Ecologist, athlete, “spoiled prince”… Who is Frederick X, the future king of Denmark after the abdication of Margrethe II?

All his life he prepared to ascend the throne, first with great trepidation, then with patiently built confidence. After 52 years of reign, Danish Queen Margrethe II announced Sunday during her traditional New Year’s speech that she will abdicate the throne on January 14 to make way for her son, Crown Prince Frederik.

The world’s only reigning queen and Europe’s longest-reigning monarch had major back surgery in February last year, prompting her decision. This leaves behind a favorable climate: More than 80% of Danes say they are monarchists, and the role of the sovereign in the Scandinavian country is essentially ceremonial. At the age of 55, Crown Prince Frederik will take the name Frederik X upon his proclamation as sovereign.

Climate Change Advocate

A wayward teenager turned respected family man, Prince Frederick embodies the ideal of a relaxed monarchy, an ancient institution that has managed to modernize without becoming banal. “When the time comes, I will lead the ship,” he assured during the celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of his mother’s throne. “I will follow you as you followed your father, and as Christian will follow me.” Committed to the fight against climate change, Prince Frederik has quietly established himself in his mother’s shadow, becoming a tireless spokesman for Denmark and its environmental solutions, unlike the runaway young man he might have been.

“He was not strictly speaking a rebel, but as a child and young man he was very uncomfortable with the media attention and the knowledge that he was going to be king. He gained confidence when he was about twenty-five,” says Gitte Redder, an expert on the Danish royal family. A lonely and tormented teenager who accused his parents of neglecting him to fulfill his obligations, Frederic, passionate about fine cars, speed and nightclubs, was considered a “spoiled prince” in the early 1990s.

On New Year’s Eve 1992, he even caused a heated controversy by allowing a friend to drive his car while heavily intoxicated, Le Figaro reports. The press then wondered about this “scandalous prince” and his “capacity to become king.” But over the years, the Crown Prince has realized the responsibility that his status imposes on him.

French-speaking and competitive swimmer

He speaks fluent French thanks to his father, the French diplomat Henri de Monpezat, who became Prince Consort Henrik, and he also speaks English and German. A graduate of political science at Aarhus University, he was the first member of the royal family to complete his university education in 1995, interspersed with a period of study from 1991 to 1992 at Harvard under the pseudonym Frederik Henriksen.

It was his military training in three Danish defensive corps that earned him the respect of his subjects and the maturity he seemed to lack. The prince was part of an elite group of combat swimmers called “Pingo” (Penguin), who succeeded in the 1995 ranking among four candidates who passed all tests out of about 300 registered. He also distinguished himself by taking part in a four-month, 3,500 km ski expedition to Greenland in 2000.

Daredevil (he had a short hospital stay due to sledding and scootering accidents), in 2018 he created the Royal Run, a walking race that has been held numerous times across Denmark, helping to cement its popularity. Gitte Redder notes that “he is an athlete, attends concerts, football matches, which makes him even more approachable than his mother.” “I don’t want to lock myself in a fortress, I want to be myself, a man,” he said, confirming his desire to be faithful to this principle even on the throne.

” Modern, awokepop music lover”

With his wife, Princess Mary, an Australian commoner and lawyer by training, having met in a bar in Sydney during the 2000 Olympics, they wanted a normal school career for their four children, now aged 11 to 18, mostly educated in state system. The eldest, Prince Christian, who turned 18 in October and is one day expected to succeed his father, is the first of the crown heirs to go to kindergarten. Frederick and Mary “gradually seized power in recent years, but very slowly and depending on the queen’s declining vitality,” who are 83 and widowed since 2018, notes historian Sebastian Alden-Jorgensen.

Frederic has long been the focus of the Scandinavian tabloids due to his relationship with brother Joachim, which has been portrayed as turbulent since the latter decided to move to Paris with his second wife. “The Royal House is a little happier without him and the prince has no place at any official events,” a Crown expert told the magazine. Se og Hor in 2019.

“Modern, awokeLovers of pop music, contemporary art and sports,” he said, the couple “represent not a potential revolution from the conservative queen” but a cautious adaptation to changes in modern society. For a long time, Frederic complemented his mother. “You draw, I training. You look for items from the past, I tried not to be recognized while serving in the armed forces. You have a way with words. Sometimes I miss them,” he laughed while celebrating his anniversary.