Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark

Mary Crown Princess of Denmark; Countess of Monpezat The Crown Princess in Stockholm, to celebrate the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, June 2010 Spouse Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark Issue Prince Christian Princess Isabella Full name Mary Elizabeth House House of Laborde de Monpezat Father John Dalgleish Donaldson Mother Henrietta Clark Horne Born 5 February 1972 (1972-02-05) (age 39) Hobart, Tasmania, Australia Religion Christian Lutheran, prev. Presbyterian

Danish Royal Family HM The Queen HRH The Prince Consort HRH The Crown Prince HRH The Crown Princess HRH Prince Christian HRH Princess Isabella HRH Prince Joachim HRH Princess Marie HH Prince Nikolai HH Prince Felix HH Prince Henrik HRH Princess Benedikte HM The Queen of the Hellenes HH Princess Elisabeth Extended royal family HM The King of the Hellenes HRH The Crown Prince of Greece HRH The Crown Princess of Greece HRH Princess Maria-Olympia HRH Prince Constantine Alexios HRH Prince Achileas-Andreas HRH Prince Odysseas-Kimon HRH Prince Aristide Stavros HRH Princess Alexia, Mrs Morales HRH Prince Nikolaos HRH Princess Theodora HRH Prince Philippos HM The Queen of Spain HRH Princess Irene HRH Prince Michael Marina, Consort of Prince Michael

Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, née Mary Elizabeth Donaldson (born 5 February 1972), is the wife of Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark.

The couple first met in a pub in Sydney, where the Crown Prince attended the 2000 Summer Olympics. Their official engagement in 2003 and marriage the following year were the subject of extensive attention by international news media which portrayed the events as a modern fairytale romance between the crown prince and an Australian-born commoner.^[1]

Early life

Mary is the youngest of four children born to mathematician Professor John Donaldson (5 September 1941– ) and Henrietta "Etta" Clark Donaldson, née Horne, Executive Assistant to the Vice Chancellor of The University of Tasmania (12 May 1942 - 20 November 1997). Her parents emigrated from Scotland to Australia in 1963.^[2] Mary has three older siblings:

• Jane Alison Donaldson (a pharmacist), Mrs. Stephens (b. 26 December 1965);
• Patricia Anne Donaldson (an intensive care nurse), Mrs. Bailey (b. 16 March 1968);
• John Stuart Donaldson (a geologist, b. 9 July 1970).

Mary's father remarried in 2001; His second wife is English author and novelist Susan Elizabeth Donaldson, née Horwood, known by pseudonym Susan Moody.^[3].

Mary was born and raised in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. She attended Waimea Heights Primary School from 1978 to 1982. She completed her secondary education at Taroona High School and Hobart Matriculation College before studying at the University of Tasmania for five years.^[4] Upon graduation Mary moved to Melbourne to work in advertising.

As a girl, Mary was heavily involved in sports and other extracurricular activities both at school and elsewhere. Her early love of horses led her to ride competitively as a teenager, on her horse, Diana.

Education

Mary began primary school in Clear Lake City, now Houston, Harris County, Texas, while her father was working there. On returning to Hobart she attended Sandy Bay Infants School, Waimea Heights Primary School and then Taroona High School in Tasmania. For the last two years of her secondary education Mary attended Hobart College from which she graduated. From 1989 to 1994 Mary completed a combined degree in Commerce and Law (BCom, LLB) at the University of Tasmania. Between 1994 and 1996, Mary qualified for professional certificates in advertising from The Advertising Federation of Australia (AFA) and direct marketing from the Australian Direct Marketing Association.^[4]

Languages

The Crown Princess's mother tongue is English and Danish is her second language. She studied French during her secondary education. In 2002, she briefly taught English in Paris.^[4]

Career

While studying in Tasmania, Mary reportedly had a joint business interest in a company called Kingcash, with Brent Annells, with whom she had a seven-year relationship in the 1990s.^[5][6][7]

Biographies detail that she worked for Australian and global advertising agencies after graduating in 1995.^[4][8][9] She became a trainee in marketing and communication with DDB Needham, taking a position of account executive. In 1996, Mary was employed by MOJO Partners as an account manager. In 1998, six months after her mother's death, she resigned and travelled to America and Europe. In Edinburgh, she worked for three months as an account manager with Rapp Collins Worldwide; then, in early 1999, was appointed as an account director with the international advertising agency Young & Rubicam in Sydney.^[4]

In June 2000, Mary moved to a smaller Australian agency, Love, working for a short time as the company's first account director. However, in the (Australian) spring of 2000 until December 2001, she became sales director and a member of the management team of Belle Property, a real estate firm specialising in luxury property. In the first half of 2002 Mary taught English at a business school in Paris but, on moving to Denmark permanently, she was employed by Microsoft Business Solutions (5 September 2002 - 24 September 2003) near Copenhagen as a project consultant for business development, communications and marketing.^[4]

Courtship and engagement

Mary Donaldson met Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark at the Slip Inn^[10] during the 2000 Summer Olympics on 16 September in Sydney. They conducted a long-distance relationship by phone, email and letter and Frederik made a number of discreet visits to Australia. On 15 November 2001 the Danish weekly magazine Billed Bladet named Mary as Frederik's girlfriend. Mary moved to Europe in December 2001 and, while she was working as an English tutor in Paris, she visited Denmark privately and was photographed attending weddings and christenings of friends with Frederik. Mary and Frederik were photographed during 2003 at various private outings in Denmark. On 24 September 2003 the Danish court announced that Queen Margrethe II intended to give her consent to the marriage at the State Council meeting scheduled for 8 October 2003.

