- Queen Mary has held the fort since the fall of Queen Margrethe
- The Australian-born royal is said to have taken on the key role as regent
Queen Maria of Denmark has been guarding the fortress since her mother-in-law, Queen Margrethe, was hospitalized after a fall.
The Australian-born queen acted as regent last weekend as her husband, King Frederick, was abroad.
A regent is someone who governs the country when the monarch is unable to fulfill his duties.
It is the first time that the mother of four follows in Frederik’s footsteps. However, Mary has previously fulfilled the role of regent during Margrethe’s reign.
The 84-year-old queen abdicated in January to make her son, King Frederik, her successor.
Margrethe suffered an injury to her cervical vertebra and a fracture to her left hand in a fall at Fredensborg Castle last week.
She is now recovering at home after being discharged from hospital on Friday.
Queen Mary of Denmark has been guarding the fortress since her mother-in-law, Queen Margrethe, was hospitalized after a fall
On Monday, her daughter-in-law, Queen Mary, shared an update at an event in Copenhagen.
“Under the current circumstances she is doing very well,” Queen Mary told the Danish magazine Billed Bladet.
‘Since she’s been home, I’ve been able to visit her a few times.’
An official statement from the Danish Royal Palace on the Queen’s condition said: ‘Queen Margrethe is in good spirits and is doing well under the circumstances, but will be ill for a longer period of time.’
In 2019, then Crown Princess Mary signed a declaration allowing her to act as regent.
‘As acting regent, the Crown Princess can now assume the duties of the Queen as head of state when the Queen and the Crown Prince are prevented from doing so, for example during a stay abroad,’ the official statement read at the time.
The Australian-born royal is said to have taken on the key role as regent last weekend as her husband, King Frederick, was abroad
The 84-year-old suffered an injury to her cervical vertebra and a fracture to her left hand in a fall during her stay at Fredensborg Castle last week.
Earlier this year, Mary and Frederick’s eldest son, Prince Christian, acted as regent in his father’s absence.
As the eldest son of the King and heir to the Danish throne, Christian is ‘deputy regent’ and the role of head of state falls to him, ahead of Frederick’s wife Queen Mary.
Should he be unable to fulfil his duties, the task will be passed on to Mary, and then to Prince Joachim and Princess Benedikte.
Queen Mary has had a turbulent year after her husband was spotted in Madrid with socialite Genoveva Casanova.
The friends were photographed together in a Spanish magazine, leading to wild rumors about their affair.
The Mexican-born socialite has vehemently denied having an affair with the then crown prince, with the Danish palace saying only that it would not comment on rumours.