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| Prince Joachim of Denmark | |||||
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| Count of Monpezat | |||||
 Joachim in 2013 | |||||
| Born | (1969-06-07)7 June 1969 (age 56) Rigshospitalet,Copenhagen, Denmark | ||||
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| Father | Henri de Laborde de Monpezat | ||||
| Mother | Margrethe II | ||||
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| Danish royal family |
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| Extended royal family |
Prince Joachim of Denmark, Count of Monpezat,RE,SKmd (Danish pronunciation:[ˈjoːæˌkʰim]; Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian; born 7 June 1969) is a member of theDanish royal family. The younger son ofQueen Margrethe II, he is fifth in the line ofsuccession to the Danish throne, following the four children of his elder brotherKing Frederik X.
Joachim was born on 7 June 1969 atRigshospitalet, part of theCopenhagen University Hospital inCopenhagen. He was christened Joachim Holger Waldemar Christian on 15 July 1969 inAarhus Cathedral, the first member of the royal family to have been christened outside of Copenhagen. His godparents were his maternal aunt,Princess Benedikte of Denmark; his paternal uncle, Jean Baptiste de Laborde de Monpezat; his mother's first cousin,Princess Christina of Sweden; andKing Harald V (then Crown Prince of Norway).
Joachim attended school as a private pupil from 1974 until 1976 atAmalienborg Palace and then from 1976 until 1982 atKrebs' Skole in Copenhagen. In the period 1982–1983 he studied as a boarder atÉcole des Roches inNormandy, France. In 1986, Joachim graduated fromØregård Gymnasium. In 1993, he completed his studies in agrarian economics at Den Classenske Agerbrugskole Næsgaard. His first language is Danish, but he also speaks French (his father's language), English and German.[2]
In 1993, Joachim took over the estate ofSchackenborg Castle in the town ofMøgeltønder, in Southern Jutland, having been granted the estate in the will of Count Hans Schack in 1978.[3]
Joachim and his first wife, now theCountess of Frederiksborg, received 13 million DKK collected by the people of Denmark as a national gift, reserved for restoration of the estate.[4] The restoration was completed in 1999. The couple was divorced in 2005, whereupon Countess Alexandra moved with their two sons to Copenhagen.[5][6] Joachim remained at Schackenborg – from 2007 alongside his second wife – until 2014 when the estate was handed over to the Schackenborg Foundation, which consists of Joachim, Bitten and Mads Clausens foundation, Ole Kirks Foundation, and Ecco Holding.[7] Joachim, Marie and their children moved from the castle toKlampenborg, north of Copenhagen, but still holiday at the castle.[8] In 2023, they sold their home at Klampenborg and purchased a home atVedbaek.[9]
In 1987, Joachim enlisted as a recruit in theQueen's Life Regiment, where from he first entered the NCO School and where after the lieutenant school. Between 1989 and 1990, he served asplatoon commander in the 3rd tank squadron/1st Battalion (3/I/PLR) of thePrince's Life Regiment.
In 1992 He entered theRoyal Danish Military Academy's course for reserve officers to become acaptain.
Between 1996 and 2004, he served as squadron commander of 3rd tank squadron/2nd Battalion (3/II/PLR) also in the Prince's Life Regiment.
In 2005 he was astaff officer in the staff ofDanske Division and from 2011 He was liaison officer at theDefence Region of Fuen and South Jutland.
In 2015, Joachim was appointed special advisor to theChief of Defense in theRoyal Danish Army.[10]
During the summer of 2019, Joachim, Princess Marie and their two children moved to Paris, France, while the Prince had been admitted to the highest-ranking military educational program atÉcole Militaire by invitation from the French Minister of Defense.[11] Joachim graduated on 26 June 2020, being the first Danish Officer to complete the two-part special education.[citation needed]
Earlier in June 2020,Minister of DefenceTrine Bramsen promoted Joachim toBrigadier General due to his new acquired educational merits at École Militaire. He was subsequently named Military Attaché at the Royal Danish Embassy in Paris, France, by theDanish Ministry of Defense,[12] a position he was expected to hold for at least three years while maintaining his patronages and royal engagements in Denmark when possible. Joachim commenced his new position on 1 September 2020.
On 24 July 2020, while on holiday inChâteau de Cayx, Joachim was admitted toToulouse University Hospital for surgery on a blood clot in his brain.[13] He was discharged from hospital in early August.[14]
In March 2023, it was announced that Joachim, Marie and their two younger children would be moving toWashington, D.C. where he would be taking up the role of defence industryattaché (Defence Industrial Cooperation Attaché) at the Danish Embassy from September 2023.[15][16] He concurrently serves as theDeputyDefence Attaché (Danish:stedfortrædende forsvarsattaché). In September 2025, the Danish Defence Ministry stated that he had been extended in both positions until August 2027.[17]
On 18 November 1995, atFrederiksborg Palace Church inHillerød, nearCopenhagen, Joachim marriedAlexandra Christina Manley, a Hong Kong-born former sales and marketing deputy chief executive ofEnglish,Chinese, andAustrian ancestry. The couple had two sons,Count Nikolai andCount Felix.
