Denmark’s queen has unexpectedly announced her abdication in her traditional New Year’s Eve speech.

Margrethe II will formally step down from the throne on 14 January – exactly 52 years to the day of her ascension to the throne in 1972.

She will be succeeded by her eldest son, Crown Prince Frederik – who will become Frederik X.

Margrethe – the eldest child of Denmark’s former monarch King Frederik IX and Queen Ingrid – succeeded her father following his death on 14 January 1972.

She is the world’s only current queen regnant and, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September 2022, the world’s longest-currently-serving female monarch.

In July, she became the longest-sitting monarch in Denmark’s history.

The record was previously held by Christian IV, who, while technically reigned for 60 years, only ruled for 51 years and six months, as he was a child for the early part of his reign.

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Journalist and royal commentator, Alistair Bruce, told Sky News: “Well, it’s not an enormous surprise, although the timing has taken many people by that surprise.”

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