Prince Joachim and Princess Marie of Denmark have made the decision to move to the US in a Megxit-style move after their children were stripped of their titles. Prince Joachim, who is sixth in line to the throne, will become a defence industry attaché at the Embassy of Denmark in Washington DC. Queen Margrethe II removed the titles from his four children Nikolai, Felix, Henrik and Athena in September 2022.
Prince Joachim said: “I am proud that I still get the opportunity to represent Denmark internationally in the area of security and defence. Transatlantic cooperation is a high-priority area, and I am honoured that they have found me qualified for the task.”
Their move has been compared to that of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle who moved to the US in March 2020.
A rift in the Danish family rose when the Queen decided to remove her grandchildren’s titles as prince and princess.
She later apologised for upsetting certain members of the family, but stuck with her decision despite Prince Joachim’s frustration.
The official reason was to allow the children to live more normal lives, and follows similar moves by other royal families in Europe, including the Windsors, to slim down their monarchies, the palace said.
But Countess Alexandra of Frederiksborg, Prince Joachim’s first wife and mother of his two older children said at the time: “We are all confused by the decision.
“We are saddened and in shock. This comes like a bolt from the blue. The children feel ostracized.
“They cannot understand why their identity is being taken away from them.”
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Prince Joachim added in an interview with Danish news outlet Ekstra Bladet that: “We are all very sad. It’s never fun to see your children being harmed. They have been put in a situation they do not understand.”
Despite reports suggesting Prince Joachim had been informed of the decision in May, he said he was given just five days notice of the change.
A resurfaced interview revealed Prince Joachim had admitted he struggled to find his place in Denmark’s royal family – while his wife Princess Marie said she had “no choice” but to leave Copenhagen for Paris amid an “internal power struggle”.