Danish Queen Apologizes, but Refuses to Backtrack on Stripping Royal Titles

Danish Queen Apologizes, but Refuses to Backtrack on Stripping Royal Titles
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark greets guests during a break at the Danish Royal Theatre to mark the 50th anniversary of Danish Queen Margrethe II's accession to the throne in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Sept. 10, 2022. Ida Marie Odgaard/Ritzau Scanpix via AP
The Associated Press
Updated:

COPENHAGEN, Denmark—Denmark’s popular monarch, Queen Margrethe II, has apologized for upsetting members of her family with a decision to strip the royal titles from four of her grandchildren, but has refused to change her mind.

Last week, the royal palace of Europe’s oldest royal monarchy announced that as of Jan. 1, the four children of Margrethe’s youngest son, Prince Joachim, would no longer be called prince or princess but instead count or countess of Monpezat—the birth title of her late husband, French-born Prince Henrik. They should be addressed as “excellencies” and would maintain their places in the Danish order of succession.