This year was relatively calm for the Swedish Royal Family; however, they will have a hectic 2023 with a Golden Jubilee to celebrate for King Carl XVI Gustaf. Let’s look back at the Swedish royals’ 2022 before they take on 2023.
January
This month was full of sickness for the family. The King, Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel all tested positive for COVID. January also saw the Crown Princess having to defend her choice of dog for her family. We also learned what Her Royal Highness thought of Sweden’s upcoming version of The Crown (spoiler – she’s not a fan).
Princess Birgitta celebrated her 85th birthday, and she is the only one of the King’s older sisters who still has the Royal Highness style.
Crown Princess Victoria also praised her goddaughter, Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway, as the Norwegian came of age.
The family also marked 75 years since the King’s father, Prince Gustaf Adolph, died in a plane crash.
February
The second month of the year has two birthdays to celebrate in the family – Princess Estelle and Princess Leonore. Crown Princess Victoria also had to make a statement over false allegations of a pending divorce between her and Prince Daniel.
Princess Madeleine also shared her support for Ukraine after the Russian invasion.
March
March saw the celebrations of another three birthdays (Adrienne, Oscar and Julian) and Crown Princess Victoria’s Name Day. The first information regarding the King’s jubilee in 2023 was also released.
There was a little bad news, as well, as Prince Carl Philip was fined for speeding.
However, Prince Daniel visited the United States, and Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia visited Ukrainian refugees in Sweden. The Crown Princess also brought her two children, Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar, along to celebrate World Water Day.
Princess Madeleine introduced her family’s dog, and the Royal Family launched their new website.
April
April had the family hosting their first Representation Dinner since 2019; the Prince Couple also attended a fundraiser concert for Ukraine. The family also concluded their visits around the country that they began to support Swedish businesses and communities after the pandemic.
Prince Alexander, the eldest child of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia, celebrated his sixth birthday ahead of his grandfather’s big birthday celebrations.
There was also more focus on Ukraine this month, with Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel spending time with Ukrainian children and Princess Sofia hosting 400 Ukrainians for an Orthodox Easter service.
Princess Beatrice flew in from London to join Queen Silvia, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia for the first World Dyslexia Assembly Sweden conference.
May
The family was together again in May to celebrate Sweden’s efforts during the pandemic, and Princess Madeleine made a rare public appearance in Fort Lauderdale to speak to Swedish women living abroad.
Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway were also hosted on a visit by Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel.
The Crown Princess was busy in May and took her two children to pick up rubbish on a beach. This is part of her family’s efforts to help clean up the environment.
The Royal Court even invited the public to take part in the Finnish state visit, and the King revealed his thoughts on Sweden joining NATO.
An important event occurred for Princess Estelle as she unveiled her first official portrait on a visit to her duchy.
Sad news was revealed, however, as it was announced that Princess Madeleine would not be back in Sweden for National Day. She lives in Florida with her family.
June
The beginning of June is dedicated to celebrating Sweden and National Day.
The King and Queen celebrated 500 years of the Swedish Navy and later joined their elder children and their families for National Day celebrations. These were the first normal celebrations since the beginning of the pandemic.
Of course, with National Day comes the release of the traditional photos from the Crown Princess Family.
Princess Madeleine marked her 40th birthday and later broke with tradition by not revealing a new picture of Prince Nicolas on his birthday.
The Crown Princess Family packed up and headed to Oslo in June to celebrate Princess Ingrid Alexandra’s 18th birthday. Young Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar also attended the birthday gala dinner with their parents, and Princess Estelle was featured in the future monarch photo with Ingrid Alexandra, Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, Princess Amalia of the Netherlands, and Prince Charles of Luxembourg.
Later in the month, Prince Nicolas visited his duchy for the first time; Queen Silvia and Queen Sofia of Spain joined forces in the fight against neurodegenerative diseases.
July
The month of July is not quite as busy. Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia revealed a new family photo, and Princess Madeleine travelled to Germany for the World Childhood Foundation.
Victoriadagen (Victoria Day) is celebrated annually on 14 July – the Crown Princess’s birthday. Festivities were back to usual again at Solliden and Borgholm’s Castle.
August
We learned where Prince Oscar was going to attend school in August. Prince Alexander also started school, albeit a bit more quietly.
Filming for Sweden’s version of The Crown also began.
September
September saw the King and Queen travel to London to say goodbye to Queen Elizabeth II.
Meanwhile, Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel honoured the late monarch in Stockholm while the Seraphim Toll took place.
The Swedish Royal Family also attended the opening of the Riksdag (parliament) later in the month. After a horrific hurricane hit Florida, Princess Madeleine appealed for people to join her in supporting relief efforts.
October
Plans for a state visit to Jordan were announced for Their Majesties, as were the first plans for King Carl Gustaf’s Golden Jubilee.
It was also announced that Crown Princess Victoria would join Crown Prince Haakon of Norway in Kenya in November. Princess Madeleine also introduced her family’s newest dog.
Princess Estelle was able to take the lead during the Dutch state visit as she got to greet her godfather, King Willem-Alexander.
We also saw the Halloween costumes of Princess Madeleine’s family in Florida.
November
As November began, Princess Sofia took on a new project for children in reading fairytales on a radio programme.
A visit to Brazil was in the cards for the King, Queen and Princess Madeleine, as well. The trio visited where the Queen grew up with the World Childhood Foundation.
King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia weren’t back in Sweden for long before they travelled to Jordan for a state visit. Queen Rania hosted the Swedish royals on several engagements.
Crown Princess Victoria also travelled to Kenya with Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon for UN-related events.
December
December hosts one of the most important events on the Swedish royal calendar – the Nobels.
The Royal Family, sans Princess Madeleine, attended the Nobel Prize ceremony and gala dinner in Stockholm in their usual glamourous styles.
Swedes also expressed some concern for the King’s health during the Nobel ceremonies, but he was back to full health for his Christmas Day address.
A highlight of the holiday season is the Crown Princess Family’s annual Christmas video, which, this year, was filmed watching Cinderella at the Opera.
The family later visited the local traffic depot to show their support and give gifts to those working during the holidays.
The family also celebrated Queen Silvia’s birthday on 23 December before the King gave his Christmas Day address – this year to both Swedes and Ukrainians.
