by Stine Jacobsen and Johannes Birkebaek
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Queen Margrethe II of Denmark is due to hand over the throne to her eldest son, Prince Frederik, on Sunday after more than half a century of reign.
Tens of thousands of Danes are expected to gather in the streets of Copenhagen to witness this historic succession.
The Queen caused a surprise during her annual New Year’s speech by announcing her decision to abdicate after 52 years of reign, becoming the first Danish monarch to renounce the throne in almost 900 years.
There will be no coronation, but the succession will take place around 1:00 p.m. GMT, when Queen Margrethe II will sign a declaration of abdication.
The queen did not reveal the exact reasons which led her to abdicate, but explained that the back operation she successfully underwent in February had fueled her reflection on the need to hand over.
(Reporting Stine Jacobsen and Johannes Birkebaek in Copenhagen; French version Camille Raynaud)
©2024 Thomson Reuters, all rights reserved. Reuters content is the intellectual property of Thomson Reuters or its third party content providers. Any copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. “Reuters” and the Reuters Logo are trademarks of Thomson Reuters and its affiliated companies.