Denmark's queen, Margrethe II has unexpectedly announced that she is stepping down from the thrown. In her traditional New Year's Eve speech, Queen Margrethe confirmed that she will formally abdicate from the throne on January 14, 2024.
It comes 52 years, to the day of her ascension to the throne in 1972. Her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik, will take over the throne and become Frederik X.
Margrethe, who is the eldest child of Denmark's former monarch King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid, succeeded her father following his death on January 14 1972.
Journalist and royal commentator, Alistair Bruce, told Sky News that the news would have come as a surprise to "many people".
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