Queen Margrethe Told Author "You Can Say What You Like" Behind Closed Doors With These British Royals
"Royals understand other royals," the former Danish queen shared.
Queen Margrethe was hospitalized for the second time in a month after suffering from a blood clot this week, but the former queen of Denmark has weathered many storms during her 86 years. The Danish royal opened up about her royal life and her late husband, Prince Henrik, to royal author Gyles Brandreth, who included his conversation with Margrethe in his recent biography of Queen Elizabeth II.
In Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait, Brandreth wrote that Queen Margrethe told him “how much she admired Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh,” while also noting that she “was related to both.” The former Danish queen—who abdicated her throne to her son, King Frederik, in 2024—was one of Queen Elizabeth’s third cousins, as they both were descendants of Queen Victoria as well as King Christian IX of Denmark.
“I love coming to their parties in London, especially when they are just family gatherings, for wedding anniversaries and that sort of thing,” Queen Margrethe told the author of Elizabeth and Philip. The best thing about the parties, she said, was that sense of being able to “be yourself” among other people who understand what it’s like to be a royal.
(L to R): Prince Philip, Queen Margrethe, Queen Elizabeth and Prince Henrik wave during a 1979 visit to Copenhagen.
Queen Elizabeth poses with the reigning sovereigns of Europe for a photo to mark her Golden Jubilee in 2002.
Queen Elizabeth and Queen Margrethe were third cousins and shared a close relationship.
“If it’s just royalty in the room, once the door is closed you know you’re all there because you are related, however distantly. You feel safe,” she said. “You can say what you like, you can be yourself. Royals understand other royals.”
During their conversation, which took place a few years before Queen Elizabeth's 2022 death, the former Danish queen admitted that it was tough for outsiders like her late husband, Prince Henrik, to adjust to royal life.
“In the old days when royals married other royals, there were disadvantages, of course, but there were advantages, too,” she said. “Everyone had been brought up in the same sort of way. It can be difficult if you're an outsider. My husband has found it difficult, I know.”
Queen Margrethe told Brandreth that her marriage to the French-born diplomat had “many ups and downs” over their 50-plus-year relationship until he died in 2018. “Your Queen and Prince Philip are cousins,” she added “while lighting another cigarette,” Brandreth wrote. “I think that helps.”
