Queen Mary has been left “broken-hearted” after her father, Professor John Dalgleish Donaldson’s death at the age of 84.
The Danish Royal Family announced the sad news in a statement shared to Instagram on Sunday, April 12.
Professor Donaldson passed away in Hobart, Tasmania, where Mary was raised, after suffering from “declining health” over the past few years.
Mary was able to see her father for one final time during her and King Frederik’s Australia tour, when they spent a “precious” few final days together in Tasmania.
The Danish monarch got the chance to say one final goodbye to her beloved father, which she will “treasure” forever, a royal insider tells New Idea.
“The whole family is broken-hearted, but they’ve all had time to prepare for this moment. In so many ways, Mary couldn’t have asked for more, having seen him just three weeks before,” an insider tells us.
“It felt like he was holding on to see her one last time, and she’ll treasure those last few days she got with him.”
“Every time she left him, she would worry it might be the last, but this time she knew it wouldn’t be long. She’s so grateful he’s now free from pain – these past few years have been especially hard for him.”
Mary and her sister, Jane, are believed to be supporting the “broken-hearted” family through the difficult time, with the Queen focusing on her children, Prince Christian, twins Princess Josephine, and Prince Vincent, and Princess Isabella.
“Mary’s consistently a tower of strength for her family when things are tough, and now is no exception,” our source explains.
“Her main focus is on her grieving kids and the family back home in Hobart. She does plan on attending the memorial, and Frederik has even offered to join her, but there is a need for extreme privacy right now.”
“Of course, behind closed doors, her heart’s broken,” they added.
“She adored her brave, amazing dad, who never stopped living his life to the fullest. She and Jane are now keeping everyone together while they work out the details of what will be a very private family memorial.”
Mary shared her grief in a statement published on the Danish Royal Family’s Instagram page on April 12.
“My heart is heavy, and my thoughts are grey,” Mary wrote.
“My beloved father has passed away. But I know that when the grief settles, the memories will brighten my day, and what will remain strongest is love and gratitude for everything he gave me and taught me.”
Who is the family of Queen Mary of Denmark?
Queen Mary was raised in Hobart, Tasmania, by her parents, John Dalgleish Donaldson and Henrietta Clark Donaldson.
They got married in their native Scotland in 1963 before immigrating to Australia later that same year.
They welcomed three children: Mary and her two older sisters, Jane Alison Stephens, born in 1965, and Patricia Anne Bailey, born in 1968, and a younger brother, John, born in 1970.
In November 1997, Henrietta tragically passed away after complications from heart surgery when Mary was just 25 years old.
Her father, John, found love again with British crime novelist Susan Horwood, who writes under the pen name of Susan Moody, and they got married in 2001.
Mary met her future husband, the now King of Denmark, in September 2001 at the Sydney Olympics.
She never expected to sit on the throne of one of Europe’s oldest monarchies, but their meeting changed the course of her life.
Mary called Australia home for 28 years before relocating to Denmark to be with Frederik, and they got married in May 2004.
They share four children: a son, Christian, and twins, Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent, and Princess Isabella.
The family has returned to visit Mary’s family in Australia over the years, most recently on their 2026 tour, their first since ascending to the throne.
It was also the first Danish state visit to Australia in more than 40 years, and gave Mary the chance to say one final goodbye to her beloved father.
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