Mary (born Mary Elizabeth Donaldson; 5 February 1972) is Queen of Denmark as the wife of King Frederik X.
Mary met Frederik (then Crown Prince of Denmark) while attending the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. They married on 14 May 2004 at Copenhagen Cathedral. They have four children: Christian, Isabella, Vincent and Josephine. Since her marriage, she has carried out engagements on behalf of the Danish monarchy, and she serves as patron of over 30 charitable organisations, including the United Nations Population Fund, the European regional office of the World Health Organization, the Danish Refugee Council and Julemærkefonden. She founded her social organisation, the Mary Foundation, in 2007.
In 2019, Mary was made a rigsforstander, which allows her to act as regent when the monarch is abroad. She became the first Australian-born queen consort of any country upon the abdication of her mother-in-law, Queen Margrethe II, on 14 January 2024. She has the additional title of Countess of Monpezat after her husband was given the title in 2008.
Early life and education Mary Elizabeth Donaldson was born 5 February 1972 at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Hobart, Tasmania, the youngest of four children of Scottish parents, Henrietta (née Horne) (1942–1997), an executive assistant to the vice-chancellor of the University of Tasmania, and John Dalgleish Donaldson (1941–2026), an academic and professor of mathematics who was also a member of Clan Donald. Her paternal grandfather was Captain Peter Donaldson (1911–1978). She was named after her grandmothers, Mary Dalgleish and Elizabeth Gibson Melrose, and was born and raised in Hobart. She has two older sisters, Jane Stephens and Patricia Bailey, and an older brother, John Stuart Donaldson. Her mother died from complications following heart surgery on 20 November 1997, when Mary was 25. In 2001, her father married the British author and novelist Susan Moody (née Horwood). He died in Hobart on 11 April 2026. During her childhood, Mary took part in a range of sports and extracurricular activities at school and elsewhere. She studied music, playing the piano, flute, and clarinet, and played basketball and hockey.
Mary began her schooling at Clear Lake City Elementary School in Houston, Texas, while her father, a professor of applied mathematics, was working at the Johnson Space Center./ She then lived in Sandy Bay, Tasmania, from 1975 to 1977. Her primary education, from 1978 to 1983, was at Waimea Heights, followed by secondary schooling at Taroona High School from 1984 to 1987 and at Hobart College from 1988 to 1989. She studied at the University of Tasmania from 1990 to 1994, graduating with a combined Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Laws degree on 27 May 1995. Between 1994 and 1996, she completed a graduate program and obtained certificates in advertising from the Advertising Federation of Australia and in direct marketing from the Australian Direct Marketing Association.
Her native language is English, and she studied French during her secondary education. In 2002, she briefly worked as an English tutor in Paris while dating Crown Prince Frederik. After moving to Denmark and before her marriage, she studied Danish as a foreign language at Studieskolen in Copenhagen in 2003.
Career Mary worked for Australian and international advertising agencies after graduating in 1995. She moved to Melbourne to begin her career in advertising, joining the Melbourne office of DDB Needham as a trainee in marketing and communications and later becoming an account executive. In 1996, she was employed by Mojo Partners as an account manager. In 1998, six months after her mother's death, she resigned and travelled to the United States and Europe. While in Edinburgh, she worked for three months as an account manager with Rapp Collins Worldwide, and in early 1999 she was appointed an account director with the international advertising agency Young & Rubicam in Sydney.
In June 2000, Mary moved to a smaller Australian agency, Love Branding, where she briefly served as its first account director. During the Australian spring of 2000, she became sales director and a member of the management team at Belle Property, a real‑estate firm. In the first half of 2002, she taught English at a business school in Paris. After moving to Denmark permanently, she worked for Microsoft Business Solutions near Copenhagen as a project consultant in business development, communications, and marketing from 5 September 2002 to 24 September 2003.
Personal life Courtship and engagement Mary met Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark at the Slip Inn The Slip Inn is the renamed former Royal George hotel. in Sydney during the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. Frederik was at the bar with his brother, Prince Joachim, his cousin Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark, Felipe, Prince of Asturias, and Princess Märtha Louise of Norway. Felipe knew Mary's flatmate. Frederik was not identified by Mary's friends as the Crown Prince of Denmark until after they met. They conducted a long-distance relationship, and Frederik made several discreet visits to Australia. On 15 November 2001, the Danish weekly magazine Billed Bladet named Mary as Frederik's girlfriend. She moved from Australia to Denmark in December 2001 while working as an English tutor in Paris.
On 24 September 2003, the Danish court announced that Queen Margrethe II intended to give her consent to the marriage at the State Council meeting scheduled for 8 October 2003. Frederik had presented Mary with an engagement ring set with an emerald-cut diamond and two emerald-cut ruby baguettes, the stones being similar in colour to those of the Dannebrog. The couple became officially engaged on 8 October 2003.
