Gala Banquet for Queen Margrethe’s 75th Birthday

A gala banquet was held tonight at Christiansborg Palace to celebrate Queen Margrethe’s 75th birthday tomorrow.

Around 300 guests feasted on halibut, beef tenderloin with potatoes, white asparagus and pearl onions, and cream cheese flan. The guest list included the Belgian, Dutch, Luxembourgish, Norwegian, Spanish and Swedish monarchs, as well as the President of Iceland.

Speeches were delivered by Crown Prince Frederik (who wished Belgium’s King Philippe a happy birthday for the day) and Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, before the birthday girl herself stepped up to the podium. The Queen spoke of how Denmark has changed since she was born in 1940, just after Denmark was invaded by the German army: “When I was a child and went to school, Denmark was still primarily an agricultural country. We were just getting over the Second World War. Today the picture has changed a lot. Now we really have become an industrial company with a high technological level.”

Read all about the Queen’s birthday festivities here.

Crown Princess Mary recycled the Birgit Hallstein dress first worn to the Dutch pre-inauguration dinner in April 2013. It was paired with the diamond and ruby parure her husband inherited from Queen Ingrid.

Princess Marie wore a new navy blue lace evening gown, with a peplum waist and sheer sleeves. Her diamond floral tiara and a sapphire and diamond pendant necklace completed the look.

Queen Maxima of the Netherlands went for a much simpler look than her last gala outing in Denmark (see here), opting for a black flapper-style dress, complete with a fringed, tiered skirt. She also wore the rose cut diamond bandeau on top of her simple up-do.

Sweden’s Queen Silvia repeated a peach and gold floral patterned gown that she debuted in 2010 at the pre-wedding dinner of her eldest daughter, Victoria. This time it was paired with a cream fur bolero and the Leuchtenburg sapphire parure.

Filed under Denmark
Tagged Birthday, Fashion, Margrethe II of Denmark.

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