Mary | |||||
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Crown Princess of Denmark Countess of Monpezat |
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Crown Princess Mary in 2011
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Born |
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia |
5 February 1972 ||||
Spouse | Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark (m. 2004) | ||||
Issue |
Prince Christian Princess Isabella Prince Vincent Princess Josephine |
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Father | John Dalgleish Donaldson | ||||
Mother | Henrietta Clark Horne | ||||
Religion |
Church of Denmark prev. Presbyterianism |
Full name | |
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Mary Elizabeth |
Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat, R.E. (Mary Elizabeth; née Donaldson; born 5 February 1972) is the wife of Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark. Frederik is the heir apparent to the throne of Denmark, which means that should Frederik inherit the throne, Mary will automatically become Queen consort of Denmark.
The couple met at the Slip Inn, a pub in Sydney when the prince was visiting Australia during the 2000 Summer Olympics. Their official engagement in 2003 and their marriage the following year was the subject of extensive attention from Australian and European news media, which portrayed the marriage as a modern "fairytale" romance between a prince and a commoner.
Mary Elizabeth Donaldson was born the youngest of four children to Scottish parents, Henrietta (née Horne), an executive assistant to the vice-chancellor of the University of Tasmania, and Dr John Dalgleish Donaldson, a mathematics professor. Her paternal grandfather was Captain Peter Donaldson (1911-1978). Mary was named after her grandmothers, Mary Dalgleish and Elizabeth Gibson Melrose. Her mother died on 20 November 1997. In 2001, her father married the British author and novelist Susan Horwood.
Donaldson was born and raised in Hobart, Australia. During her childhood, she was involved in sports and other extracurricular activities both at school and elsewhere. She studied music – playing piano, flute, and clarinet – and played basketball and hockey.
In 1974, Donaldson started schooling in Clear Lake City Elementary School in Houston, Texas (where her father was working) and moved to Sandy Bay, Tasmania from 1975 to 1977. Her primary education, from 1978 to 1983, was at Waimea Heights with her secondary schooling (1984-1987) being at Taroona High School, and matriculation (1988-1989) at Hobart College.