Happy birthday, Queen Margrethe II! The Danish monarch celebrated her 80th birthday on Thursday, April 16. Since Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik ’s children—Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine—and Princess Marie and Prince Joachim’s kids—Princess Athena and Prince Henrik—as well as his older sons from his first marriage, Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix, could not celebrate with their paternal grandmother on her big day due to the current health crisis, they recorded a special video for her instead.
“‘🇩🇰Dear Grandma, Happy Birthday🇩🇰,’” the message alongside the post began. “All Her Majesty The Queen‘s eight grandchildren recently surprised their grandmother with a video greeting on the occasion. Due to the situation with the spread of coronavirus, it is not possible for the Queen to be with her grandchildren on her 80th birthday, as was otherwise planned. ”
Nikolai and Felix, whom Joachim shares with his ex Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg, kicked off the greeting, followed by their younger half-siblings, Athena and Henrik. Mary and Frederik’s brood closed out the video holding up letters that read “Congratulations” in Danish.
The Queen’s eight grandchildren weren’t the only ones who filmed a video message in honor of her milestone birthday. Over a dozen royals from across Europe participated in a “surprise” for their “aunt Daisy,” including Spain’s King Felipe and Queen Letizia , Queen Maxima and King Willem-Alexander of The Netherlands, Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, King Harald V and Queen Sonja, Sweden’s Prince Carl Philip , Crown Princess Victoria , Prince Daniel, Princess Estelle , Prince Oscar , Queen Silvia and King Carl XVI Gustaf, as well as Luxembourg’s Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa. Meanwhile, King Philippe of Belgium recorded a voice message that was included in the video.
“Your Majesty. Dear Aunt Daisy. Dear godmother. Big Happy Birthday,” Prince Carl Philip of Sweden said in Danish. King Willem-Alexander told the Queen that he and wife Queen Maxima “would have loved” to have joined her for her birthday celebration, but “unfortunately, circumstances have dictated otherwise.” He said, “Denmark is going through a very difficult time, just like The Netherlands and the rest of the world. We can all relate to the serious situation, we find ourselves in. But as long as we support each other, we will find the strength to pull through.”
© Photographer Per Morten AbrahamsenKing Felipe also celebrated his dear aunt saying, “Hello, aunt Daisy! We are joining in for this surprise, I understand, since we can’t be there with all of you to celebrate your 80th.” He later added, “We are under this pandemic, all across the world, especially in Europe. And so we are saddened by all that, but at the same time we have to keep these times to be able to celebrate and remain happy within the family.” Meanwhile, Queen Letizia said, “I am sure we will have the opportunity to share the celebration very soon. Please send all our love from us to you and to all your family.”
Last month it was announced that Margrethe had decided to cancel all of the Royal House’s planned activities and events for her birthday. At the time, she said, “Denmark and the international community stand in a very difficult situation right now. We all have a special responsibility to show consideration for each other and together contribute to helping Denmark successfully get through the very big challenges the country faces.”
