Frederik & Mary farewell their chief-of-court Per Thornit

April 22, 2010: Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary hosted a formal farewell reception for Per Thornit, their chief-of-court, at Amalienborg. It was announced on March 30 that Per Thornit would retire at the end of this month. A new chief-of-court is yet to be announced. Per Thornit, 68 in June, has worked for the court for 25 years, supporting and advising Frederik, Joachim, Alexandra and then Mary into their public royal life. Per Thornit and his second wife Ulla were farewelled by royal and other guests including jazz musician Fuzzy (he composed Frederik's processional music), architect Noah Whitehorn (who has overseen the restoration of Frederik VIII's palace at Amalienborg) and royal family lawyer Henrik Wedel-Wedelsborg and his wife Gitte. Although unable to attend the recent Queen's birthday celebrations, 97-year-old Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller also attended. As well as being a long time friend of the royal family and one of the world's oldest billionaires according to Forbes, he is the only non-royal to hold the Royal Order of the Elephant. Per Thornit will continue service to the court as the treasurer of the Royal Orders of Chivalry.



Photos © Keld Navntoft/B.T., Jens Dige/POLFOTO.

The Danish Royal Court's press release -

Chief-of-Court Per Thornit resigns
Amalienborg, 30 March 2010
I have the honor to announce that chief-of-court of Their Royal Highnesses the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, Chamberlain Per Thornit, has applied to retire from his position at the end of April this year after 25 years of service.

Her Majesty The Queen has expressed her appreciation for the Chamberlain's excellent service.

Per Thornit has served with the Royal Family since 1985, when he was hired as head of the Cabinet Secretariat. From 1990 Per Thornit functioned as Chief Secretary to Their Royal Highnesses Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Joachim and then from 2004 as Chamberlain to Their Royal Highnesses the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess.

Her Majesty the Queen has decided that following his resignation, Per Thornit is to take over the office of Treasurer of the Royal Danish Orders of Chivalry after the current Chamberlain, Ambassador Paul Fischer.

A successor is expected to be appointed shortly.

Henning Fode
Her Majesty the Queen's
Cabinet Secretary

Berlingske Tidende - The Chamberlain of the Crown Prince Couple's Court Per Thornit, resigns at the end of April, the court has announced.
Per Thornit has been with the Royal house since 1985, when he was hired as head of the Cabinet secretariat.
From 1990 Per Thornit acted as a head of court for Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Joachim and from 2004 as a head of royal staff for the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess.
Her Majesty The Queen pronounces "her appreciation of the head of royal staff's excellent service" and has decided that Per Thornit, after his resignation, is to be Treasurer of The Royal Danish Order of Chivalry, writes the court in its press release.
A successor as a head of royal staff is expected appointed soon.

Billed Bladet 'Mary og Frederiks hofchef fratræder sin stilling' - Mary's and Frederik's chief of staff resigns his position.
The last working day approaches for one of the royal family's most trusted employees.
By his own request the Crown Prince Couple's head of royal staff Per Thornit resigns his position at the end of April 2010.
He has covered many different positions since he was employed as head of the cabinet secretariat in 1985.
Since 2004 Per Thornit has been the head of royal staff for Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary.
Most recently he has played a part in putting distinctive marks on the renovation of the Crown Prince Couple's next home at Amalienborg by originating the idea of letting Danish artists decorate parts of the palace.
Queen Margrethe expresses her appreciation of his excellent service in connection with Per Thornit's resignation.

Jyllands Posten 'Frederik og Joachims reservefar går' -
Frederik's and Joachim's substitute father leaves
by ELSE BOELSKIFTE
Published 30.03.10 at 13:34 - updated at 13:37

The Crown Prince has to have new head of royal staff, after his closest personal guide for 20 years has announced his departure.

For 20 years Per Thornit has helped Crown Prince Frederik, 14 of them also with Prince Joachim, who was their nearest personal advisor and the adult they were closest to in their younger days.

Now he chooses to leave the position as a the Crown Prince Couple's head of royal staff with his exit at the end of April.

Per Thornit will be 68 years old in June.

Started in Cabinet Secretariat

He has known Crown Prince Frederik and Prince Joachim since they were 17 years and 16 years, and he began at Amalienborg as head of the Queen's Cabinet Secretariat.