Mary Donaldson and Crown Prince Frederik became officially engaged on 8 October 2003.

Marriage

TRH The Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Denmark.

Mary Donaldson and Crown Prince Frederik married on 14 May 2004 in Copenhagen Cathedral, in Copenhagen.^[11] Mary wore a wedding gown designed by Danish designer Uffe Frank and had a small bridal party which included her two sisters and her friend Amber Petty, a radio announcer on commercial radio in Australia. Frederik was supported by his brother Prince Joachim. Three of Mary's nieces, Erin and Kate Stephens and Madisson Woods, were flower girls; Frederik's nephew Prince Nikolai of Denmark and first cousin once removed, Count Richard von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth were pageboys. The wedding ^[12] was celebrated in Copenhagen and at Fredensborg Palace. The couple reportedly spent their honeymoon in Africa.

The Danish Folketing (parliament) passed a special law (Mary's Law) giving Mary Donaldson Danish citizenship upon her marriage, a standard procedure for new foreign members of the royal family. Mary was previously a dual-citizen of Australia and the United Kingdom. Formerly a Presbyterian, Mary became Lutheran. Shortly before entering the royal family, Mary signed a marriage agreement similar to those of her father-in-law and her former sister-in-law. The agreement was subsequently updated in late 2006. The details of these have never been made public, but it can be assumed that they deal with financial matters, royal status and proprietary rights to the children in the event of a divorce.

The official residence of the Crown Prince family is The Chancellery House, an early 18th-century house within Fredensborg Palace, 40 km (25 miles) north of Copenhagen. It was previously the home of Frederik's maternal grandmother, Queen Ingrid. They also have a temporary apartment in Copenhagen at Amalienborg while renovations are completed on their permanent city residence, Amalienborg's Frederik VIIIs Palace.

Children

On 15 October 2005, Mary gave birth to Prince Christian Valdemar Henri John at Copenhagen University Hospital. Frederik was present at the delivery. The infant was healthy, weighing 3.5 kg (7.7 lbs) and measuring 51 cm (20 ins).^[13] His name was announced at the christening on 21 January 2006 at Christiansborg Palace Chapel in Copenhagen. He is second in the line of succession to the throne, after his father.

On 21 April 2007, Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe was born, at 3.350 kg and 50 cm long.^[14] She was christened at Fredensborg Palace chapel on 1 July 2007^[15] and is third in line to the throne.

On 6 August 2010, it was announced that the Crown Princess was pregnant with twins. They are due to to be born in January 2011.^[16][17] The Crown Princess reportedly said that the pregnancy was not planned,^[18] but another report claimed Mary and Frederik have been trying to extend their family for over a year; and that the pair have denied suggestions the pregnancy resulted from IVF fertility treatment.^[19]

Royal life

HRH the Crown Princess of Denmark attends the wedding of the Crown Princess of Sweden. She is pictured here surrounded by Princess Máxima of the Netherlands; the Prince of Orange, heir-apparent of the Netherlands; the Crown Princess of Norway; and the Queen of the Netherlands.

Following the wedding, the couple embarked upon a summer cruise of mainland Denmark aboard the royal yacht Dannebrog, and then to Greenland and later the 2004 Athens Olympics. In 2005, during the celebrations for the 200th anniversary of Hans Christian Andersen, the royal family was involved in related events throughout the year. Frederik and Mary marked it in London, New York and in Australia, where Mary was made Honorary HCA Ambassador to Australia in the Utzon Room of the Sydney Opera House. In 2005 the royal family visited Faroe Islands. Since becoming Crown Princess of Denmark, Mary has made a number of international visits and Frederik and Mary participated in the reburial ceremonies for Empress Maria Feodorovna in Denmark and Saint Petersburg. In the context of immigrant issues in Denmark, Mary has visited the disadvantaged migrant areas of Vollsmose (2006)^[20] and Gellerup (2007).^[21] Mary has played an active role in promoting an anti-bullying program based on an Australian model through the auspices of Denmark's Save the Children.^[22] Mary is also involved in a new campaign to raise awareness and safe practices among Danes about skin cancer through The Danish Cancer Society. In June 2010, it was announced that Crown Princess Mary has become Patron of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, "to support the agency’s work to promote maternal health and safer motherhood in more than 150 developing nations".^[23]. Mary is also an active patron of Denmark's third-highest-earning export industry, the fashion industry. In September 2007 Mary formally established the Mary Foundation, with capital from public and private donations, to advance cultural diversity and encourage a sense of the right to belong and contribute to society for those who are socially isolated or excluded.

