The four children of Prince Joachim of Denmark, the second son of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, began the year 2023 with the loss of their Prince and Princess titles, as well as Their Highnesses' courtesy styles.
Effective January 1, 2023, the former His Highness Prince Nikolai of Denmark officially becomes His Excellency Count Nikolai of Monpezat, as well as his two younger brothers, Felix and Henrik, and only sister, Athena (Her Excellency Countess Athena of Monpezat).
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| Prince Joachim of Denmark and his family |
The changes in their titles have already been reflected in the Danish Royal House's official website. Nonetheless, the four grandchildren of Queen Margrethe II remained in the line of succession to the Danish throne.
The former Prince Nikolai of Denmark has finally spoken about losing his and his siblings' royal titles. “It’s a strange feeling and an experience that I would rather have been without,” he said (translated to English) in a written response from his mother Her Excellency Alexandra, the Countess of Frederiksborg’s press adviser, Helle von Wildenrath Løvgreen, to Billed Bladet magazine.
“But now it is as it is. For the rest of my life, I will be proud of the years when I was allowed to be a prince of Denmark", the statement added.
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| Nikolai and his three siblings |
In September he was quoted saying, "My whole family and I are of course very sad," following his grandmother's announcement of removing their royal titles. "We are, as my parents have also stated, in shock at this decision and at how quickly it has actually gone. I don't understand why it had to happen this way."
When asked about how the decision has affected his relationship with his grandmother, Nikolai said: "I don't think I need to elaborate on that."
In September, Prince Nikolai confirmed that he had known about the plans before they were made public, but the announcement made it all real for him.
When asked by reporters about the move, Queen Margarethe explained: "It is a consideration I have had for quite a long time and I think it will be good for them in their future. That is the reason."
When Her Majesty, who celebrated her Golden Jubilee on the Danish throne in 2022, was asked to respond to the claims she "ostracized" her four grandchildren from the Danish royal court, she replied, "Well, you have to see how you...I haven't seen it myself, I must say."
Nikolai's father, Prince Joachim, the second and youngest son of the Queen, made it clear he was not impressed with the move of his mother because the original plan of removing the royal titles of his children will be implemented when they reach 25 years old.
His eldest child, Nikolai, is only 23, while the youngest, Athena, is only 10. Responding to the press' inquiry, Prince Joachim said, "It's never fun to see your children being mistreated like that. They themselves find themselves in a situation they do not understand."
"I was given five days' notice," Prince Joachim stated. "In May, I was presented with a plan, which basically stated that when the children each turned 25, it would happen. Athena turns 11 in January 2023," he responded, clearly emotional.
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| Queen Margrethe II and her two grandsons, Nikolai and Felix |
Queen Margrethe II’s decision to strip her four grandchildren of royal titles, which was announced back in September 2022, is to streamline the Danish monarchy.
The palace's spokesperson noted that “the Queen's decision is in line with similar adjustments that other royal houses have made in various ways in recent years,” and that with her decision, the monarch “wishes to create the framework for the four grandchildren to be able to shape their own lives to a much greater extent without being limited by the special considerations and duties that a formal affiliation with the Royal House of Denmark as an institution involves.”
Some royal observers criticized the Queen for her decision to strip her four grandchildren of their birthright (Prince and Princess of Denmark) to be given noble titles without any Danish origin.
Count and Countess of Monpezat are titles of nobility created by Queen Margrethe II in 2008 to honor her husband. Prince Henrik. He was born Henry de Laborde de Monpezat, in France. His family's claim to French nobility, however, was largely disputed.
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| Prince Nikolai of Denmark on the runway |
Count Nikolai William Alexander Frederik Count of Monpezat was born on August 28, 1999, as the eldest child of Prince Joachim and his first wife, Alexandra Manley, who also lost her Princess of Denmark's title following her second marriage in 2007.
He is currently taking Business Administration and Service Management studies at Copenhagen Business School. He is also a fashion model, doing runway appearances for Dior and Burberry.
Nikolai and his two brothers are not the only living grandsons of a Danish monarch who is carrying the noble title of "Count". His grandmother's first cousin, Count Ingolf of Rosenborg, also lost his princely title and His Highness style in 1968, but for a different reason.
The former Prince Ingolf of Denmark was stripped of his title when he married a commoner without the permission of his uncle, King Frederik IX. He did not seek approval to marry though because the king would surely not grant him permission for marrying a non-aristocratic commoner.
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