’s accident last week, it is believed that all of her planned public engagements have been cancelled while she recovers, and that the Queen will have to wear a neck brace to help heal her injured vertebra.
King Frederik, 55, the eldest of Margaret’s two sons, spoke publicly about the news that his mother had been hospitalised last Thursday.
Speaking to reporters, he revealed that he had spoken to his mother and was confident that he was “in good hands.”
“We take it day by day. The doctors are the ones who decide,” he added. The king made these statements upon his arrival at the City Hall of the Danish capital to attend the celebrations of the centenary of the Royal Chapel Choir of Copenhagen.
Margrethe, Queen Elizabeth’s third cousin, was due to attend an event at Aarhus University yesterday, but decided to cancel her participation.
Her Majesty, known for her fondness for smoking and her love of dachshunds, was spotted last Monday while attending the 2024 Rungstedlund Prize at the Karen Blixen Museum.
Pictured: Queen Mary and Queen Margaret celebrating King Frederick’s birthday at Frederick VIII’s palace, Amalienborg, in May.
Despite stepping down in her New Year’s Eve speech last year, the monarch remains active and performs royal duties alongside her son.
Margrethe shocked the nation with the announcement of her abdication during her live New Year’s Eve television segment.
Just 14 days later, Margaret, who had ruled for 52 years, ceded the throne at a meeting of the Council of State and her son, Frederick, was crowned King of Denmark.
He said one of the reasons he decided to give up the throne was because of his health problems, adding that he underwent back surgery in February 2023.
“Everything went well thanks to the qualified medical staff who looked after me,” he says. “Of course, the operation also made me think about the future: whether it was time to hand over the responsibility to the next generation.”
The royal is still known as Her Majesty Queen Margrethe and can act as regent if King Frederick, Queen Mary and Crown Prince Christian are abroad, ill or on holiday.
Just one week after giving up the crown, the Queen attended a special church service at Aarhus Cathedral with her son, King Frederick, and his wife, Queen Mary.
In Denmark, formal power resides in the elected parliament and its government. The monarch is expected to stay out of partisan politics and represent the nation with traditional duties ranging from state visits to national day celebrations.
Born in 1940, Margrethe has enjoyed a lifelong support from Danes who appreciate her diplomatic yet creative personality; the Prime Minister has previously described her as “the epitome of Denmark”.
Queen Mary was photographed attending an event in Copenhagen on Monday, days after her mother-in-law was discharged from hospital after suffering a fall.
Denmark’s Queen Margrethe has been discharged from hospital after a fall at Fredensborg Castle last week, but suffered an injury to her neck and left arm, the palace said on Friday. She is pictured at the Karen Blixen Museum in Copenhagen in September
The monarch made headlines in 2022 when she stripped the royal titles of the four children of her youngest son, Prince Joachim.
She enjoyed a close relationship with her third cousin, Queen Elizabeth II, both descendants of Queen Victoria, having joined during several state visits to each other’s countries over the decades, most recently in 2000, when Margrethe was welcomed at Windsor.
Margrethe, who is 1.80 metres tall, has been one of Denmark’s most popular public figures. She often walked the streets of Copenhagen virtually unescorted and won the admiration of Danes for her warm manner and her talents as a linguist and designer.
A keen skier, she was a member of a Danish women’s air force unit when she was a princess and took part in judo courses and snow endurance tests.
In 2011, aged 70, he visited Danish troops in southern Afghanistan wearing a military jumpsuit.
As monarch, she toured the country, regularly visiting Greenland and the Faroe Islands, two semi-independent territories that are part of the Danish Kingdom, and was greeted everywhere by cheering crowds.
Pictured: Queen Margrethe at the celebration of the succession to the throne in the Danish Parliament on January 15, 2024
Denmark has the oldest ruling monarchy in Europe, tracing its ancestry back to the Viking king Gorm the Old, who died in 958. Although Margrethe is head of state, the Danish constitution strictly excludes her involvement in partisan politics.
He ascended to the throne on 15 January 1972, following the death of his father.
But although she was the eldest daughter, she did not become heir presumptive until 1953, when Denmark’s constitution was amended to allow women to inherit the throne.
This followed a referendum in which more than 85 percent of participants voted to allow female succession.
She married a Frenchman, Henri Marie Jean André de Laborde de Monpezat, later known as Prince Henrik, in 1967. They had two sons, Prince Frederic and Prince Joachim.
Despite enjoying a 50-year marriage, her relationship with Henrik was plagued by controversy. Henrik shocked Danes by saying he felt ostracised in his own home by his wife.
Prince Henrik died in 2018 at the age of 83.
On the day she became monarch, she stood on the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Denmark and pledged her loyalty to the nation.