The couple announced their separation on 16 September 2004; their divorce was final on 8 April 2005. The couple shared custody of their sons until they came of age. Alexandra received the title of Countess of Frederiksborg, and was permitted to retain the courtesy title of princess pending remarriage. She subsequently remarried and forfeited the royal title, but retained the title of countess. She continues to live in Denmark.
On 3 October 2007, the Danish court announced that Joachim had become engaged to French nativeMarie Cavallier. Their wedding took place on 24 May 2008 in Møgeltønder Church near Schackenborg Castle. The wedding date marked the 73rd anniversary of the wedding of Joachim's grandparents,King Frederik IX andQueen Ingrid of Denmark.[18] The couple have two children,Count Henrik andCountess Athena.
None of Joachim's four children have been styled as Royal Highnesses but simply asHighnesses per the Danish court. From 1 January 2023 all four of his children are known as His or Her Excellency Count/Countess of Monpezat. They no longer hold a princely title.[19] Joachim expressed his sadness at his mother's decision to make that change.[20]
Joachim enjoyshistoric motor sports car racing and has participated in theCopenhagen Historic Grand Prix multiple times.
In 2019, Joachim presented the documentary seriesPrins Joachim fortæller forDanmarks Radio. In the six-part series that he also co-produced, Joachim investigates the ideas and events that shaped Denmark's history.[21]
| Coat of arms of Prince Joachim of Denmark | |
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| Armiger | Prince Joachim of Denmark |
Denmark
1988:Sergeant 1989:Second lieutenant of the reserve 1990:First lieutenant of the reserve 1992:Captain of the reserve 2005:Major of the reserve 2011:Lieutenant-Colonel of the reserve 2015:Colonel of the reserve 2020:Brigadier General[22]
14 January 1972: Knight of theOrder of the Elephant (R.E.)
16 April 2004: Grand Commander of theOrder of the Dannebrog (S.Kmd.)
Recipient of the Silver Anniversary Medal of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik(10 June 1992)
Recipient of the Silver Jubilee Medal of Her Majesty The Queen(14 January 1997)
Recipient of the Commemorative 75th Birthday Medal of His Royal Highness The Prince Consort(11 June 2009) Recipient of the Commemorative 70th Birthday Medal of Her Majesty The Queen(16 April 2010)
Recipient of the Commemorative Ruby Jubilee Medal of Her Majesty The Queen(14 January 2012)
Recipient of the Commemorative 75th Birthday Medal of Her Majesty The Queen(16 April 2015)
Recipient of the Golden Anniversary Medal of Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik(10 June 2017)
Recipient of the Prince Henrik's Commemorative Medal(11 June 2018) Recipient of the Commemorative 80th Birthday Medal of Her Majesty The Queen(16 April 2020) Recipient of the Commemorative Golden Jubilee Medal of Queen Margrethe II(14 January 2022)He has been honoured with:[23]
Belgium: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Crown
Brazil: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Southern Cross[24]
Bulgaria: First Class of theOrder of the Balkan Mountains (2006)
Finland: Grand Cross of theOrder of the White Rose of Finland
France: Grand Officer of theOrder of the Legion of Honour
Germany: Grand Cross 1st Class of theOrder of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Greece: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Phoenix[25]
Iceland: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Falcon[26]
Japan: Knight Grand Cordon of theOrder of the Chrysanthemum
Jordan: Grand Cordon of theSupreme Order of the Renaissance
Luxembourg: Grand Cross of theOrder of Adolphe of Nassau
Mexico: Sash of theOrder of the Aztec Eagle
Nepal: Member of theOrder of the Three Divine Powers (13 October 1989)
Netherlands: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Crown (17 March 2015)
Norway: Grand Cross of theOrder of Saint Olav
Romania: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Star of Romania
Spain: Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of Civil Merit (24 October 2023)[27]
Sweden: Commander Grand Cross of theOrder of the Polar StarThe Dansk Rugby Union (DRU) website names Prince Joachim as the patron of the DRU.[28] He participated in a classic-car race, part of the GTC-TC championship: he drove aBMW 2002, sharing the ride withDerek Bell.[29]
Scroll down to "Dekorationer"
Prince Joachim of Denmark Born: 7 June 1969 | ||
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1 Also prince of Norway 2 Also prince of Greece 3 Also prince of Iceland 4 Also prince of the United Kingdom 5 Not Danish prince by birth, but created prince of Denmark Princes that lost their title are shown in italics | ||
