Frederik X (Frederik André Henrik Christian, ; born 26 May 1968) is King of Denmark, reigning since 14 January 2024.
Frederik is the elder son of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik. He was born during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King Frederik IX, and became Crown Prince of Denmark following his mother's accession in 1972. He received his early education privately at home and later attended Krebs School, , and Øregård Gymnasium. He earned a Master of Science degree in political science from Aarhus University. After university, he served in diplomatic posts at the United Nations and in Paris, and he has trained in all three branches of the Danish Armed Forces.
Frederik met Australian marketing consultant Mary Donaldson while attending the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. They married on 14 May 2004 at Copenhagen Cathedral and have four children: Christian, Isabella, Vincent, and Josephine.
Early life and education
Frederik was born at 23:50 on 26 May 1968 by emergency caesarean section at Rigshospitalet, the Copenhagen University Hospital in Copenhagen, to the then Princess Margrethe (later Queen Margrethe II), oldest daughter of King Frederik IX and heir presumptive to the Danish throne, and Prince Henrik. At the time of his birth, his maternal grandfather was on the throne of Denmark, his maternal uncle-by-marriage Constantine II was king of Greece and his matrilineal great-grandfather, Gustaf VI Adolf, was on the throne of Sweden.
He was baptised on 24 June at Holmen Church in Copenhagen. He was named Frederik after his maternal grandfather, King Frederik IX, continuing the Danish royal tradition of the heir apparent being named either Frederik or Christian. He became Crown Prince of Denmark when his mother ascended the throne on 14 January 1972. Frederik's only sibling is Prince Joachim of Denmark.
Frederik attended primary school at Krebs' Skole between 1974 and 1981, as a private pupil at Amalienborg Palace from 1974 to 1976, and from the third form again at Krebs' Skole. From 1982 to 1983, he attended the , a boarding school in Normandy, France. In 1986, Frederik graduated from Øregård Gymnasium. In addition to Danish, he is fluent in French (his father's language), English, and German.
In the autumn of 1989, Frederik began studying political science at Aarhus University. As part of his education, he spent the 1992–1993 academic year at Harvard University, where he studied political science under the name Frederik Henriksen. Whilst at Harvard, he participated in the Phoenix – SK Club, and lived in a rent-controlled apartment. Frederik is the first Danish royal to complete a university education.
Early career Frederik took up a position for three months with the Danish UN mission in New York in 1994. In 1995, he obtained his MSc degree in political science from Aarhus University. He completed the course in the prescribed number of years with an exam result above average, thus becoming the first royal to obtain a master's degree. His final paper was an analysis on the foreign policy of the Baltic States, which he had visited several times during his studies. The prince was posted as First Secretary to the Danish Embassy in Paris from October 1998 to October 1999.
Military service Frederik has completed extensive military studies and training in all three services, including training as a frogman in the naval elite special operations forces Frømandskorpset. It was there that he earned the nickname "Pingo", when his wetsuit filled with water and he was forced to waddle like a penguin.
In 2001 and 2002, he completed further leadership training at the Royal Danish Defence College. Frederik remained active in the defence services, and in the period 2002–2003 served as a staff officer at Defence Command Denmark, and from 2003 as a senior lecturer with the Institute of Strategy at the Royal Danish Defence College.
On 8 April 2015 he was named counter admiral in the Navy and major general in the Army and the Air Force. On 14 January 2024 with his accession as king, he was appointed grade four level, the highest military rank, as admiral in the Navy, general in the Army and general in the Air Force. By his appointment, Frederik has the same grade as the Danish Chief of Defence.
Marriage and children
During a Council of State on 8 October 2003, Queen Margrethe gave her consent to the marriage of Crown Prince Frederik to Mary Elizabeth Donaldson, an Australian marketing consultant whom the prince had met while attending the Sydney Olympics in 2000. Their wedding took place on 14 May 2004 at Copenhagen Cathedral, Copenhagen.
The couple have four children: Christian (born 15 October 2005), Isabella (born 21 April 2007), and twins Vincent and Josephine (born 8 January 2011).
Reign
Queen Margrethe II announced her abdication during her annual live broadcast New Year's Eve address on 31 December 2023. Frederik succeeded her as King of Denmark on 14 January 2024, after Margrethe formally signed an instrument of abdication during a meeting of the Council of State.
After succeeding to the throne, he was proclaimed king from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace by Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen as has been the custom for Danish monarchs since the introduction of the constitutional monarchy in 1849. His motto is (English: "United, committed, for the Kingdom of Denmark"), the first motto that does not mention God since Frederik VII.
On 15 January, the royal family appeared in Parliament for a ceremony marking the transition of head of state. On 21 January, the royal family attended a celebratory church service at Aarhus Cathedral, led by the Bishop of Aarhus and Royal Chaplain-in-Ordinary, Henrik Wigh-Poulsen.
On 31 January 2024, Frederik visited Poland and was received by its president Andrzej Duda, in his first overseas trip as monarch. Danish monarchs traditionally travel first to another Scandinavian country, but Frederik had planned the trip prior to Margrethe's abdication.
The King and Queen made their first state visits in May 2024, visiting Sweden and Norway. In June, they toured Greenland, one of the autonomous territories of the Kingdom of Denmark. Their planned tour of the Faroe Islands was postponed due to workers' strikes. The tour is now scheduled for 2025.
