Denmark's Queen Margrethe II in hospital after suspected heart attack, palace confirms

Denmark's Queen Margrethe II, mother of King Frederik X, is recovering in hospital from a suspected heart attack, the Royal House has confirmed.

The former monarch, who abdicated the throne in 2024 for her son and his Australian-born wife Queen Mary, celebrated her 86th birthday last month.

In a statement, the palace said Margrethe II had been admitted to hospital on Thursday afternoon and would remain there throughout the weekend "for observation and further examinations".

The statement from the Royal House said: "Her Majesty Queen Margrethe has been admitted to Rigshospitalet this afternoon due to heart attack.

"Queen Margrethe will be hospitalised over the weekend for observation and further examinations.

"Her Majesty is tired, but in good spirits.

The Royal House will announce when there is news."

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The Rigshospitalet is Denmark's largest hospital and is in Copenhagen.

Her health scare came on the same day that King Frederik and Queen Mary marked their 22nd wedding anniversary. Queen Mary is still grieving the loss of her father John Donaldson, who died aged 84 on April 11, in Hobart.

Margrethe's most recent high-profile outing was on April 30 when she and King Frederik and Queen Mary attended the 80th birthday celebrations of Sweden's King.

Margrethe II and King Carl XVI Gustaf are cousins and the Danish Queen was among the many invited royal guests from around the world.

Since her abdication two years ago, Margrethe has continued to carry out official duties but on a much smaller scale to when she was on the throne.

Her decision to abdicate the Danish throne after a 52-year-reign came after a number of health issues, including major back surgery in early 2023.

In her New Year's Eve speech announcing plans to step down, in December 2023, Margrethe said the surgery led to "thoughts about the future" and when to pass on the responsibilities of the crown to her son.

"I have decided that now is the right time," she said in her speech.

"The time takes its toll, and the number of 'ailments' increases... One cannot undertake as much as one managed in the past," she added.

Margrethe has been using a walking stick for some years now and is often seated at engagements.

Last May, Margrethe was hospitalised for several days after contracting a cold.

Margrethe is a famous chain smoker and remains one of the most popular public figures in Denmark.

In December, a poll by Danish public broadcaster DR found Queen Margrethe remained the most popular royal with an approval rating of 88 per cent. King Frederik's was 87 and Queen Mary's 85.

Throughout her time on the throne, Margrethe became known for walking the streets of Copenhagen virtually unescorted and won the admiration of Danes for her warm manners and for her talents as a linguist and designer.

A keen skier, she was a member of a Danish women's air force unit as a princess, taking part in judo courses and endurance tests in the snow. Margrethe remained tough even as she grew older. In 2011, at age 70, she visited Danish troops in southern Afghanistan wearing a military jumpsuit.

As monarch, she crisscrossed the country and regularly visited Greenland and the Faeroe Islands, the two semi-independent territories which are part of the Danish Realm, and was met everywhere by cheering crowds.

Denmark has Europe's oldest ruling monarchy, which traces its line back to the Viking king Gorm the Old, who died in 958. Although Margrethe is head of state, the Danish Constitution strictly ruled out her involvement in party politics.

Yet the queen was clearly well-versed in law and knew the contents of the legislation she was called upon to sign.

She received training in French and English from her earliest years, as well as Swedish from her mother. In addition to archaeology, she studied philosophy, political science and economics at universities in Copenhagen, Aarhus and Cambridge along with the London School of Economics and the Sorbonne in Paris.

Her husband, French-born husband, Prince Henrik, died February 2018. He had been suffering dementia and soon before his death decided against being buried in a specially-designed sarcophagus which had been prepared for him and Margrethe in the Roskilde Cathedral.

For a long time, Prince Henrik had been unhappy that he was never acknowledged as king, known instead as Prince Consort.

In line with his wishes, Henrik was cremated and half of his ashes were spread in Danish waters, the other half buried on the grounds of Fredensborg Castle north of Copenhagen.

– Reported with AP