The head of royal staff (Chamberlain), a title he got in 2004, has been known for his own firm opinions which have not always been in agreement with The Queen's Lord Chamberlains' [Ove Ullerup] during his time as a secretarial manager of the two princes.

He stood at one time for maintaining distance from the relentless media before the royal house employed its first head of communication and public affairs, Lis M. Frederiksen.

"Here in the palace we manage [what is] outside. I think it's easier for me to maintain distance and say "no comment", than it'd be for a press spokesperson who [reduces] distance. That is what I also think is the peoples' wish," Per Thornit said in an interview with Jyllands-Posten in 2002.

Stays treasurer

Per Thornit has followed the renovation of the Crown Prince Couple's next home at Amalienborg, Frederik VIII's Palace, very closely.

He is very enthusiastic about art and in that role has also been able to act as a qualified adviser to Frederik and Mary.

The Queen has decided that Per Thornit is to take over the office as a treasurer of The Royal Danish Knights Orders after his resignation at the [end of] the current chamberlain's, ambassador Paul Fischer's [tenure].

B.T. - photo gallery

Frederik & Mary @ American-Scandinavian Foundation Dinner, NYC

Crown Prince Frederik and Cown Princess Mary attended the 2009 American-Scandinavian Foundation Dinner tonight at the Pierre Hotel in New York City. The American-Scandinavian Foundation is a non-profit organisation which promotes international understanding through educational and cultural exchange. At the gala the ASF has honoured , former U.S. Ambassador to Denmark, and his wife Deeda Blair, whom he married in Denmark and who was formerly head of the Lasker Foundation. Nikolaj Hübbe is also honoured, he is Artistic Director of the Royal Danish Ballet. The evening was emceed by Liv Ullmann, acclaimed actress and director. Proceeds from the gala benefit will go to the American-Scandinavian Foundation’s programs for educational and cultural exchange. Royal Danish cousin Prince Filipos of Greece was also present at the gala.

Yesterday (Thursday March 26) Frederik and Mary were in Denver, Colorado, where Frederik was involved in day-long activities in connection with the Sportaccord 2009 conference held there. Mary followed a private program. There was some bad weather affecting transport in Colorado and nearby states which created some doubt about the trip back east to New York. It appears they left this morning to arrive in time for the gala this evening, based on weather reports and planes to New York out of Denver.



Group photo above: Nikolaj Hübbe received an Amaerican-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) Cultural Award while socialite/philanthropist fundraiser Deeda Blair received a Distinguished Public Service Award. Photos © Daylife/Getty, AP, WireImage

Dance for You, No. 28, Jan-Feb 2009 "Designing the Primal: An interview with Nikolaj Hübbe"
The New York Times "Ready for a Giant Leap Back Home" - feature on Nikolaj Hübbe

For those interested, Mary's dress at the New York gala is by Julie Fagerholt of Heartmade (thanks Ayvee!) And with my correction, my apologies to Julie Fagerholt and to Ayvee, who gave the correct FYI from the start! A pic of the dress on parade at Copenhagen Fashion Week.

On Thursday Crown Prince Frederik was at Sportaccord 2009 in Denver while Mary followed a private program.

Crown Prince Frederik's speech at the sports conference 'Sportaccord' in Denver, Colorado, Thursday March 26, 2009:
I would like to warmly congratulate all parties involved in hosting Sportaccord 2009 in the scenic settings of the wonderful mile-high-city of Denver.
Bringing people together in the framework that Sportaccord provides, paves the way for new ideas to take shape and creates an environment that spurs the development of the sports community. Since the first stages in 2003, you have made Sportaccord into a widely recognized event, which annually brings together the World of Sport and enhances new initiatives.
Six months from now, we will hopefully meet again in Copenhagen, the capital of my home country, Denmark, for the IOC Session & Olympic Congress 2009.
We are proud, to be able to host such an important event. Many of the issues that have been touched on at this convention will be addressed in Copenhagen and crucial decisions for the world of sports will be taken at the congress. It is my hope, that all of you will contribute to make the 121st IOC Session & XIII Congress a success.
See you in Copenhagen.

