Princess Marie of Denmark

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Princess Marie
Marie at the wedding of Princess Madeleine of Sweden, 8 June 2013
Born (1976-02-06) 6 February 1976 (age 48)
Paris, France
SpousePrince Joachim of Denmark
IssuePrince Henrik
Princess Athena
Names
Marie Agathe Odile
FatherAlain Cavallier
MotherFrançoise Grassiot
ReligionChurch of Denmark

Princess Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat, RE (née: Marie Agathe Odile Cavallier; born 6 February 1976) is the second wife of Prince Joachim of Denmark.

Early life

Marie Cavallier was born in Paris, France. She is the only child of Alain Cavallier and Françoise Grassiot (née Moreau). She moved to Geneva, Switzerland with her mother following the divorce of her parents.

She has two older, maternal half-brothers: Benjamin and Gregory Grandet, both born in Switzerland; and two younger, paternal half-brothers: Charles and Edouard Cavallier, both born in Paris.

Education

After her parents divorced, Marie was sent to the Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil boarding school in Switzerland [1]), where members of the Luxembourg ruling house have also studied. She attended Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, for a brief time, to study international business and economics and then went on to study economics in Genève. Marie earned a Bachelor of Arts at Marymount Manhattan College. During her years in college, Marie worked for Estée Lauder, as assistant to the public relations manager in 1994, and as an assistant to the managing director of ING Numismatic Group SA in Genève.

After graduating, she started working for DoubleClick Inc, an international advertising agency, in New York as international marketing coordinator. Back in France, she worked for advertising agency Media Marketing. She then worked for Reuters financial news agency Radianz in Switzerland, took a position with REInvest in Geneva and worked as executive secretary in ING Numismatic Group SA until the engagement.

Princess Marie's mother tongue is French. In addition she speaks English, Spanish and Italian. In connection to her wedding with Prince Joachim she started taking lessons in Danish.

Courtship

Marie first came to public attention when she was photographed on a private holiday in Avignon, France, with Prince Joachim in August 2005. She celebrated the New Year 2006/2007 with Prince Joachim, his former wife, the former Princess Alexandra of Denmark, who now holds the title of Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg, their two sons Princes Nikolai and Felix, as well as close friends.

In January 2007, Marie accompanied Prince Joachim and his children on a ski holiday in Switzerland. Later that year, Marie joined the royal family for Easter at Marselisborg Palace, where she met The Queen for the first time. Marie increasingly made weekend visits from Geneva to Denmark in 2007.

Marriage and children

On 3 October 2007, it was officially announced that Marie Cavallier was engaged to Prince Joachim. On 21 November 2007, the Royal Court announced that the wedding would be held on 24 May 2008.

Marie's monogram

The first wedding took place on 24 May 2008 in Møgeltønder Church. Upon her marriage to Joachim, Marie's title is Her Royal Highness Princess Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat. Marie, who had been a French citizen and a member of the Roman Catholic Church, became, in connection with the marriage, a Danish citizen and a member of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Denmark. Marie's wedding gown was designed by Spanish-Italian fashion house Arasa Morelli,[1] and was sewn by a Danish woman working for the company.

The couple has two children:

Marie is also the stepmother to Prince Joachim's sons from his first marriage, Prince Nikolai and Prince Felix.

Role as Princess of Denmark

Marie started her role as princess of Denmark shortly after her wedding, while attending with her husband events and activities from his patronages. She gave an interview to Danish magazine Billed Bladet, in which she explained that she was in the process of making a decision on her areas of interest in September 2008 and mentioned her desire to have children.

The Princess' first engagement and trip abroad was to Morocco on 28 October 2008, when she handed out Lego toys to orphanage children in Rabat. After this trip abroad, the Princess accompanied Prince Joachim to Russia.

Marie's first patronage came shortly after her son Prince Henrik of Denmark's birth, when her patronage of Tønder Festival was announced. Tønder Festival is an international folk music festival near her official residence Shackenborg Manor in Møgeltønder, where the Princess resides with her family. Shortly afterwards, Marie took over one of the Prince Consort's duties as Patron of the Annual Literature Prize that awards an annual prize for French-language literature in Copenhagen. Marie also took the patronage of ambassador to Syddansk Universitet in Odense in September 2009.

Princess Marie was presented on 17 November 2009 as patron of "The Danish National Commission for UNESCO.

The Princess' third official trip was to Hong Kong and China together with Prince Joachim in November 2009.

In January 2010, the Danish Ski Federation named Princess Marie official patron.

In March 2010, Marie undertook her fourth official visit abroad to Mexico City with Prince Joachim.

In April 2010, Marie paid a working visit to the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris as patron for the organisation.

Godchildren

Marie is a godmother to:

  • Magali Siesbye, daughter of Oscar and Britt Davidsen Siesbye.
  • Agathe Anna Steenstrup, daughter of Peter and Henriette Steenstrup.
  • Nicholas Christian Iuel Bendtner, son of Caroline Fleming and Danish footballer Nicklas Bendtner.
  • Her Royal Highness Princess Josephine of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat (Josephine Sophia Ivalo Mathilda), born 8 January 2011.

Leisure and personal life

Marie is an avid sportswoman and has been seen with Prince Joachim and his children skiing. Marie and Joachim also share a passion for racing, cars, and boxing.

Titles and styles

English

  • 6 February 1976 – 24 May 2008: Mademoiselle Marie Cavallier
  • 24 May 2008 – present: Her Royal Highness Princess Marie of Denmark, Countess of Monpezat

Danish

  • 6 February 1976 – 24 May 2008: Frøken Marie Agathe Odile Cavallier
  • 24 May 2008 – present Hendes Kongelige Højhed Prinsesse Marie af Danmark, grevinde af Monpezat

Honours and decorations

Coat of arms of Princess Marie of Denmark.

See also : List of honours of the Danish Royal Family by country

She has been awarded:[2]

National honours

  • Denmark Knight of the Order of the Elephant (R.E.)
  • Denmark 11 June 2009: Commemorative 75th Birthday Medal of His Royal Highness The Prince Consort
  • Denmark 16 April 2010: Commemorative 70th Birthday Medal of Her Majesty The Queen
  • Denmark 14 January 2012: Commemorative Ruby Jubilee Medal of Her Majesty The Queen

Foreign honours

External links

See also

References

  1. ^ "'Iconic royal wedding gowns". Harpers Bazaar.
  2. ^ Royal website page

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