In a historic moment marked by a low-key ceremony, Mary Donaldson of Tasmania is about to become the queen of Denmark – and the first ever Australian-born monarch.
Crown Prince Frederik and Princess Mary will be crowned as Denmark’s king and queen at 1.35pm in Copenhagen (11.35pm Sunday night AEDT).
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen will step onto the balcony to proclaim the new monarchy.
Frederick will make a speech to the crowd before his wife joins him.
Mary famously met the Crown Prince of Denmark, who will become King Frederik X, in a Sydney pub 24 years ago.
Rehearsals at Christiansborg Palace have taken place ahead of the understated event.
They included not only the royal horse guards but a stand-in carriage for the one that will carry one monarch in and a new king and queen out.
Copenhagen’s streets feature a few hastily improvised nods to the royal shakeup.
One that has locals queuing up is at La Glace bakery, which has a 150-year history of making cakes in tribute to the royals.
After selling Queen Margrethe cakes for 52 years, they’ve had days to come up with a recipe for King Frederick.
Opinion polls show when it comes to who’s the most popular royal after Margrethe, it’s Mary.
Denmark’s royal transition was sparked just weeks ago by her bombshell announcement on New Year’s Eve, revealing her intention to abdicate within weeks.
Princess Mary’s path from Tassie girl to Queen of Denmark
The news that Frederik’s hugely popular mother, the world’s only reigning queen, would relinquish the throne, shocked Danes.
She will step aside 52 years to the day after she ascended the throne.
Only the main royal family and the Danish prime minister are likely to be in attendance.
The handover of power could hardly be more simple.
Margrethe will sign a document of abdication, and at that moment Frederick becomes King Frederick X and Mary becomes Queen.
Mary was born in Hobart, the youngest of four children of two Scottish academics.
Mary’s father, John, is a professor of applied mathematics while her late mother Henrietta worked as the executive assistant to the vice-chancellor of The University of Tasmania.
Mary worked as an estate agent before meeting Frederik.
