There was uncertainty associated with the dinner hosted by Queen Margrethe of Denmark this week. This meant that there was an unusually large press turnout outside Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen. Both Danish and Scandinavian press were present and tried as best they could to squeeze information out of government members as they arrived at the dinner.
Danish press has been speculating and asking questions of the Danish royal court ever since the dinner was announced last week. The Queen’s secretaries have not had much to do but to respond to press inquiries and questions about yesterday’s dinner. At first, the royal court did not want to answer any questions regarding the dinner.
Eventually, The Queen’s cabinet secretary told the Danish newspaper Berlingske that he could confirm that it would not publish any news from the royal house during the dinner. Cabinet Secretary Henning Fode further said: “Sometimes a dinner is held because the royal family has something important to say, sometimes a dinner is held only because the Queen wants to follow tradition to see her partners at regular intervals.”
Queen Margrethe in 2010. Photo: Johannes Jansson (CC BY 2.5) via Wikimedia Commons
“Nothing in connection with the Royal Family is to be announced during the dinner,” Fode said yesterday morning. This was the first minister-dinner held in Denmark in 17 years which has not been followed by major news.
The previous two times a dinner was hosted, Queen Margrethe told her government about upcoming weddings in the royal family. The last cabinet meeting dinner in 2009 ended with Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmusen asking the Queen to give him permission to resign. Now the speculation has begun about what Her Majesty has discussed with her government during the dinner.
The dinner was held at Amalienborg Palace, and the Queen, Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary, members of the government and the Prime Minister’s department chief attended the dinner.6666n
The Queen just wanted to know if the government would increase the fuel budget for the palace
In respect of her brother’s-in-law funeral the day before the Queen may have better refrained from wearing a red gown.