Margrethe & Henrik: candle light welcome to Fredensborg

Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik have been welcomed to summer at Fredensborg Palace at the traditional fakkeltog, a torchlight procession, on April 17, 2009. Queen Margrethe attended a State Council meeting in the morning in Copenhagen before the formalities of the Regent Couple's move from winter at Amalienborg to spring and summer at Fredensborg Palace. Each year the local residents hold a torchlight procession to bid them welcome. Residents, local groups and a music corps march by torchlight from Fredensborg railway station to the palace courtyard. The mayor makes a welcome speech, the Queen responds, and the townsfolk sing ”Der er et yndigt Land”.



Photos © Keld Navntoft/Berlingske Tidende, POLFOTO.

Fyens Stifstidende (in Danish)
Berlingske Tidende 'Regentparret er flyttet i sommerhus' - The regent couple has moved to the summer house
The Queen and Prince Henrik have been welcomed by the citizens of Fredensborg.
When the spring comes the Regent Couple, according to traditional practice, leave Amalienborg and move to the summer residence Fredensborg Palace.
And as usual, this year Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik were bid welcome by the town's citizens with a torchlight procession.
In the mild April weather the many families with small children and elderly citizens could buy torches at Fredensborg Station, before marching along with Hjemmeværnets Tambourkorps (Home Defence's Drum Corps) up to the castle, where the regent couple was formally welcomed by mayor Olav Aaen.
The Regent Couple came out on the palace and the Queen said thank you for the welcome and reported that she particularly loked forward to the move this year because of the recent beautiful sunshine.
Fredensborg Palace was built from 1719-22 and acts as the regent couple's summer palace.
The castle often creates the framework for large events in the royal family's life such as a wedding, a silver wedding anniversary and birthday parties./ritzau/
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