With a history-making coronation looming in Britain, there is no rest on the other side of the pond, with the Danish palace last week revealing Queen Margrethe will have to undergo urgent “major back surgery”.
The 82-year-monarch, who is Europe’s longest-serving monarch, will be hospitalised afterward and take on “a longer rehabilitation process”, the royal household said in a statement.
She had to undergo major surgery.
(Image: Getty)“During a long period, Her Majesty has been affected by problems with her back, and in recent times the situation has worsened,” the release said.
This means all the queen’s official engagements have been postponed, cancelled or will be undertaken by other members of the royal house, including Prince Frederik, 54, and his wife Princess Mary, 51.
Sources confirm to Woman’s Day that while the tough-as-nails queen is putting on a brave face, the family are under no illusions this latest surgery will be an easy feat. Fred and Mary have rushed to her side, offering their support while she is operated on at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen.
The queen, who has long suffered from osteoarthritis has undergone myriad surgeries in her time, including a previous back surgery in 2003 and a knee replacement in 2007.
“Fred and Mary’s lives are about to change.”
(Image: Getty)“There are a lot of feelings involved for Mary and Fred, who are first and foremost a son and daughter-in-law praying for the queen to come through her operation without issues,” confides a Copenhagen-based insider.
The pair are also aware this operation marks a poignant shift in power from the monarch to her heir.
POSSIBLE ABDICATION
“Fred and Mary’s lives are about to change,” they add. “They are ready for this new period in their lives – they’ve been preparing for it ever since their wedding, and Margrethe has trained them well.”
While insiders admit a possible abdication “will not be taken lightly by any party”, courtiers are quietly preparing Frederik and Mary for the throne.
While this should be a peaceful time in the Danish palace, Margrethe is now in the throes of negotiating the tricky relationship between Fred and his brother, Prince Joachim, 53.
“So far, Margrethe has been handling the friction between the brothers, but very soon they will be truly on their own with it,” says the insider, who adds there is mounting pressure for the bickering princes to put their feelings aside for the sake of their mother and the extended royal family.
“How Fred and Mary handle this will be their biggest test ever, as it will show Danes how their future king and queen intend to rule.”
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