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Danish Prince Refuses To Be Buried Alongside The Queen

Danish Prince Refuses To Be Buried Alongside The Queen

Prince Henrik is unhappy that he has never been named as king consort

James Dawson

James Dawson

Prince Henrik, the 83 year old Prince of Denmark, has expressed a wish that he should not be buried next to his wife, Queen Margarethe. The pair have been married since 1967 and Prince Henrik is her prince consort - similar to the role played by Prince Philip in the United Kingdom - but he is unhappy that he has never been named as king consort.

Thus, Prince Henrik feels like he has not been treated equally to his wife.

"It is no secret that the Prince for many years has been unhappy with his role and the title he has been awarded in the Danish monarchy. This discontent has grown more and more in recent years," said Lene Balleby, chief of communications for the Danish Royal Family to the Danish tabloid BT.

"For the Prince, the decision not to buried beside the Queen is the natural consequence of not having been treated equally to his spouse - by not having the title and role he has desired."

Prince Henrik
Prince Henrik

Prince Henrik. Credit: PA

The Queen has accepted his decision, palace sources say.

The elderly prince retired last year and has had few public engagements since. He renounced the title of prince consort when he gave up accompanying Queen Margarethe on official royal occasions. He spends the majority of his time on his private vineyard in the south of France, but is still married to the Queen and they still officially co-habit.

In Denmark, princesses become queen by convention when their husband becomes king, but that has not proved to hold with men.

When Queen Margarethe ascended to the throne in 1972 - she is the second longest-reigning Danish monarch ever and the second longest-reigning monarch in Europe, after Queen Elizabeth II - she did not make Prince Henrik king consort.

Queen Margarethe
Queen Margarethe

Queen Margarethe. Credit: PA

Prince Henrik is French, and met the then-princess when he was working as a diplomat in London, where Margarethe was studying at the London School of Economics.

They married in 1967 and Henrik swiftly learned to speak Danish - he also speaks English, Mandarin Chinese and Vietnamese - but is a figure of fun in Denmark because of his strong French accent while speaking the language.

It is not the first time that he has taken offence at a perceived inequality in royal affairs. He left the country in 2002 after Crown Prince Frederick, his eldest son, was appointed host of a royal banquet in Queen Margarethe's absence.

He saw this as a slight on his position as the second-in-line after his wife, and a demotion to third place in the royal pecking order.

Source: Guardian

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Denmark

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