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Daily Mail
12-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Queen Margrethe of Denmark's illness mystery as royal calendar cleared - but it's business as usual for Mary
Queen Margrethe of Denmark was recently hospitalised before being released just a couple of days later. But the Danish Royal House's rapid-fire series of updates in response to the former monarch 'contracting a cold' has raised eyebrows among royal watchers. On Thursday 8 May, the Danish Royal House put out an official statement, confirming the 85-year-old had been hospitalised. The translated message read: 'As a result of the cold HM Queen Margrethe has contracted, it has been decided that the Queen will be admitted to Rigshospitalet for observation as a precaution.' In tandem, the Danish Royal House cleared Margrethe's calendar and cancelled an upcoming scheduled engagement. Queen Margrethe was due to attend the Sankt Lukas Foundation for its 125th anniversary celebration in Hellerup, but this was swiftly removed from the royal's calendar. However, just a day later there was a promising update on the Queen's health as the palace issued a follow-up statement. 'HM Queen Margrethe is still hospitalized at Rigshospitalet on Friday morning,' read the second update in as many days. 'Her Majesty is recovering and in good spirits. Queen Margrethe is therefore expected to be discharged from Rigshospitalet and return to Fredensborg Palace during the weekend.' The next day, the palace issued a third consecutive statement declaring that the elderly Queen had been officially 'discharged' on the morning of Saturday 10 May. 'Her Majesty is well and is now back in her residence at Fredensborg Palace,' the statement read. While the Danish royal's latest hospitalisation was done as a 'precaution', the succession of health updates from the palace along with the swift cancellation of her event attendance may prompt concern over Margrethe's general health and wellbeing. When Queen Margrethe made the unexpected decision to abdicate the throne in January 2024, she became the first Danish sovereign to voluntarily step down in nearly 900 years. The crown passed to her eldest son, who is now known as King Frederik X, while his wife is styled as Queen Mary. The shock abdication speech delivered on New Year's Eve 2023 saw Queen Margrethe reference her declining health as a driving factor behind her decision to hand over the monarch role to her eldest son. The speech also saw Queen Margrethe explicitly reference her 'extensive back surgery' in 2023. 'Inevitably, the operation gave cause to thoughts about the future – whether now would be an appropriate time to pass on the responsibility to the next generation. I have decided that now is the right time,' she said in the unexpected abdication announcement. The abdication became official in January 2024, and although Queen Margrethe is no longer monarch, she has continued to hold her Queen title and is still styled as Her Majesty. Margrethe has similarly continued to maintain an active schedule of royal engagements. However, this latest health hiccup and the accompanying speedy cancellation of her upcoming calendar of events has left royal watchers pondering whether this is a pattern we should expect to see repeated in the future. Since stepping down last year, Margrethe also dealt with another health episode after falling at Fredensborg Castle. In September 2024, it was confirmed that the octogenarian had suffered a damaged vertebrae in her neck and a fracture in her left hand following the mishap. 'According to the circumstances, the Queen is doing well but was admitted for observation for the time being,' the head of communications, Lene Balleby, said at the time. Since her recovery, the former sovereign is now sometimes seen walking with a cane for support. Prior to this latest precautionary hospitalisation, Margrethe was most recently seen just four days earlier at a service commemorating the 80th anniversary of Denmark's liberation. Margrethe attended a peace service at the Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen on 4 May alongside King Frederik, 56 and Queen Mary, 53, as well as a host of other Danish royals and overseas visiting royalty. A few weeks prior, the Queen was in jovial spirits as she celebrated her 85th birthday with family at Fredensborg Castle. On April 16, she hosted an intimate birthday banquet and was even seen blowing out a cake with dozens of candles. Despite Margrethe's latest health scare, it was business as usual for her daughter-in-law, Queen Mary. The day after the announcement of Margrethe's hospitalisation, the Aussie-born royal was out and about visiting the island of Bornholm. Although the Queen did not offer any statement or update about Margrethe's health during the visit, Mary was her usual warm and poised self as she greeted royal well-wishers. Queen Mary also met with patients and medical staffers at a local dialysis clinic in her capacity as patron for the Danish Kidney Association.
