Queen Margrethe II announced her abdication as Queen of Denmark, during her New Year's Eve address on 31 December 2023, after reigning for nearly 52 years. She will be succeeded by her elder son Crown Prince Frederik as King on 14 January 2024.[1][2]
Since the death of Elizabeth II in 2022, Margrethe II has been Europe's longest-reigning monarch and the world's only queen regnant.[3]
I will remain on the throne until I fall off.[4]
Queen Margrethe II, 2012
Queen Margrethe II never intended to abdicate the throne.[5] In an interview in 2012 to mark her Ruby Jubilee, she said: "In my eyes, it's part of the position that you have when you inherit a monarchy: It is a task you have handed down to you, and that you keep as long as you live, the way my father did and my grandfather before him".[6] The Queen rejected the possibility of abdication in an interview in 2016, and said: "In this country we haven't gone in for that way of handing over. It's always been: you stay as long as you live. That's what my father did and my predecessors. And the way I see it too".[7] In another interview in 2016, she said that her son will become king "when I am no longer here".[8]
I have decided that now is the right time. On 14th January, 2024 – 52 years after I succeeded my beloved father – I will step down as Queen of Denmark. I will hand over the throne to my son Crown Prince Frederik.[9]
Queen Margrethe II, 2023
Queen Margrethe II made the surprise announcement of her abdication on live television in her New Year's Eve address on 31 December 2023. She said that the time had taken its "toll", and her number of "ailments" had increased, and that she cannot undertake as many duties as she managed in the past. The Queen cited her extensive back surgery in February 2023, and said that the operation made her reassess her position and consider "whether now would be an appropriate time to pass on the responsibility to the next generation".[9]
The Queen thanked the public for the "overwhelming warmth and support"; the changing governments for their "rewarding collaboration"; and the parliament for "always vesting their confidence in me". She expressed her hope that the new King and Queen will be met with the "same trust and devotion which have fallen to my lot".[9]
The abdication of Margrethe II as Queen of Denmark will take place on 14 January 2024, the 52nd anniversary of Margrethe's accession to the throne. Upon her abdication, Crown Prince Frederik will accede to the Danish throne as King Frederik X. After a meeting of the Council of State, the Prime Minister will proclaim the new King at Christiansborg Castle.[10]
After the abdication, Queen Margrethe II will continue to be titled as "Her Majesty".[10]
The news of Queen Margrethe's abdication was described as a "surprise" and a "shock", as many Danes had expected her to remain queen until her death.[11][12][3]
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen thanked the Queen for "her lifelong dedication and tireless efforts for the Kingdom" and described her as the "epitome of Denmark".[12][13]
Deputy Prime Minister Troels Lund Poulsen noted that the Queen's decision to abdicate shows both her "wisdom" and the monarchy's "strength and durability for Denmark", and said that the new King "will be able to lead the Danish monarchy safely into a new era, where tradition and renewal will be able to follow each other".[14]