Like mother, like son! How Queen Margrethe II commenced her reign exactly 52 years ago... And today, she passed the crown to her son, King Frederik X

Queen Margrethe became the monarch of Denmark 52 years ago today Queen Margrethe II abdication LIVE: Denmark prepares to proclaim Prince Frederik their new king

Copenhagen’s streets were filled to the brim with excited crowds as Denmark today welcomed the former Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary as its new King and Queen.

But the story was starkly different 52 years ago to the day, when Margrethe II became Queen on January 14, 1972.

Archive photos show the young princess, then 31, stood at the balcony at Christiansborg Palace – just like her son did today – as the then-Prime Minister Jens Otto Krag proclaimed her Denmark’s royal ruler.

When she ascended the throne in 1972 after her late father, King Frederik IX, only 42 per cent  of Danes supported the monarchy.

The most recent survey shows that 84 per cent of Danes favour it to a high or some degree.

Archive photos show the young princess, then 31, stood at the balcony at Christiansborg Palace – just like her son did today – as the then-Prime Minister Jens Otto Krag proclaimed her Denmark’s monarch

Margrethe was also grieving the death of her father, who had passed away just two weeks after making his New Year’s Eve address.

On January 15, she was officially crowned.

But, although she was Frederik IX’s eldest child, she did not become heir presumptive until 1953, when Denmark’s constitution was amended to allow women to inherit the throne.

That followed a referendum in which more than 85 per cent of participants voted to allow female succession.

She was married in 1967 to a Frenchman, Henri Marie Jean André de Laborde de Monpezat, later styled as Prince Henrik. They had two sons, Prince Frederick and Prince Joachim.

Despite enjoying a long marriage of 50 years, her relationship with Henrik was plagued with controversy. Henrik stunned Danes by saying he felt he had been pushed aside in his own home by his wife.

Prince Henrik died in 2018 aged 83.

On the day she became monarch, she appeared on the balcony of Denmark’s Christiansborg Palace and pledged her allegiance to the nation.

The royal, 55, was visibly moved as was proclaimed King by the Prime Minister at Christiansborg Castle today

Wearing a black veil and gown adorned with the regalia of the Order of the Elephant and her father King Frederick IX’s Family Order attached to her gown, the 31-year-old monarch stated: ‘My beloved father, our King, is dead.

‘The task that my father had carried for nearly 25 years is now resting on my shoulders. I pray to God to give me help and strength to carry the heavy heritage. May the trust that was given to my father also be granted to me.’

Meanwhile, scenes were less mournful – and more celebratory – today.

An emotional King Frederik X shared a public kiss with his wife – the newly crowned Queen Mary of Denmark – after an exciting balcony appearance this afternoon.

The royal, 55, was visibly moved as was proclaimed King by the Prime Minister  at Christiansborg Palace today, and wiped away tears at the historic occasion while roaring crowds cheered him on.

In his speech, as per a translation by royal blogger Gert’s Royals, the father-of-four said: ‘I need all the support I can get. From my beloved wife, from my family, from you and from that which is greater than us. I face the future knowing that I am not alone.

‘Bound, committed, for the Kingdom of Denmark.’

Just moments before his first appearance as King, Frederik’s mother Queen Margrethe II had signed her historic abdication after 52 years as monarch, Danish broadcaster DR has said – and BBC reports say that her poignant last words before leaving the Council of State were: ‘God save the King’.

An emotional King Frederik X shared a public kiss with his wife – the newly crowned Queen Mary of Denmark – after an exciting balcony appearance this afternoon

Margrethe was also grieving the death of her father, who had passed away just two weeks after making his New Year’s Eve address

A beaming Frederik was then joined by his wife Mary – who is now Queen of Denmark – and their children Christian, 18, Isabella, 16 and Vincent and Josephine – both 13.

Today’s transferrence of power has kicked off as Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary – along with their son Prince Christian – made their way to Christiansborg Castle.

A procession of cars set off with the royals being driven in a 1958 Rolls-Royce from Amalienborg.

Margrethe II followed in a carriage, waving at delighted crowds as she left from Christian IX’s Palace.

Both passed through Frederiksgade, Bredgade, Kongens Nytorv, Holmens Canal and Prince Jørgen’s Courtyard on the way.

At Christiansborg Palace, Margrethe, Frederik, and Christian all took part in a Council of State at with the Government and the Council of State secretary.

The young princess, pictured at the age of 18, was educated at schools in Copenhagen and England before she began studying at Cambridge University

Margrethe was studying in London when she met her future husband Henrik (Pictured: Queen Ingrid, King Frederik, Princess Margrethe, Count Henri, Countess and Count Andre de Monpezat and their daughter Madam Bardin, celebrating the engagement of Crown Princess Margrethe to Count Henri)

Margrethe then made her way back to Amalienborg, while Frederik and Mary held  formal reception for specially invited guests.

At 3pm Danish time, the couple made a balcony appearance at Christiansborg Palace. The Prime Minister then proclaimed the King’s accession to the throne.

After this, the newly crowned monarch made an impassioned speech as he admitted his wish to be a ‘unifying king’.

He carries the beloved legacy of his mother, who – becoming the first queen of Denmark since Margrethe I in the early 15th-century – had blazed a trail that continues to this day.

