Denmark, officially known as the Kingdom of Denmark, is a Nordic country and the southern most nation of Scandinavia.
Denmark is a member of the European Union bordered to the south by Germany; it is also linked to nearby Sweden via the Oresund bridge.
Denmark has an extremely popular monarchy which is one of the oldest royal institutions in the world.
The Danish royal family is currently headed by Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II, who traces her family tree back to the first Viking kings of Denmark over 1,000 years ago.
The Queen and her siblings belong to the House of Glucksburg, a brand of the Royal House of Oldenburg.
All member of the Danish royal family except Queen Margrethe II hold the title Prince or Princess of Denmark.
The Danish royal family enjoys incredibly high approval ratings in Denmark, which range between 82 and 92 percent, The Age reports.
Queen Margrethe II
Born April 16 1940 at Amalienborg Palace to King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid, Princess Margrethe Alexandrine Þorhildur Ingrid – now known as Her Majesty The Queen – became Queen of Denmark in 1972.
According to Kongehuset, the official website of the Danish royal family, Queen Margrethe’s motto is “God’s help, the love of The People, Denmark’s strength”.
The royal family includes all Her Majesty’s relatives, including her sisters Her Royal Highness Princess Benedikte and Her Majesty Queen Anne-Marie.
In March 1953, the Act of Succession gave female royals the right of secondary succession to the Danish throne. In 2009, this law was amended to allow the eldest royal child, regardless of gender, to succeed the throne.
Between 1960 and 1965, Kongehuset reports Margrethe studied at universities in Denmark and other European countries. She studied archaeology at the University of Cambridge in Britain, political science at Aarhus University in Denmark and later other courses at the Sorbonne in Paris and London School of Economics.
Queen Margrethe II’s native language is Danish, but she also speaks French, German, Swedish and English.
On June 10 1967, then Heir Apparent Princess Margrethe married Henri Marie Jean Andre, Count of Laborde de Monpezat at Holmens Kirke with an evening celebration at Fredensborg Palace.
Through their marriage, he became Prince Henrik of Denmark.
The royal couple had two sons, HRH Crown Prince Frederik Andre Henrik Christian, born May 26 1968, and HRH Prince Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian, born June 7 1969.
Prince Henrik sadly passed away following a battle with dementia on February 13 2018.
His Royal Highness Crown Prince Frederik and Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mary
On May 14 2004, Prince Frederik married Australian born Mary Donaldson at Copenhagen’s Cathedral.
As the eldest child of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik, Crown Prince Frederik is the heir to the Danish throne and acts as regent when his mother is not in Denmark.
Prince Frederik and Princess Mary have four children: Prince Christian, 13, Princess Isabella, 12 and twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, eight.
The royal family live between Frederik VIII’s Palace at Amalienborg and in the Chancellery House at Fredensborg Palace.
Their Royal Highnesses Prince Joachim and Princess Marie
On November 18 1995, Prince Joachim, the younger son of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik of Denmark, married Hong Kong born sales and marketing executive Alexandra Christina Manley at Frederiksborg Palace Church near Copenhagen.
With Alexandra Christina, now Countess of Frederiksborg, the Prince had two sons: Prince Nikolai, born in 1999, and Prince Felix, born 2002.
In September 2004, the royal couple announced their separation and divorced in April 2005.
On May 24 3008, Prince Joachim married a second time to French born Marie Cavallier at at Møgeltønder Church.
Prince Joachim and Princess Marie have two children, Prince Henrik and Princess Athena.
Prince Joachim is currently sixth in line to the throne, following Crown Prince Frederik and his four children.
Is the Danish royal family popular in Denmark?
According to Visit Denmark, the royal family retains its popularity today thanks to its ability to adapt to the ever changing modern world.
Members of the Danish royal family including Queen Margrethe II, Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary are involved in diplomatic missions and large scale charity projects.
Crown Princess Mary, originally from Hobart in Tasmania, has become known as an international style icon.
Crown Prince Frederik has been voted Dane of the Year in Danish opinion polls on a number of occasions.
Last year, Frederik celebrated his milestone 50th birthday alongside the Danish public for a full week with events such as the Royal Run which over 70,000 Danes participated in.
The Danish royal family continue to honour a long time tradition of gathering on the palace balcony to wave to the people on special occasions.
What is the net worth of the Danish royal family?
According to Business Insider, as of May 2018 Queen Margrethe II and the Danish royal family have a net worth of almost $58 million AUD.
The Danish Civil List grants the royal family almost $18.5 million AUD a year to cover the Queen’s activities, royal household operations and private expenses.
Denmark’s family have a greater net worth than that of Norway’s King Harald V who has an estimated fortune of $43.3 million AUD.
Queen Elizabeth II of England and her royal family have a net worth of between $72.2 million and $86.7 million AUD.
Much of this fortune comes from Britain’s Crown Estate which includes Buckingham Palace and the crown jewels.
The British royal family includes Heir Apparent Prince Charles, his sons Prince William and Prince Harry and their respective spouses Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle.
The wealthiest European royal family is the royal house of Prince Hans Adam II of Liechtenstein.
Business Insider reports the Princely House of Liechtenstein has a net worth of over $7.2 billion AUD partly due to its privately owned bank, LGT Group.
Major milestones for the Danish royal family in recent times
Since the start of the year, the royal family have been extremely busy with a series of high profile events, overseas trips and birthday celebrations.
In January, Kongehuset announced that Queen Margrethe II would invite the royal family and a number of close friends to come together on Feburary 20 for a memorial concert at Fredensborg Palace Church to mark one year since the funeral of Prince Henrik.
Crown Princess Mary was also named patron of the Year of Culture between Denmark and South Korea for 2019, marking 60 years since the two counties opened diplomatic relations.
Princess Mary also visited Texas and Ethiopia, where she participated in business development and UN equality and sustainability projects respectively.
In March, Her Majesty The Queen and Crown Prince Frederik paid a state visit to Argentina where they participated in a number of official occasions and led a Danish business promotional campaign.
Queen Margrethe II celebrated her 79th birthday on April 16 with a parade at Marselisborg Palace.
The royal family, including Her Majesty, Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary with their children Princes Christian and Vincent and Princesses Isabella and Josephine appeared on the balcony to greet the crowd.
Princess Isabella, the daughter of Prince Frederik and Princess Mary, celebrated her 12th birthday on April 21.
The Queen’s sister Princess Benedikte celebrated her 75th birthday on April 29 with a dinner at Amalienborg Palace attended by all senior Danish royalty.
Prince Henrik, the only son of Prince Joachim with second wife Princess Marie, turned nine on May 4.