As a native English-speaker, Mary's main priority from the time of her engagement was to master the Danish language. Mary has acknowledged that this was a challenge for her in several interviews at the time of her engagement and marriage.

The princess, who has been compared to Diana, Princess of Wales,^[24] and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis,^[25] is often pictured wearing Danish and international fashion garments. She has posed and given interviews for magazines including Vogue, Australian Women's Weekly, Parade Magazine and Dansk (Danish). She and Crown Prince Frederik have also been interviewed by Andrew Denton on the Australian ABC TV programme Enough Rope.^[26]

The Mary Foundation

On 11 September 2007 Crown Princess Mary announced the establishment of the Mary Foundation^[27] at the inaugural meeting at Amalienborg Palace. The initial funds of DKK 1.1 million were collected in Denmark and Greenland and donated to Frederik and Mary as a wedding gift in 2004. Crown Princess Mary is the chairman of eight trustees. The Mary Foundation aims to improve lives compromised by environment, heredity, illness or other circumstances which can isolate or exclude people socially.

Patronages

Since 2004 Crown Princess Mary has steadily worked to establish her relationships with various organisations, their issues, missions, programmes and staff. Mary's patronages range across areas of culture, the fashion industry, humanitarian aid, support for research and science, social and health patronages and sport (golf and swimming). The organisations for which she is patron have reported positive outcomes through their relationship with Mary and there are various reports in the Danish media and on some of the websites of the organisations themselves about Mary being quite involved in her working relationship with them. Mary is currently involved in supporting anti-obesity programs through the World Health Organization, Regional Office for Europe.^[28]

Mary's current patronages include cultural organisations,^[29][30] the Danish fashion industry ^[31] humanitarian aid,^[32] research and science,^[33] social, health and humanitarian organisations^{[34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42]} and sporting organisations.^[43][44]

Crown Princess Mary is also the Honorary Life Governor of the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute based at the Garvan Institute/St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, a member of the International Committee of Women Leaders for Mental Health and a member of various sporting clubs (riding, golf and yachting). Mary lends her support to a number of other 'one-off' Danish causes, industry events and international conferences.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Styles of Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark
Reference style	Her Royal Highness
Spoken style	Your Royal Highness
Alternative style	Ma'am

Titles and styles

• 5 February 1972 – 14 May 2004: Miss Mary Elizabeth Donaldson
• 14 May 2004 – 29 April 2008 Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Denmark
• 29 April 2008 – present: Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat^[45]

Her official title in Danish is Hendes Kongelige Højhed Kronprinsesse Mary af Danmark, Grevinde af Monpezat. The title of Countess of Monpezat is not a substantive title, which means that Mary is not the Countess of Monpezat, but rather Countess Mary of Monpezat, a count's wife.

Honours

• Knight of the Order of the Elephant, Denmark (R.E.)
• Commemorative 75th Birthday Medal of His Royal Highness the Prince Consort (Em11.juni.2009.)
• Commemorative 70th Birthday Medal of Her Majesty The Queen (Em.16.apr.2010.)

Foreign decorations

• Order of Saint Olav, Grand Cross, Norway (No.St.0.1.)
• The Order of Stara Planina, 1st class, Bulgaria (Bu.S.P.1.)
• Order of the Polar Star, Grand Cross, Sweden (Sv.N.Stj.1.)
• The Order of the Southern Cross, Grand Cross, Brazil (Br.S.K.1.)
• Order of Beneficence, Grand Cross, Greece (Gr.g.G.1.)

Arms

A new coat of arms has been designed for the Crown Princess. In accordance with the statutes of the Danish Royal Orders, conferring the Order of the Elephant upon Mary necessitated the design of a new coat of arms to be hung in the Chapel of the Royal Orders at Frederiksborg Castle. The coat of arms and its details have yet to be published on the Crown Princely couple's official website.

Ancestry

References

External links

• HRH the Crown Princess Official website

Danish princesses by marriage 1st generation Princess Louise of Sweden and Norway · Princess Marie d'Orléans 2nd generation Duchess Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin · Princess Maud of the United Kingdom · Princess Helena Adelaide of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg · Princess Sophia of Prussia* · Princess Marie Bonaparte* · Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia* · Princess Alice of Battenberg* · Princess Françoise d'Orléans* · Princess Margaretha of Sweden 3rd generation Princess Ingrid of Sweden · Princess Caroline-Mathilde of Denmark · Princess Elisabeth of Romania* · Aspasia Manos^* · Princess Frederica of Hanover* · Anne Bowes-Lyon^ 4th generation Princess Anne-Marie of Denmark 5th generation Mary Donaldson^ · Alexandra Manley^** · Marie Cavallier^ · Marie-Chantal Miller^* · Tatiana Blatnik^* *also a princess of Greece by marriage **title lost due to divorce and subsequent remarriage ^did not have a royal or noble title by birth