Royalty

 

Wedding plans announced
January 13, 2004 - 9:02AM

Friends, family, political leaders and European royals are to attend
the wedding of Crown Prince Frederik and his Australian fiancee Mary
Donaldson, the royal palace said today as it announced parts of the
celebration set for May.

Frederik and Donaldson, who met during the 2000 Sydney Olympics,
will marry May 14 at Copenhagen's Lutheran cathedral. The 31-year-
old Donaldson will become the first Australian woman to stand in
line to become Denmark's queen. She will become Crown Princess Mary.

Frederik, 35, is first in line to the throne, but his mother, Queen
Margrethe, 63, has said she has no plans to step down.

Which royals were invited wasn't revealed, but Lord Chamberlain Ove
Ullerup, head of the royal household, said the guest list will
represent both sides of the couple's family.

"There will be foreign guests, representatives from Australia and
friends from Australia," Master of Ceremonies Christian Eugen-Olsen
added.

After the 4pm wedding ceremony, the couple will ride through the
Danish capital in a horse-drawn carriage to downtown Amalienborg
Castle, where the royals live.

There, the newlyweds will appear on the balcony of one of the four
Renaissance-style mansions that make up Amalienborg. The wedding
party will be held at the Fredensborg Palace, an 18th century castle
35km north of Copenhagen.

The first official wedding event starts on May 11 with dinner at
parliament. The next day, the couple will meet with Copenhagen Lord
Mayor Jens Kramer Mikkelsen at city hall.

On May 13, Frederik and Donaldson will receive well-wishers and
attend a concert and show that night at the Royal Theatre, the
city's playhouse, which dates back to 1770.

"It will be a combination of very different events," Ullerup said.

A royal monogram combining the initials of the future couple will be
published later this year, and a collector's coin and stamp also
will be issued, said Lord Chamberlain Per Thornit, the head of
Frederik's court.

After the wedding, the couple will sail aboard the royal yacht
Dannebrog and will visit Greenland in late June.