Australia welcomes Mary as royals get down to business
Queen Mary and King Frederik’s first trip to Australia since the Danish royal family ascended to the throne isn’t just about sightseeing and photo opportunities.
The royal family and their large delegation are also here to do business.
The state visit aims to deepen trade ties between the Scandinavian country and the Queen’s Mary nation.
The delegation will include more than 50 Danish companies and will focus on clean energy.
The monarchs will be accompanied by the Danish deputy prime minister, as well as the foreign and climate ministers.
The couple will arrive at Uluru on Saturday and begin a six-day stateside tour that also includes Canberra, Melbourne and Queen Mary’s hometown of Hobart.
They will watch the sunset with local elders in a stop expected to be reminiscent of the 1983 royal tour of Britain, when the late Princess Diana and then-King Prince Charles visited the culturally significant monument.
“Denmark and Australia are interested in the conservation of nature and culture, and elements related to nature and culture will form part of the state visit,” the statement from the Danish Royal House said.
The pair will be welcomed to Government House in Canberra on Sunday by Governor-General Sam Mostyn, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his wife Jodie Haydon.
Ms Mostyn will host an official state dinner for the royal family.
The Danish royal couple will visit the Houses of Parliament, where they will receive a ceremonial 21-gun salute.
King Frederik and Queen Mary were crowned monarchs of Denmark in a highly publicized ceremony in January 2024.
The event celebrated the 20th anniversary of her marriage to King Frederik.
The pair, formerly Mary Donaldson, met during a chance encounter in a bar in Sydney during the 2000 Olympic Games.
The future queen, then 28 and working in marketing, had no idea that she had crossed paths with Denmark’s party boy crown prince.
The last time the royal family officially visited Australia was 13 years ago and this was their fourth tour together.
They will likely spend time with relatives in Tasmania, including Queen Mary’s elderly father, John Donaldson.
It seems unlikely that King Frederik and Queen Mary’s four children, Crown Prince Christian, 20, Princess Isabella, 18, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, 15, will join the tour with their families.
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