Danish Royal Family celebrates Countess Athena’s 11th birthday after stripping her of royal title

The Danish royal family celebrated Countess Athena’s 11th birthday by sharing a portrait of the young woman on Instagram, after stripping her of her royal title.

However, many royal fans were quick to take to the comment section of the post to insist that in their eyes, she is still a princess.

Shared with the Royal House instagram account on January 24, the image of Athena was captioned: ‘Her Excellency Countess Athena has a birthday and turns 11 today’, when it was translated from Danish to English.

But commentators were not impressed by Athena’s use of the new status, which came into effect on January 1 after her grandmother, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, decided to strip four of her grandchildren of the titles of prince and princess.

One royal admirer said: “Congratulations to Princess Athena, the people’s princess,” while a second added: “As a ‘grandmother’ and as a monarch, the queen underestimated the sovereignty of the people. Happy birthday, PRINCESS ATHENA.

Another wrote: ‘Congratulations, beautiful princess Athena. You are the most beautiful princess in Denmark. For me, you are and will always be a princess and never a countess.

A third added: “Congratulations, congratulations PRINCESS Athena, once a princess, ALWAYS a princess.”

Earlier this month, the Danish royal family’s website was updated to show the new status of the children of Queen Margrethe’s son Joachim after they were stripped of their HRH titles.

The 82-year-old monarch announced in September that the four children of her youngest son, Prince Joachim, 53, would no longer be able to use the title of prince and princess after January 1.

She has said the decision was intended to allow Nikolai, 23, Felix, 20, born from Joachim’s first marriage, and Henrik, 13, and Athena, 10, to live a normal life without real obligations.

Instead of being Princes and Princesses, they are Counts and Countesses and are referred to as Their Excellencies, a change now reflected on the family’s website.

Under the Royal Family and Succession to the Throne pages of the website, the four young royals, who have maintained their positions in the line of succession, are listed with their new titles.

It was a tumultuous autumn for the Danish royal family after the monarch stripped Joachim’s four children of their titles of prince and princess, a move he spoke out against.

But speaking in a televised New Year’s address, Margrethe admitted: “It pains me that the relationship with Prince Joachim and (his wife) Princess Mary has run into difficulties.

‘Difficulties and disagreements can arise in any family, including my own. The whole country has witnessed this.

She added that she was “confident that the family can enter the new year together with confidence, understanding and new courage.”

But earlier this month, the royal family seemed to put the drama behind them when they arrived for their glamorous New Year’s Eve dinner at Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen.

Despite the fallout, Prince Joachim was seen leaving the lavish event, as were his brother Crown Prince Frederik and his wife Crown Princess Mary, as well as the Queen’s sister Princess Benedikte. Prince Joachim’s wife, Princess Maria, stayed in Paris with her son, who was ill.

Last year, Prince Joachim publicly spoke out against his mother’s decision in the days that followed, claiming that his children had been “harmed” in the process.

Months later, the sixth in line to the throne admitted that “communication was lacking” within the Royal Family in the lead up to the shock announcement.

Joachim told local BT news: ‘There is a lot to work on. Communication was what was missing. Now we have found each other and we are on the right track.’

Shortly after his sons were stripped of their titles, Joachim claimed he had only been given five days’ notice before the news broke.

Following the queen’s announcement, Joachim spoke to Danish publication Ekstra Bladet outside the Danish embassy in Paris, where he lives with his French-born wife Princess Marie and their two youngest children, saying their four children had been “hurt” by his grandmother’s decision. .

They gave me five days notice to tell them. In May, they presented me with a plan which, broadly speaking, was that when the kids turned 25, it would happen. Now she only had five days to tell him. Athena turns 11 in January,” he clarified

Meanwhile, his ex-wife Alexandra, 58, who was married to Joachim for 10 years until 2005, said their sons Nikolai and Felix had felt “pushed out” from the institution and that the decision had come as a ” jump”. of the blue’.

The Royal Household issued a further statement, saying: “As the Queen said yesterday, the decision has been a long time coming.”

“We understand there are a lot of emotions at play at the moment, but we hope that the Queen’s wish to prepare the Royal House for the future is respected.”

Last year, Joachim and his family were said to be moving to the US after he got a new job in the defense industry in Washington, according to local media reports.

The 53-year-old Danish royal has decided to move to Washington DC with his wife and two young children, Henrik and Athena, Danish daily. BT informed.

The royal couple is currently based in Paris, where the prince has worked as a defense attaché since 2020. However, that job is expected to end in June, meaning the sticks are likely to rise. in the second half of the year.

The communications department of the Danish Royal Court did not confirm Joachim’s next reported move.