— My whole family is encompassed by my great love all the time. Difficulties and disagreements can arise in any family, even in mine. The whole country has witnessed that, said the queen.
In September, the Danish court announced that Prince Joachim’s children, according to the queen’s decision, may no longer call themselves prince and princess. Prince Joachim and his wife Princess Marie publicly aired their displeasure with the decision in the Danish media.
But when Margrethe celebrated her 82nd birthday in November, Prince Joachim was there, and in the New Year’s speech the queen says that the family has now turned the page.
— That the relationship with Prince Joachim and Princess Marie has suffered from problems hurts me. We have now had a time of more peace and reflection and I am sure that the family can enter the new year together with trust, understanding and new courage.
Michael Bregnsbo, a historian at the University of Southern Denmark, says that the queen was more or less forced to touch on the title dispute because the conflict was so well-known.
“It’s something that all Danes know and have an opinion about,” he says.