Australian-Born Princess Becomes Danish Queen

Sydney — 

While Denmark was preparing to celebrate the coronation of a new king, there are festivities too, half a world away, in Australia. Crown Princess Mary was born on the Australian island of Tasmania and met Prince Frederik in a chance encounter in a busy Sydney bar during the 2000 Olympic Games.

Before she was a princess, Mary Donaldson graduated with a degree in law and commerce from the University of Tasmania in Australia. A career in advertising and real estate followed.

In 2000, she met Denmark’s Prince Frederik in a bar in central Sydney during the Olympic Games. The couple was married in May 2004.

The unexpected abdication of Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II after 52 years of service will allow her son, Frederik, to become the new king and crown princess Mary to be his queen.

Denmark’s ambassador to Australia, Pernille Dahler Kardel, told local media that Mary has become a natural leader.

“She has, since she became crown princess, been an amazing woman and we are really thankful that we have a crown princess of that caliber,” said Kardel.

FILE – Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary of Denmark speak prior to the start of the Olympic Group B women’s handball match between Denmark and France in the Faliro Sports Pavilion, at the Olympic Games 2004 in Athens, Aug. 15, 2004.

The couple met at a bar called the Slip Inn during the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

It is celebrating the coronation of the new Danish king.

Jack Dineley, the bar’s acting operations manager, told VOA that the establishment wants to celebrate the occasion.

“We’ve got Danish flags hung across the room where we normally have our Mexican-themed festoons, so it is flags abundant,” he said. “We’ve also got two thrones set up in the main Slip Inn area [for] people to come down and take a photo with a crown or a tiara if they please.”

The bar in central Sydney has over the years become a destination for Danish tourists. Many have come to the bar to enjoy the festivities to mark the coronation.

“My name is Natasha and I’m from Copenhagen and I’m here to celebrate love with Queen Mary becoming queen.”

REPORTER: What do people in Denmark make of Princess Mary?

NATASHA: “Oh, they love her. They love her.”

Crown Princess Mary renounced her Australian citizenship many years ago, but her journey from working in real estate to the Danish royal family has been closely followed here.

She becomes the world’s first Australian-born queen.