Marriage and children
Mary and Frederik married on 14 May 2004 in Copenhagen Cathedral. The couple reportedly spent their honeymoon in Africa.
The couple have four children: Crown Prince Christian Valdemar Henri John, born 15 October 2005 at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen Princess Isabella Henrietta Ingrid Margrethe, born 21 April 2007 at Rigshospitalet Prince Vincent Frederik Minik Alexander, born 8 January 2011 at Rigshospitalet Princess Josephine Sophia Ivalo Mathilda, born 8 January 2011 at Rigshospitalet
The Danish Folketing passed a special law, known as Mary's Law, granting her Danish citizenship upon her marriage, a standard procedure for foreign-born members of the royal family. She had previously held dual Australian and British citizenship. Formerly a Presbyterian, she joined the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark upon her marriage.
As a native English speaker, Mary made fluency in Danish a priority from the time of her engagement, and she acknowledged in interviews at the time that learning the language was a challenge.
Mary and her family reside at Frederik VIII's Palace, one of the four palaces that make up the Amalienborg Palace complex. Since May 2004 they have also used the Chancellery House, a building in the grounds of Fredensborg Palace, during the summer months.
Mary is a keen equestrian and has competed in several dressage events.
She is the godmother of Princess Estelle of Sweden, who was also given the secondary name Mary in her honour, and of her nephew, Count Henrik of Monpezat (then Prince Henrik of Denmark).
Queen consort
Mary became Queen of Denmark, making her the first Australian‑born queen consort of any country, upon the abdication of Queen Margrethe II and the accession of her husband as King Frederik X on 14 January 2024. After he was proclaimed king from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace, Mary joined him on the balcony to greet the crowds. On 15 January, the royal family attended a ceremony at the Folketing to mark the change of monarch, and on 21 January, they attended a service at Aarhus Cathedral.
The King and Queen made their first state visits from 6–7 and 14–15 May 2024, when they visited Sweden and Norway. In June, they toured Greenland, one of the autonomous territories of the Kingdom of Denmark. In June 2025, they toured the other territory, the Faroe Islands.
Public life, charities and patronages
Following the wedding, the Crown Prince couple embarked upon a summer working-tour of mainland Denmark aboard the royal yacht Dannebrog, then travelled to Greenland and the 2004 Athens Olympics. In 2005, during the celebrations for the 200th anniversary of Hans Christian Andersen, the royal family was involved in related events throughout the year. Mary and Frederik marked the anniversary in London, New York, and in Australia, where she was made Honorary Hans Christian Andersen Ambassador to Australia in the Utzon Room of the Sydney Opera House.
After becoming Crown Princess, Mary made a number of international visits, and Frederik and Mary participated in the reburial ceremonies for Empress Maria Feodorovna in Denmark and Saint Petersburg in 2005. In November 2009, Mary made a surprise visit to Danish soldiers in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. One of her stops was FOB Armadillo.
During a Council of State on 2 October 2019, the Queen's request to appoint Mary a rigsforstander, a functioning regent when the monarch or the heir is out of the country, was approved by the government. After having sworn to respect the Danish constitution, she became the first person not born into the royal family to assume the position of rigsforstander since Queen Ingrid in 1972.
Mary was voted Woman of the Year 2008 by the Danish magazine Alt for damerne, donating her cash reward to charity. She was interviewed by Parade Magazine (US), on television programs of Andrew Denton (Australia),ENOUGH ROPE with Andrew Denton – episode 66: Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark (28/02/2005). Abc.net.au (28 February 2005). Retrieved on 30 November 2011. and by USA Today (US).
She serves on the board of directors of The Royal Danish Collection. Organisation
Patronages and interests Since 2004, Mary has steadily worked to establish her relationships with various organisations, their issues, missions, programmes and staff. Her patronages range across areas of culture, the fashion industry, humanitarian aid, support for research and science, social and health patronages and sport. The organisations of which she is patron have reported positive outcomes through their relationships with her and there are various reports in the Danish media and on some of the organisations' websites about her being quite involved in her working relationship with them. She is currently involved in supporting anti-obesity programs through the World Health Organization, Regional Office for Europe.
In the context of immigrant issues in Denmark, Mary has visited the disadvantaged migrant areas of Vollsmose (2006), Gellerup (2007), and Viborg (2010), and has participated in integration projects including the teaching of the Danish language to refugees. As patron of the Danish Refugee Council, Mary visited Uganda (2008) and East Africa (2011) and supports fundraising for the region.
Mary has played an active role in promoting an anti-bullying program based on an Australian model through the auspices of Denmark's Save the Children. She is also involved in a campaign to raise awareness and safe practices among Danes about skin cancer through The Danish Cancer Society.