Denmark’s King Frederik X appears before huge crowds after taking the throne

COPENHAGEN: Denmark’s King Frederik X ascended the throne on Sunday, succeeding his mom, Queen Margrethe II, who formally abdicated after 52 years as monarch, with giant and admiring crowds gathered within the capital to witness historical past. Margrethe, 83, shocked the nation on New 12 months’s Eve when she introduced she deliberate to turn into the primary Danish monarch in almost 900 years to voluntarily relinquish the throne. The succession was formalized when Margrethe signed the declaration of her abdication throughout a gathering of the Council of State at parliament. After signing the declaration, the queen rose and gestured to Frederik to take her seat, and stated “God save the King” earlier than leaving the room. Denmark, one of many oldest monarchies on the earth, doesn’t have a coronation however there have been nonetheless moments of pomp within the day’s occasions. After the abdication, the brand new monarch, 55, was proclaimed king by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on the balcony of the parliament constructing, Christiansborg citadel, with the phrases “Lengthy stay his majesty King Frederik the tenth”. Carrying a ceremonial navy uniform adorned with medals, Frederik addressed the gang from the balcony. “My hope is to turn into a unifying king of tomorrow. It’s a process I’ve approached all my life. It’s a process I tackle with pleasure, respect and pleasure,” he stated. Visibly moved and several other instances wiping tears from his eyes, Frederik ended his speech with the phrases: “United, dedicated, for the Kingdom of Denmark,” his royal motto, a 500-year previous custom alleged to underpin a brand new monarch’s reign. Frederik was joined on the balcony by his Australian-born spouse Mary, 51, who’s now queen, and their youngsters: Christian, 18, who’s the brand new inheritor to the throne, Princess Isabelle, 16, and 13-year-old twins Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent. The royal couple, who met in Sydney through the 2000 Olympic Video games, kissed earlier than leaving the balcony amid roaring cheers from the tens of hundreds of people that had converged on the capital in near freezing temperatures. “They did so effectively. I believe it was so good that they ended with a kiss, the entire sq. was oozing with love and pleasure in that second,” stated one lady who gave her title solely as Marie. The brand new king and queen take the throne at a time of giant public help and enthusiasm for the monarchy within the nation of almost six million. “It introduced tears in a joyful strategy to see him achieve this effectively up on the balcony, each along with his speech and when Mary got here out and held his fingers and ending with a kiss,” stated Kasper Wiigh Larsen, 45. “It has actually been price it to face right here and wait all day,” he stated. Police closed a number of metro stations in central Copenhagen for safety causes to cease extra folks from getting into the packed streets. The brand new king and queen rode by horse carriage by way of the crowds again to their residence, Amalienborg, a royal complicated constructed within the 1750s and situated in central Copenhagen. The royal household appeared in a while the balcony of their residence to greet hundreds of individuals under. The couple will proceed to reside with Margrethe, who will retain her title as queen, in Amalienborg albeit of their respective palaces within the octagonal complicated. Margrethe, who had stated up to now she would stay on the throne for all times, didn’t give a motive for her determination to step down however stated {that a} main again surgical procedure she underwent in February final yr had made her think about her future. (Reporting by Johannes Birkebaek, Louise Rasmussen, Stine Jacobsen and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen in Copenhagen; Enhancing by Christina Fincher and Frances Kerry)