Royal Profile: 43 Facts about Queen Margrethe II of Denmark

1. Queen Margrethe Alexandrine Þorhildur Ingrid of Denmark was born 16 April 1940 at the Amalienborg Palace
2. She is the oldest child and daughter of King Frederick IX and Queen Ingrid of Denmark. 
3. She has two younger sisters:
1. Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1944)
2. Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Princess of Denmark (1946)
4. She was christened on 14 May 1940 in Holmens Kirke (the Naval Church) 
5. She was confirmed on 1 April 1955 at Fredensborg Palace. 
6. Her godparents were:
1. King Christian X of Denmark (paternal grandfather)
2. Prince Knud of Denmark (her uncle)
3. Prince Axel of Denmark (her 1st cousin 2x removed)
4. King Gustaf V of Sweden (her great uncle)
5. Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn (her great uncle)
7. She was named{Source}:
1. Margrethe: For her maternal grandmother, Princess Margaret of Connaught
2. Alexandrine: For her Paternal Grandmother, Duchess Alexandrine of Mecklenberg-Schwerin
3. Þorhildur : an icelandic name, which she was princess of until 1944.
4. Ingrid: For her mother
8. On 20 April 1947, King Christian X died and Margrethe's father ascended the throne as King Frederick IX.
9. She speaks several languages. In addition to her native tongue of Danish, she also speaks French, Swedish, English, and German. 
10. She was educated in Denmark,England,  and France.
11. She began her education with tutors from the Zahles Skole, where she studied at Amalienbourg Palace. 
12. She began being educated at North Foreland Lodge in Hampshire, England for the 1955-1956 school year. 
13. After receiving private lessons, she graduated from Zahles Skole with an upper secondary exam certificiate (language line) in 1959. 
14. Between 1960 and 1965, HM The Queen studied at universities in Denmark and other European countries. 
15. After having passed the examination in philosophy at Copenhagen University in 1960, HM The Queen studied archaeology at the University of Cambridge in 1960-61 and earned a Diploma in Prehistoric Archaeology. 
16. Subsequently, she studied political science at Aarhus University in 1961-1962
17. She also studied at the Sorbonne in 1963 and at the London School of Economics in 1965.
18. She performed voluntary service with Women’s Flying Corps from 1958 to 1970 and received comprehensive training in the corps during this period. 
19. The Queen is the supreme commander of the Danish Defence Forces.
20.  In addition to her relationship with the Danish Defence, she has special connections to particular units of the British Defense. 
21. In 1972, Her Majesty was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of The Queen's Regiment, and in 1992, she was appointed Colonel-in-Chief of The Princess of Wales' Royal Regiment.
22. Due to Denmark being a constitutional monarchy, she does not have any political powers other than to sign acts of parliament, after of which the acts only come into force when they have been countersigned by a Cabinet Minister. Her main act for Denmark is to act as a figurehead, and to represent Denmark abroad. 
23. In 1989, Queen Margrethe was awarded the Mother-Tongue Society’s prize, and received the Adeil Order in 1990.
24. The Act of Succession of 27 March 1953 gave women the right of succession to the Danish throne but only secondarily. On the occasion of her accession to the throne on 14 January 1972, HM Queen Margrethe II became the first Danish Sovereign under the new Act of Succession. 
25. On 16 April 1958, the Heir Apparent, Princess Margrethe, was given a seat on the State Council, and she subsequently chaired the meetings of the State Council in the absence of King Frederik IX.
26. On 10 June 1967, the Heir Apparent married Henri Marie Jean André, Count of Laborde de Monpezat, who in connection with the marriage became HRH Prince Henrik of Denmark. 
27. The wedding ceremony took place in Holmens Kirke, and the wedding festivities were held at Fredensborg Palace. 
28. From this marriage, she has two sons who are:
1. Crown Prince Frederik André Henrik Christian(26 May 1968)
2. Prince Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian (7 June 1969)
29. She also has two daughter-in-laws, as well as a former daughter-in-law:
1. Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg (1995-2005, Prince Joachim's first wife)
2. Crown Princess Mary (2004-present, Crown Prince Fredrik's wife)
3. Princess Marie (2008-present, Prince Joachim's 2nd wife)
30. Through her sons and daughter-in-laws, she has 8 grandchildren:
1. Prince Nikolai William Alexander Frederik (1999)
2. Prince Felix Henrik Valdermar Christian (2002)
3. Prince Christian Valdemar Henri John (2005)
4. Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe (2007)
5. Prince Henrik Carl Joachim Alain (2009)
6. Prince Vincent Frederick Minik Alexander (2011)
7. Princess Josephine Sophia Ivalo Matilda (2011)
8. Princess Athena Marguerite Françoise Marie (2012)
31. In 2012, she celebrated her Ruby Jubilee. 
32. The only one to surpass her in reign length (of whom she has since surpassed) was her greatx2 grandfather, King Christian XI, who reigned from 15 November 1863–29 January 1906 (approximately 42 years, 2 months, 15 days), while Margarethe's reign has been (as of today, her 75th birthday: 43 years, 3 months, 2 days).
33. She speaks:
1. Danish 
2. English
3. French
4. Swedish 
5. German
34. The official residences of the Queen and the Prince Consort are Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen and Fredensborg Palace. Their summer residence is Gråsten Palace near Sønderborg, the former home of the Queen's mother, Queen Ingrid, who died in 2000.
35. She is godmother to: 
1. King Williem-Alexander of The Netherlands (1967)
2. Crown Prince Haakon of Norway (1973)
3. Prince Carl Phillip of Sweden (1979)
4. Princess Theodora of Greece & Denmark (1986, her niece)
36. She shares a birthday with:
1. Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg (1955)
2. Prince Sébastien of Luxembourg (1992)
3. Princess Eléonore of Belgium (2008)
37. Through her two sisters, she is aunt to:
1. Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark (1965)
2. Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, Prince of Denmark (1967)
3. Gustav Frederik Philip Richard, Hereditary Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1969)
4. Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark (1969)
5. Princess Alexandra of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg,Countess von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (1970)
6. Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1975)
7. Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark (1983)
8. Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark (1986)
38. Through her two sisters, she is aunt-in-law to:
1. Mr. Carlos Morales Quintana (1970)
2. Crown Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece (1968)
3. Princess Tatiana of Greece & Denmark (1980)
4. Count Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (1967)
5. Mr. Alexander Johannsmann (1977)
39. Through her husband, she is sister-in-law to:
1. Françoise de Laborde de Monpezat (1932)
40. She is great-aunt to:
1. Princess Maria-Olympia of Greece and Denmark (1996)
2. Prince Constantine-Alexios of Greece and Denmark (1998)
3. Count Friedrich Richard Oscar Jefferson von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (1999)
4. Prince Achileas-Andreas of Greece and Denmark (2000)
5. Miss Arrietta Morales y de Grecia (2002)
6. Miss Ana María Morales y de Grecia (2003)
7. Countess Ingrid Alexandra Irma Astrid Benedikte von Pfeil und Klein-Ellguth (2003)
8. Prince Odysseus-Kimon of Greece and Denmark (2004)
9. Master Carlos Morales y de Grecia (2005)
10. Miss Amelia Morales y de Grecia (2007)
11. Prince Aristidis-Stavros of Greece and Denmark (2008)
12. Master Konstantin Gustav Heinrich Richard Johannsmann (2010).
13. Miss Louisa Johannsmann (2015)
41. Through her mother, she is a 2nd cousin 1x removed of King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.
42. Through her mother, she is a 3rd cousin of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg.
43. Through her mother, she is a 2nd cousin 1x removed of King Philippe of Belgium.