On Sunday, the Danish royal family was united in Copenhagen for the celebrations of Queen Margrethe II’s 83rd birthday, and there were some lovely royal jewels on display for the occasion.
The Danish royals headed to Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen for the festivities. The ceremonial Queen’s Guard marched through the palace complex before the family appeared on the palace balconies to greet the gathered crowds.
There was an impressive gathering of well-wishers to greet the Queen on her birthday. Margrethe recently had back surgery, and she’s still convalescing. This was a rare recent public appearance during her recovery. It’s also the first time that the Queen’s birthday celebrations have been held in Copenhagen since April 2018.
In April 2018, the last time that the birthday balcony appearance took place at Amalienborg, Margrethe was joined by her sons, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren for the occasion. The support was especially important that year, as Prince Henrik had passed away just a few weeks earlier.
She celebrated her birthday with a balcony appearance at Marselisborg Castle in Aarhus on April 16, 2019. She was joined by the crown princely family for that celebration.
In April 2020, at the start of the pandemic, Margrethe’s grand 80th birthday celebrations had to be canceled. There was no public appearance, and she celebrated privately at Fredensborg Castle.
Margrethe again celebrated her birthday privately at Fredensborg in April 2021.
Last year, on April 16, 2022, Queen Margrethe made an appearance on the balcony at Marselisborg Castle in Aarhus, joined again by Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary, and their four children.
This year, the celebrations returned to Copenhagen. Margrethe was joined at Amalienborg by Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary and their four children, as well as Prince Joachim, Princess Marie, and their four children.
The Queen wore one of her favorite blue outfits for the balcony appearance, accessorized with blue jewelry.
With the outfit, she wore silver and enamel earrings from her jewelry box. These were made in St. Petersburg by Fabergé at the turn of the 20th century. She also pinned a sapphire and diamond brooch to her dress. That petite jewel, an inheritance from her paternal grandmother, Queen Alexandrine, was likely made in France.
She continued the blue theme with a gold ring set with a blue gemstone, worn on her right hand.
Significantly, Margrethe was joined this year on the balcony in Copenhagen by both of her sons and their families. There’s been something a little rotten in Denmark this year—and by that, I mean tension within the royal family itself. Margrethe decided to restrict royal titles in the family based on proximity to the throne. That meant that the children of her second son, Prince Joachim, are now Counts and Countesses of Monpezat (a title derived from the family of the late Prince Henrik) instead of Princes and Princesses of Denmark.
Prince Joachim wasn’t happy about the decision. But Margrethe stood firm, noting that she felt it was a necessary change that would allow the monarchy to continue to evolve with the times. This summer, Joachim and Marie are moving with Count Henrik and Countess Athena to Washington, D.C., where Joachim will begin a new role as a defense industry attaché at the Danish Embassy. It’s good to see that the family drama has quieted a bit ahead of that big change.
As the Queen received her birthday salute, the crown princely family watched from a balcony to her right. Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary attended the celebrations with all four of their children: Prince Christian, the 17-year-old who is second in line to the throne after his father; Princess Isabella, who will celebrate her 16th birthday on Friday; and 12-year-old twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine.
Crown Princess Mary wore pearl drop earrings from Marianne Dulong for the balcony appearance.
Princess Isabella wore youthful gold jewelry for the appearance, including a pair of hoop earrings.
Prince Joachim appeared with his family on the balcony to the Queen’s left during the salute. He was joined by Princess Marie and their two children, 13-year-old Count Henrik and 11-year-old Countess Athena, as well as his two sons from his first marriage, 23-year-old Count Nikolai and 20-year-old Count Felix.
With her pink trouser suit, Princess Marie wore a pair of sparkling earrings from Mauboussin set with pink sapphires and rubies. She also pinned a gold-plated floral brooch from Tara Jarmon to her jacket. (Thanks to UFO No More for IDing these pieces!)
Then, the entire family joined Queen Margrethe on the central balcony as they waved to the cheering crowd below.
Queen Margrethe also made a special appearance with her eight grandchildren during the celebration.
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