Princess Mary becomes Queen of Denmark: first Australian queen, Queen Margrethe II abdicates on New Year’s Eve

Queen Margrethe of Denmark surprised the Danish population and the world when she revealed during her annual New Year’s Eve speech that she would abdicate on January 14.

Her eldest son Crown Prince Frederik will succeed her as King of Denmark, with his wife Princess Mary taking her seat beside him on the throne.

It will make her the first Australian-born queen in history.

Princess Mary, then known as Mary Donaldson, was 28 years old when she first shook hands with the Danish prince in the Slip Inn pub during the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games

The future king of Denmark was 32 years old at the time and attended the Games to support his nation’s sailing team.

They dated long distance for a year before Princess Mary moved to Copenhagen to study the Danish language.

The couple married in May 2004 and gave birth to four children – Prince Christian Valdemar Henri John, 18, Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe, 16, and 12-year-old twins Princess Josephine Sophia Ivalo Mathilda and Prince Vincent Frederik Minik Alexander.

Princess Mary often returns home to her family in Tasmania for the festive season and was spotted at Sydney airport on December 9 with Princess Josephine and Prince Vincent.

She also returned to Sydney in April for her first official tour of the country in more than a decade.

Her first order of business was hitting the 2km cycle route around the city’s iconic Hyde Park along with City of Sydney staff.

“It’s wonderful to be here,” she told a Sunrise reporter who caught her just before heading off.

She led a Danish delegation discussing Australia’s transition to renewable energy and made visits to Danish-linked construction and transport projects alongside the Danish Minister for Development Cooperation and Global Climate Policy.