According to comprehensive foreign media reports, on December 31, 2023 local time, 83-year-old Queen Margrethe II of Denmark announced in her New Year's speech that January 14, 2024 is the 52nd anniversary of her accession to the throne, when she will abdicate and pass the throne to her son Crown Prince Frederick.
Screenshot of BBC report According to reports, Margrethe II revealed in her speech that she began to have thoughts of abdicating after undergoing back surgery in February 2023. The experience, she says, inevitably led her to think about the future — whether now is the right time to pass on the responsibility to the next generation. "I think now is the right time," Margrethe II added, thanking the Danish people for their support over the years. The Office of the Danish Prime Minister subsequently issued a statement expressing its gratitude to Queen Margrethe II for her dedication and efforts for Denmark over the past 50 years. According to reports, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark was born in Copenhagen on April 16, 1940, and studied at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, Aarhus University, the University of Paris in France, the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom and the London School of Economics and Political Science. She ascended the throne on 14 January 1972 and married Prince Henrik on 10 June 1967, having two sons, the eldest son, Crown Prince Frederick, and the second son, Prince Joachim.