{"id":307,"date":"2012-01-15T11:31:04","date_gmt":"2012-01-15T11:31:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/danish\/?p=307"},"modified":"2012-01-15T11:31:04","modified_gmt":"2012-01-15T11:31:04","slug":"40-years-on-the-throne-of-denmark","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/danish\/2012\/01\/15\/40-years-on-the-throne-of-denmark\/","title":{"rendered":"40 Years on the Throne of Denmark"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Queen<\/a>\u00a0January 15th, 1972, Christiansborg<\/span> Slotsplads (Christiansborg Palace Square<\/em>), central Copenhagen. A multitude of people \u2013 young and old, men and women \u2013 have gathered in front of the palace section used by the Royal family. (Another part of Christiansborg Slot [Palace<\/em>] houses the Danish Parliament.) Surprisingly many carry small Dannebrog<\/strong><\/span> (the name of the Danish flag) in their hands. All eyes are directed towards the balcony. When does she come?
\nAt last Margrethe, a quiet 21 year old interested in art and archaeology, appears at the gates. Still saddened and shocked by her father\u2019s death yesterday, she wears a simple robe adorned with a white ribbon. She looks grave and solemn as she enters the balcony, followed by Prime Minister Jens Otto Krag. High above the crowd Mr Krag, through a bouquet of large microphones, declares that Denmark has now got a new monarch, the second queen in the long line of Danish kings, Queen Margrethe II.<\/p>\n

Well, I wasn\u2019t there, but this is how I imagine it must have been, looking at the old photos that are cluttering the newspapers these days \u2013 in celebration of Margrethe\u2019s 40 years on the throne<\/span>. Living in one of the world\u2019s oldest kingdoms, which at the same time is one of said world\u2019s most secular countries, many Danes have a complicated relationship to their Queen. On the one hand, a lot of people think that the (symbolic) monarchy is an old-fashioned and expensive institution, which ought to be abandoned. On the other hand, an awful lot of people really like the Queen as a person and a representative of Denmark, and wouldn\u2019t really<\/em> like to see her replaced by a president.<\/p>\n

Margrethe Alexandrine \u00de\u00f3rhildur Ingrid<\/span> was born in 1940, and is married to French Duke Henri Marie Jean Andr\u00e9, popularly known as Prins Henrik<\/span> (Prince Henry). They have the sons Frederik<\/span> and Joachim<\/span>, who are married to Mary (Australian) and Marie (French), respectively. Together with the Queen\u2019s various grandchildren and Joachim\u2019s ex-wife Alexandra (of Hong Kong), they provide the media with stories and the souvenir shops with postcards. Some people feel very connected, almost related, to the Royal Family.<\/p>\n

The Queen is a very creative lady, who has had her paintings shown at several art exhibits. She even illustrated a Danish edition of Tolkien\u2019s famous The Lord of the Rings<\/em> (Ringenes Herre<\/strong> in Danish). On a more trivial level, The Queen is also known for her excessive consumption of cigaretter<\/strong>. Her famous nyt\u00e5rstaler<\/strong> (New Year speeches) always end in Gud velsigne Danmark<\/strong> \u2013 God bless Denmark<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

\u00a0January 15th, 1972, Christiansborg Slotsplads (Christiansborg Palace Square), central Copenhagen. A multitude of people \u2013 young and old, men and women \u2013 have gathered in front of the palace section used by the Royal family. (Another part of Christiansborg Slot [Palace] houses the Danish Parliament.) Surprisingly many carry small Dannebrog (the name of the Danish…<\/p>\n

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