The story of Margaret of Denmark, the princess returned to Argentina become queen

When

Marguerite II

she arrived in Argentina in 1966, she was 25 years old, she was an heiress princess and, after crossing the ocean from Denmark, she did him a service, while knowing the country, to realize that She could not live without Enrique de Monpezat, her partner. The following year, they married and they had two sons, Federico and Joaquín. His firstborn, the Crown Prince, is the one who accompanies the Queen
a new trip to the country, her first state visit after the death of her husband.

Much has changed since March 1966, when the Queen received from the then president, Arturo Illia, the order of liberator San Martin, and went to the "Danish triangle" at the south of Buenos Aires, Necochea, Tandil and Tres Arroyos. The main step was in 1972, when her father, King Frederick IX, died and she ascended the throne just before the oil crisis broke out and Denmark entered a crisis due to its energy dependence, which would lead to series of policies that have made it a vanguard country.

During the reign of Margarita – the first woman to take the Danish throne on her own, after a 1953 act, so as not to have male brothers – an amendment was pbaded in 2009 that states that the firstborn of the king , regardless of their bad, will be the heir. Another milestone in these times. "I never thought that being a woman was a problem for me, in fact, it was a nice challenge," she said.
an interview with the Argentine media, among them,
THE NATION. The monarchy in Denmark, one of the oldest in the world, has been constitutional since 1849. The Queen can not therefore get involved in politics. It has institutional roles, such as government approval and representation of the country abroad.

Two facts have remained unchanged since 1966: the popularity of the monarchy – in 2014, 82% of Danes were against the abolition of the institution – and the Queen's compulsion to smoke Greek cigarettes, although # It will only do so in the years to come. private sphere, in a country that boasts of "green". "I will not abdicate or quit," he said at the age of 75.

This is not the only thing that makes her an "unusual" queen, as described by those who know her. In her interview with the Argentinean media, she was perceived as relaxed, without protocol and with a slow speech, in perfect English who left her years in British universities, where she completed her studies in archeology and political science at Denmark and France

Although some time ago he decided to live in Fredensborg Palace, part of Margarita remained in the main residence, that of Amalienborg. In one of his buildings are exhibited works of the monarch, who often say that it was not a queen was an artist. He still managed to be: he also did sets and costumes for works and films and even played a small part in an adaptation for the cinema of
Wild swans, by Hans Christian Andersen.

Enrique, the rebel husband

Like all families, the queen has her own problems, but in her case, all the stories have a public status, ranging from her marital struggles to the picardías of her children.

Margarita was studying in London and Count Enrique was a French diplomat in that city when they met. Pbadionate about music, art and wine, he had his own wine cellar in his French castle of Caix, where they spent the summers with the queen. The prince husband maintained a claim to the royal marriage: he also wanted the title of king. as the women of the monarchs acquire the queen. It has never succeeded and this path of frustration is accompanied by a path of monarchical scandals.

The most important took place on the day of Guillermo de Holanda's wedding with Máxima Zorreguieta, in February 2002. The same day, a Danish newspaper published a note in which Enrique declared that he felt "useless and relegated" and announced that he would go to Caix "think about your life". Margarita, who was alone at the royal party in Amsterdam, returned to Copenhagen in turmoil. The tension remained hidden for years until 2016, when the queen announced that her husband would retire from public life. In February of last year, Enrique died at the age of 83 from an infection in the lungs.

Anger did not take him to the grave. Contrary to the monarchical tradition of burying royal couples together, Enrique was cremated. It was his wish: he said that if he was not king in life, he did not want to be a dead man. "It was his decision, he was a free person and I respect him," said the queen almost a year after the death of her husband, present through his dog sausage, Tilia, who accompanies him everywhere. Widowhood squeezed even more the queen on the throne. "Since I'm alone, I compare my days to my friends who are widows and I'm happy to have my job, I'm a lucky person," she said.

The prince "who did not want to be king"

The Crown Prince, Federico, who will have the title that his father did not get, went from "turbo prince", for his love of cars and speed, to "iron prince", for his abilities as a "athlete" Prince who did not want to be king ", for a confession he made last year. In a documentary of his 50 years, he stated that it was "very uncomfortable" to realize that he would be obliged to badume his duties as king, but he admitted that since her marriage with Australian lawyer Mary Donaldson in 2004, he felt already prepared.

Before there were romances and adventures that were worth more than a cover, especially a police episode – a positive blood alcohol test of a girlfriend who was driving recklessly with the prince at his side – after which Margarita decided to send her to Harvard University. finish your studies in political science.

Today, he has four children with Princess Mary, who took years to get a queen 's approval. Cristian, the eldest and third in the lineage, has already marked a new turning point in the monarchy. He is the first Crown Prince to attend a public school, unlike his father, a graduate of an elite school, and his grandmother, ward of the palace of Amalienborg.

This is also Federico's second trip to Argentina. A member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since 2009, he came to the Youth Olympic Games last year and was reunited with Horacio Rodríguez Larreta, a former Harvard partner and current head of government in Buenos Aires. The agent from Buenos Aires brought him to the racetrack and for this visit, he predicted other activities outside the agenda.

For his part, the youngest son of the queen, Joaquín, 49, will settle this year in France, birthplace of his father and his current wife, Princess Marie and his eldest sons, Enrique and Athena, so of course at the Ecole Militaire de Paris. Their eldest children, from their first marriage, Nicolás, 20, and Félix, 17, will remain in Denmark. The tallest will pursue not only his studies at the military academy, but also his modeling career. Another peculiarity of this new generation of the Danish monarchy.

Agenda of the day

• 12 Offering to the statue of General San Martín
• 24:30. Meeting and lunch with Mauricio Macri and Juliana Awada
• 3:15 p.m. Congress visit
• 16 Visit to the Supreme Court
• 19 Reception for the commercial delegation to Yatch Club Argentino