The then Princess Margrethe tied the knot in 1967, and her husband Henri Laborde de Monpezat received the style and title of ‘His Royal Highness Prince Henrik of Denmark’

A popular queen, she is known as the ‘people’s monarch’ thanks to the fact that, as well as doing her own shopping, she has a flourishing career as an illustrator and designer and, until 2015, defied convention by lighting up in public.

In 2021, it was announced she was hired as the set designer for a Netflix film based on an adaptation of a romantic fantasy novel by Out of Africa author Karen Blixen, one of Denmark’s most internationally recognised women writers.

Margrethe has also studied at five universities and is a committed anglophile.

She spent a year at North Foreland Lodge boarding school in Hampshire, and went on to study prehistoric archaeology at Girton College, Cambridge.

The then princess also studied at the London School of Economics in 1965.

The couple, pictured at a party in the 1970s, went on to welcome two sons in the early years of their marriage

The persona of the fun-loving Queen is a far-cry from the stiff upper lip that’s often associated with monarchy and she is regularly pictured in bold, vibrant outfits. Above: Margrethe aged 40 in 1980

Despite enjoying a long marriage of 50 years, her relationship with Henrik was plagued with controversy. Henrik stunned Danes by saying he felt he had been pushed aside in his own home by his wife

Speaking in an interview to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee last June, Margrethe told how the Queen had made an ‘enormous impression’ on her, because of the way she has ‘faced her duties, the way she is dedicated but also that she does it with a smile.’

The pair are said to have used nicknames for each other, with the Queen calling her Danish counterpart ‘Daisy’ and Margrethe using ‘Lilibet’ – the name used by her closest family.

Margrethe is known as ‘Daisy’ or ‘aunt Daisy’ because the flower of the same name is known as ‘marguerite’ in both Sweden and Denmark.

Both monarchs also shared a love of dogs, with the Queen being famous for her love of corgis – having had more than 30 in her life – and Margrethe favouring Dachshunds.

Queen Margrethe was related to Her Late Majesty through Queen Victoria, whose third son Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught, was Margrethe’s great-grandfather and Her Majesty’s great-uncle.

Margrethe’s House of Glücksburg and the House of Windsor are also linked by Margrethe’s great-great-grandfather, Christian IX.

His daughter, Alexandra, married Edward VII, the eldest son of Queen Victoria.

He was the Queen’s great-grandfather and King Charles III’s great-great-grandfather.

Her Majesty visited Denmark for the first time in 1957, when Margrethe’s parents – King Frederick IX and Queen Ingrid were on the throne.

Born in 1940, Margrethe has throughout her life enjoyed broad support from Danes, who are fond of her tactful and yet creative personality.

Margrethe II was the eldest of the three daughters of King Frederik IX of Denmark, and succeeded him to the throne in 1972

Queen Margrethe II (centre) pictured with her son Crown Prince Frederik (left), daughter-in-law, Crown Princess Mary (right) and their four children Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, and twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine

She is a chain smoker and is so ‘normal’ that she shops in the supermarket – but Queen Margrethe of Denmark is also the longest-reigning head of state in Europe. Above: The Queen lighting up in 1997 (left); and attending the annual New Year’s dinner at Christian VII’s Palace at Amalienborg, Copenhagen in January

Margrethe enjoyed a close relationship with her third cousin Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II, having bonded during several official visits to each other’s countries over the decades – most recently in 2000, when Margrethe was received at Windsor (above)

The monarch hit the headlines last year when she removed royal titles from the four children of her younger son Prince Joachim.

She enjoyed a close relationship with her third cousin Queen Elizabeth II, both descendants of Queen Victoria, having bonded during several state visits to each other’s countries down the decades – most recently in 2000, when Margrethe was received at Windsor.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen confirmed the decision in a news release that paid tribute to the 83-year-old monarch, offering a ‘heartfelt thank you to Her Majesty the Queen for her lifelong dedication and tireless efforts for the Kingdom’.

Margrethe is the ‘epitome of Denmark’ Ms Frederiksen’s statement read, and ‘throughout the years has put words and feelings into who we are as a people and as a nation’.

The six-feet-tall Margrethe has been one of the most popular public figures in Denmark. She often walked the streets of Copenhagen virtually unescorted and won the admiration of Danes for her warm manners and for her talents as a linguist and designer.

On her 83rrd birthday on April 16, Queen Margrethe waved to crowds of well-wishers outside the Palace in Copenhagen

The monarch was also joined by her son Frederik, Crown Prince and his wife Princess Mary and their four children

The Danish Queen (right) will be succeeded by her eldest son Crown Prince Frederik (centre) pictured with his Australian-born wife Crown Princess Mary

A keen skier, she was a member of a Danish women’s air force unit as a princess, taking part in judo courses and endurance tests in the snow.

In 2011, at age 70, she visited Danish troops in southern Afghanistan wearing a military jumpsuit.

As monarch, she crisscrossed the country and regularly visited Greenland and the Faeroe Islands, the two semi-independent territories which are part of the Danish Realm, and was met everywhere by cheering crowds.

Denmark has Europe’s oldest ruling monarchy, which traces its line back to the Viking king Gorm the Old, who died in 958. Although Margrethe is head of state, the Danish Constitution strictly ruled out her involvement in party politics.

Margrethe was born on April 16, 1940, a week after Nazi Germany had invaded Denmark. The occupation meant that the little princess became a symbol of hope for the Danes.