As a royal couple, King Frederik and Queen Mary of Denmark rely on the strength of the family. But one person is still standing in the way.
It’s a chilling moment – in more ways than one. When King Frederik, 55, walks towards parliament on the day of the change of throne in mid-January, his brother Joachim, 54, is already waiting there. The snow dances and both hesitate for a moment. Then what Frederik was probably hoping for most happens: Joachim smiles and hugs him warmly. The ice is broken. At least for now.
This short scene illustrates how Denmark’s new king understands his office: one for all, all for one. Frederik would like to involve his entire family in the new tasks and distribute the responsibility across several shoulders. And that’s already working very well. When the king traveled to Poland at the beginning of February, he appointed his 18-year-old son Christian as head of the empire.
King Frederik relies on family
A baptism of fire for the newly crowned prince, who was even allowed to sign a few laws. Great: In this way, Christian was able to gain self-confidence, the people could see how well the monarchy is prepared for the future, and Frederik was able to gain a bit of freedom.
That’s pretty important to him. Not all Danes thought it was great that he and his wife Mary, 52, went on a skiing holiday just a month after taking the throne. On the other hand, Frederik’s healthy work-life balance fits the family image of today’s Denmark. Incidentally, Queen Margrethe, 83, took over the business during this time before she went on vacation herself. Unusual, but proof of how well teamwork actually works at Königs.
Happy Family: More appearance than reality?
So it’s all sunshine and roses? Not quite. Because behind the scenes, it is said, the conflict with Prince Joachim and his family is still simmering. A conflict that is strikingly similar to the dispute between the English Princes William, 41, and Harry, 39. It’s about lifelong competition, hurt feelings – and two women who can’t really find a way together.
It is fitting that Joachim traveled alone from his new home in Washington to Copenhagen when the throne changed. Since the middle of last year he has been living in the US capital with his wife Marie, 48, and their children Henrik, 14, and Athena, 12. The children did not want to be missing from their school, explained the Danish court.
The palace said nothing about Princess Marie, who could of course have accompanied her husband to this historic ceremony. Not only did she stay away, she also skipped a reception given by the Danish ambassador in Washington, where the new royal couple was celebrated with sparkling wine and Danish specialties.
King Frederik and Prince Joachim
© Dana Press
There are also tensions among the royals
It’s no secret that Marie doesn’t like her sister-in-law. And that she blames Mary and Frederik for the recent, less than pleasant developments in their lives. The biggest annoyance: their children were stripped of their prince and princess titles a year and a half ago. Prince Joachim complained publicly that his mother only gave him five days to deliver the bad news to his family. There is much to suggest that the queen implemented the reform so hastily in order to spare heir to the throne Frederik the difficult decision.
The two also blame others for the many moves that Prince Joachim and his Marie have had to complete in recent years. “I was so happy in Denmark,” the French-born Marie once said reproachfully in an interview. But life there, and they brought it upon themselves, became virtually impossible for them and Joachim after they had to sell their Schackenborg country castle in 2014. The reason: mismanagement.
What to do? Margrethe then did not want to give Joachim and Marie any new representational duties, even if they would have been happy to take on them. Instead, she pushed away her second born. First as a military attaché in Paris and then as an employee of the Danish embassy in Washington.
Parallels to another royal family
A prince in exile– that reminds me of Prince Harry. He and Meghan, 42, also didn’t leave home voluntarily – allegedly because there was a lack of family support. Since then, they have made no secret of their resentment. Oprah Winfrey interview, Netflix documentary, autobiography: The brother of heir to the throne William found many ways to publicly embarrass the royals. No wonder, then, that people at the Danish court are worried that Prince Joachim could become a second Harry and similarly discredit his family.
King Frederik can be more relaxed since the change of throne. He offered his brother his hand – and his brother took it, even if his anger hasn’t completely subsided yet. Frederik’s plan to unite his loved ones as a monarch seems to be working. For the good of family peace – and the crown.