Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II has tested positive for Covid-19 after attending the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, the royal palace has said.
The royal household said in a statement that Margrethe, 82, who has been on the throne for 50 years, cancelled her official duties after the Tuesday night test.
Her oldest son, the heir to the throne Crown Prince Frederik, and his wife, Crown Princess Mary, would take the queen’s place hosting a dinner with Danish government officials and members of parliament, the palace said.
Margrethe previously tested positive for the virus in February. At the time, the palace said she had received three doses of a Covid-19 vaccine.
Margrethe’s half-century reign makes her Europe’s longest-serving monarch after the death this month of Elizabeth, 96, who ruled for 70 years.
Out of respect for the late British monarch, Margrethe had asked her court to adjust the 10-11 September programme for her own 50-year anniversary commemorations, cancelling at short notice an appearance on the Amalienborg Palace balcony to greet well-wishers and a ride in a horse-drawn carriage through Copenhagen.
Having come to power amid waning support for the royals in 1972 on the death of her father, she helped restore its standing in the decades that followed. At the time a mother of two young boys – she now has eight grandchildren – she was the first woman to become a reigning queen in one of Europe’s oldest monarchies.
The queen, affectionally named Daisy and known for being artistic as well as a chain-smoker, has been hailed for unifying and modernising the monarchy during her 50-year reign, growing its support from 45% when she took the throne to more than three-quarters of Danes, making it one of the most popular monarchies in the world.
A painter who illustrated a 2002 Danish edition of Lord of the Rings as well as a costume and set designer, Margrethe has worked with the Royal Danish Ballet and Royal Danish Theatre and been involved in Denmark’s cultural scene.
She marked the 50th anniversary of her accession in January with a scaled-down celebration due to Covid. Widowed in 2018, Margrethe has repeatedly insisted that she will never step down from her duties.
Associated Press and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
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