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Queen Margrethe of Denmark, 85, remains in 'good spirits' following hospital admission and is expected to be discharged over the weekend, palace says
Queen Margrethe of Denmark remains in positive spirits following her hospitalisation and should be discharged in the coming days. It was revealed yesterday that Margrethe, 85, was admitted into Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen after contracting a cold. Margrethe, who abdicated in January in favour of her son, King Frederick X, remains in hospital, but the palace is hopeful that she will return to Fredensborg Palace this weekend. 'H.M. Queen Margrethe remains hospitalized at Rigshospitalet on Friday morning,' the palace said. The update continued, 'Her Majesty is recovering and in good spirits. Queen Margrethe is therefore expected to be discharged from Rigshospitalet and return to Fredensborg Palace during the weekend.' The royal, a third cousin of Queen Elizabeth, was placed in hospital for observation as a precautionary measure. She cleared her schedule of upcoming engagements, including yesterday's visit to the Sankt Lukas Foundation's 125th anniversary celebration, People reported. 'HM Queen Margrethe admitted to Rigshospitalet,' the palace said yesterday, adding, 'As a result of the cold that H.M. Queen Margrethe has contracted, it has been decided that the Queen will be admitted to Rigshospitalet for observation as a precaution. Her Majesty, known for her chain-smoking and love of dachshunds, was last seen on Sunday during a church service in connection with the 80th anniversary of Denmark's liberation. Despite resigning in 2023, the monarch remains active and performs royal duties alongside her son. Margrethe shocked the nation with the announcement of her abdication during her New Year's Eve live television segment. Just 14 days later, Margrethe, who ruled for 52 years, signed away the throne at a Council of State meeting and her son, Frederik, was crowned King of Denmark. She said one of the reasons why she chose to give up the throne was because of her health issues, adding that she underwent surgery for her back in February 2023. Margrethe said: 'It went well, thanks to the skilled healthcare staff who took care of me. Of course, the operation also gave rise to thinking about the future - whether the time had come to leave the responsibility to the next generation.' She is still known as Her Majesty Queen Margrethe and can fill in as regent if King Frederik, Queen Mary and Crown Prince Christian are abroad, ill or on holiday. Just one week after giving up the crown, the royal went to a special church service at Aarhus Cathedral with her son, King Frederik and his wife Queen Mary. In Denmark, formal power resides with the elected parliament and its government. The monarch is expected to stay above partisan politics, representing the nation with traditional duties ranging from state visits to national day celebrations. Born in 1940, Margrethe has throughout her life enjoyed broad support from Danes, who are fond of her tactful and yet creative personality, the Prime Minster has previously described her as 'the epitome of Denmark'. The monarch hit the headlines in 2022 when she removed royal titles from the four children of her younger son Prince Joachim. She enjoyed a close relationship with her third cousin Queen Elizabeth II, both descendants of Queen Victoria, having bonded during several state visits to each other's countries down the decades - most recently in 2000, when Margrethe was received at Windsor. The six-feet-tall Margrethe has been one of the most popular public figures in Denmark. She often walked the streets of Copenhagen virtually unescorted and won the admiration of Danes for her warm manners and for her talents as a linguist and designer. A keen skier, she was a member of a Danish women's air force unit as a princess, taking part in judo courses and endurance tests in the snow. In 2011, at age 70, she visited Danish troops in southern Afghanistan wearing a military jumpsuit. As monarch, she crisscrossed the country and regularly visited Greenland and the Faeroe Islands, the two semi-independent territories which are part of the Danish Realm, and was met everywhere by cheering crowds. Denmark has Europe's oldest ruling monarchy, which traces its line back to the Viking king Gorm the Old, who died in 958. Although Margrethe is head of state, the Danish Constitution strictly ruled out her involvement in party politics. Margrethe was born a week after Nazi Germany had invaded Denmark. The occupation meant that the little princess became a symbol of hope for the Danes. She ascended the throne on January 15, 1972, after the death of her father. But, although she was his eldest child, she did not become heir presumptive until 1953, when Denmark's constitution was amended to allow women to inherit the throne. That followed a referendum in which more than 85 per cent of participants voted to allow female succession. She was married in 1967 to a Frenchman, Henri Marie Jean André de Laborde de Monpezat, later styled as Prince Henrik. They had two sons, Prince Frederick and Prince Joachim. Despite enjoying a long marriage of 50 years, her relationship with Henrik was plagued with controversy. Henrik stunned Danes by saying he felt he had been pushed aside in his own home by his wife. Prince Henrik died in 2018 aged 83. On the day she became monarch, she appeared on the balcony of Denmark's Christiansborg Palace and pledged her allegiance to the nation.