In November 2024 the Royal Court announced that the King had decided to phase out the system of granting companies royal warrants, which has been extant in Denmark since the 19th century. The motivation was that a system in which companies can claim special recognition from the royal house was not in keeping with the times. All warrants and similar titles are to be phased out by 31 December 2029.
In January 2025, when U.S president elect Donald Trump renewed talks about the intended U.S purchase of Greenland, the King made a speech promoting unity and collaboration within the Kingdom of Denmark. He also issued a royal decree to update the royal coat of arms from his mother's 1972 design. The changes included increasing the sizes of the symbols of Greenland and the Faroe Islands to make them more prominent. The new design “strengthens the prominence of the Commonwealth in the royal coat of arms,” according to a statement made by The Royal House on 1 January 2025.
State visits
No. Month and year Incoming Outgoing 1 6–7 May 2024 SwedenKing Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia 2 14–15 May 2024 NorwayKing Harald V and Queen Sonja 3 8–9 October 2024 IcelandPresident Halla Tómasdóttir and husband Björn Skúlason 46–7 December 2024EgyptPresident Abdel Fattah Al Sisi54–5 March 2025FinlandPresident Alexander Stubb631 March – 2 April 2025FrancePresident Emmanuel Macron728–29 October 2025LatviaPresident Edgars Rinkēvičs827–28 January 2026EstoniaPresident Alar Karis928–29 January 2026LithuaniaPresident Gitanas Nausėda1014–19 March 2026AustraliaGovernor-General Sam Mostyn — 8–10 September 2026Postponed to a later date due to the state funeral of King Harald V BelgiumKing Philippe I and Queen Mathilde 11 19–21 October 2026 VietnamPresident Tô Lâm and wife Ngô Phương Ly
Personal interests
Scientific research, climate change and sustainability
Frederik has a special interest in scientific research, climate change, and sustainability. For his commitment to sustainability, he was interviewed by the Financial Times and CNN International's Future Cities program. He participated in expeditions, forums and events on climate.www.billedbladet.dk . www.billedbladet.dk (22 September 2009). Retrieved on 14 September 2011.www.billedbladet.dk . www.billedbladet.dk (27 May 2009). Retrieved on 14 September 2011.msndk.starlounge.com . msndk.starlounge.com. Retrieved on 14 September 2011. The prince has represented Denmark as a promoter of sustainable Danish energy.Møller, Michael Frank (5 January 2010). "Kronprinsen: Royal charmeoffensiv" . www.seoghoer.dk. Retrieved on 14 September 2011."Danish crown prince hopes for more cultural exchanges with China" . People's Daily (25 June 2010). Retrieved on 14 September 2011.DBDH – Crown Prince Frederik leads the way to Ukraine . Dbdh.dk. Retrieved on 14 September 2011. The prince was one of the authors of the Kongelig Polartokt (Polar Cruise Royal), about the challenges of climate, published in 2009 with a preface written by Kofi Annan. In 2010, he wrote the foreword to the highschool textbook Naturen og klimaændringerne i Nordøstgrønland (Nature and climate change in Northeast Greenland). He supports scientific research projects, as a patron, as expeditionary, with regular attendance at events and through his foundation, Kronprins Frederiks Fond.
Sports and health
The king encourages Danish participation in sports. He is a patron and honorary member of various sports organizations, and a former member of the International Olympic Committee. He also promotes an active lifestyle in society.
Frederik is an avid sportsman, running marathons in Copenhagen, New York, and Paris, and completing the 42 kilometers with a respectable time of 3 hours, 22 minutes and 50 seconds in the Copenhagen Marathon. In 2013, he completed the KMD Ironman Copenhagen in the time of 10:45:32 and is the first royal person to complete an Ironman.
Frederik is a keen sailor, being an accomplished Farr 40 and International Dragon skipper. At the 2003 Dragon European Championship, where 51 boats participated, the Prince and his crew had been leading after four out of six races; they finished in fourth place. At the 2008 Farr 40 World Championship with 33 boats participating, Frederik and his crew also took fourth place. Helming the Swan 60 yacht Emma, he won its IRC category in the 2010 Fyn Cup in Denmark, and was fourth in the 2011 Danish Dragon Championship with Nanoq. 27 boats participated.http://www.danishdragons2011.dk/Results/DRDAG_2_4.htm
In 2016, on the subject of the Olympics in Rio, Frederik told the press that he did not regret not chasing his dream to compete in the Olympics after meeting his wife. He had always thought about training and competing, but that would have required him to limit his activities and concentrate on training, instead, he put his energy into other aspects of life. In October 2016, Frederik had to cancel his appearance at the royal reception for the Danish Olympic and Paralympic athletes after he fractured his spine while jumping on a trampoline with his eldest son.
Frederik took part in the relay event during the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus in March 2019.
Frederik has competed in cross-country skiing; he skied the Swedish Vasaloppet, the oldest cross-country ski race in the world, in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015. In 2016, he completed the Norwegian Birkebeinerrennet with Norway's Crown Prince Haakon. Also in 2016, Frederik completed the in Sisimiut, Greenland.
International Olympic Committee