B.T. 'Frederik og Mary får topkarakter i USA' - Frederik and Mary get top mark in the U.S.
The Danish Crown Prince Couple have impressed politicians, the press and nursing home residents during their visits in the U.S.
Chicago's mayor Richard Daley went to work with pleasure on Sunday. TV and newspaper journalists in both Iowa and Nebraska went out to cover stories. And...USA Today used space to cover the Crown Prince Couple's trip in the U.S.
On Saturday Frederik's and Mary's official trip to the U.S. will end.
But even though the Crown Prince Couple go home, they leave many good impressions.
Torsten Jansen, responsible for the PR Department at the [Royal Danish] Embassy in Washington calls the visit an "unconditional success": "Frederik and Mary do something special. They are very capable ambassadors for Denmark. And they are also quite good at talking to everybody they meet," says Torsten Jansen, who followed Frede and Mary on their trip from Chicago, through Iowa, Nebraska and Colorado.
The couple will go to New York City where the visit will end on Saturday evening.
It isn't only Torsten Jansen who gives Frede and Mary top marks.
Since the beginning of his career as Chicago's mayor in the mid-eighties, Richard Daley has met lots of royals from all over the world.
But Frede and Mary made an especial impression on him.
"Many Americans are unsure about how to see the whole idea about kings, queens, princes and princesses. But if they met Mary and Frederik, they'd suddenly understand what it was about. The two are actually not just fantastic representatives of their country, they are also wise and pleasant human beings," Daley said.
And people who know the mayor emphasised it's very unusual for he and his wife to cancel their loved freedom on Sundays (as they did for Frede and Mary) to have an official lunch with the visitors from abroad.
Billed Bladet 'Kig i Marys USA-garderobe' - Look at Mary's U.S. wardrobe: about the 'beautiful, smart and practical' choices Mary has made for the trip which will be covered in more detail in the upcoming edition of the magazine and a small gallery from the visit

Sportaccord: Royal Back Up (YouTube 03:29)
TV2 clip (02:01)

Frederik & Mary @ Vestas groundbreaking in Colorado

Today Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary travelled to Denver, Colorado, to take part in the topping-out ceremony for two new Vestas Wind Systems manufacturing plants. They lunched privately with local business people and business leaders within the climate and energy sector in Denver. Later in the afternoon they were at the groundbreaking event at the Vestas Factory March 25, 2009 in Brighton, Colorado).



Photos © DayLife

Crown Prince Frederik's speech

The Greeley Tribune - Danish royalty to attend Vestas site groundbreaking in Brighton
Omaha World Tribune 'Danish prince celebrates new Colo. wind plants'
Judith Kohler | AP
BRIGHTON, Colo. (AP) - Danish Crown Prince Frederik said Wednesday that expanding a country's renewable energy sources and recovering from a recession didn't have to be mutually exclusive.
"Denmark is economically competitive not in spite of these efforts, but because of them," he said at a Brighton plant groundbreaking for Danish wind-turbine maker Vestas Wind System. "Opening a manufacturing plant, unfortunately, is not very common these days."
The prince, his wife Crown Princess Mary and Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter attended the ceremony for two parts plants by Vestas, which already has a blade-making plant in Windsor, about 50 miles north of Denver.
The company also is planning a 400-employee factory in Pueblo to build towers that support the turbines, which it has said would be the world's largest such factory.
Ritter has championed alternative energy, which he called the state's "new energy economy" for creating jobs and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions.
"It isn't a slogan. It's an idea," he said.
The crown prince said that during a similar economic downturn in the 1970s, Denmark decided to wean itself off fossil fuels, leading to dramatic economic growth and a drop in carbon dioxide emissions of more than 13 percent. He also said renewable energy accounted for 28 percent of Denmark's electricity supply.
Ritter said Denmark could be an example for his state and the United States to follow.
The crown prince and his wife also visited Dana College in Blair, Neb., and attended a groundbreaking for a new ethanol enzyme plant being built by Danish-based Novozymes.
The Denver Post
CBS4 Denver

Vestas

CBS4 Denver clip (two clips on the menu)
TV2 clip (02:32) - a feature about Danish heritage (posted again)