On Sunday, Queen Margrethe, Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Christian travelled to Jutland to mark the 100th anniversary of the territory becoming a part of Denmark.
The first act of the day was a carriage ride along the Denmark-Germany boarder, south of the town of Kolding.
The entire direct succession line to the Danish throne travelled in the same carriage King Christian X used when he travelled to the area in 1920 to ratify the results of the referendum that made Jutland part of Denmark once again, after 56 years under German dominance.
Back in 1920, only His Majesty travelled on this particular coach, while the other members of the Royal Family accompanying him (Queen Alexandrine, Princess Thyra and Princess Dagmar) followed him on a more traditional horse-drawn carriage.
The carriage is 157-years-old, and was created by court carriage manufacturer Henry Fife. At first, the vehicle presented a traditional closed Viennese wagon, but it was later remodeled to remove the coachman buck and give it a hood instead of a ceiling.
Another novelty of this particular carriage is that, instead of the traditional coachman riding on the carriage and controlling the horses from there, on this vehicle horses are guided by riders mounting the horses themselves.
Since 1920, many Heads of State and authorities visiting Denmark have had the privilege of using this particular carriage to receive their official welcome to the country; notably, it was used during the procession that brought Queen Elizabeth to Amalienborg Palace during her State visit to Denmark in May of 1979.
The carriage is sometimes used for the Queen’s birthday ride, depending on the weather; because it can’t be closed, it is never used for the New Year celebrations, when members of the Danish Royal family converge onto Amalienborg Palace to welcome the Diplomatic Corps.
