Crown Prince Frederik's Suitability to be King

[UserDane]

I'm having mixed feelings about this discussion of Frederik's abilities to speak in public; the other day I watched one of these 'the year in the royal family' programmes which the TV stations make each December. They showed again the clip where he told about his newborn daughter in front of a lot of media at Rigshospitalet. They pushed for a date of presentation of the newborn and he just winked at them and said 'fetch your sleeping bags'. He can be eloquent, charming and witty when he deals with the media; he definitely has his bad days as well and of course he has to work to eliminate those as far as he can. But I don't think he is only a bad public speaker.

[crisscross1]

Originally Posted by Lichtenstein

Frankly if he does not like to do what is expected from him then he'll have to quit. Both country and family will survive the loss.

I don't think anyone is able to say that he doesn't like what he does because no one really knows what his feelings are about his role except his family and close friends. As for suggesting that he quit, some days perhaps he would love to but I don't think that is an option. The public and media would do as well to appreciate the fact that it takes all sorts to make the world go round, he is who he is and that's ok. JMO

[highpriestess]

Originally Posted by crisscross1

Yes but, if he had the choice would he be a crown prince. The job was thrust upon him because of who his mother is not necessarily a job he would have chosen for himself. We as 'normal' people get to choose the career paths we take in life, maybe he would prefer to be a postman or a doctor or ? who knows what. JMO

He has had 40 years to deal with the position he's born into. Jeez, it's about time for him and his defenders to quit this excuse for his lack of productivity. There's far worse fate than being born a crown prince. He's paid generously and enjoys all the previlleges of his position while working only one or two days a week. There are millions of people would switch place with him.

As for likability, it's not enough to be liked by Danes. It's a monarch's job to represent his country. He will need to be liked or at least respected by non-Danes. So far, judging from his light-weight overseas trips and very few participation at international events, he appears to have very little stature outside of Denmark. This will hurt his position in the long run.

[JessRulz]

Originally Posted by highpriestess

....As for likability, it's not enough to be liked by Danes. It's a monarch's job to represent his country. He will need to be liked or at least respected by non-Danes. So far, judging from his light-weight overseas trips and very few participation at international events, he appears to have very little stature outside of Denmark. This will hurt his position in the long run.

I agree that it is a monarch's job to represent his/her country, but why is it necessary for he/she to be liked by people from countries that are not their own? They won't be decided whether to keep or abolish the Danish monarchy, so why does a monarch need to be respected by non-Danes?

As for his stature outside of Denmark, IMO many of the European royals don't have a lot a stature outside of their home countries - the exemptions being the Spanish royals, the British royals and the Monaquese royals.

[WindsorIII]

Originally Posted by JessRulz

I agree that it is a monarch's job to represent his/her country, but why is it necessary for he/she to be liked by people from countries that are not their own? They won't be decided whether to keep or abolish the Danish monarchy, so why does a monarch need to be respected by non-Danes?

As for his stature outside of Denmark, IMO many of the European royals don't have a lot a stature outside of their home countries - the exemptions being the Spanish royals, the British royals and the Monaquese royals.

Agreed. I love to follow the royal families and try to keep up on the latest news when I can, but most of friends here would never even know who Prince Frederick, Princess Mary, Prince Philippe, Princess Letizia, etc. etc even are and moreover could never name what countries they are from.

Generally people know Prince Charles, William, Harry, Diana, Camilla, and the British Royals, but for the others its mostly a National thing and outside their own countries there is not much stature. In fact without the entourages, and if they put on jeans and a t-shirt, Frederick and Mary could go unnoticed in many places.

[Alisa]

Originally Posted by highpriestess

As for likability, it's not enough to be liked by Danes. It's a monarch's job to represent his country. He will need to be liked or at least respected by non-Danes. So far, judging from his light-weight overseas trips and very few participation at international events, he appears to have very little stature outside of Denmark. This will hurt his position in the long run.

I beg to differ.The only people who Frederik should be worried about pleasing are the ones who maintain his position as Crown Prince, Danes. The fact of the matter is that Denmark does not play significant role on the international scene. It is a small country with little over 5 million people. Moreover Frederik's role in international events like many royals is largely ceremonial. He isn't a diplomat nor is he a politician who has the ability to enact legislature that would affect Danes let alone people from other countries.

[GlitteringTiaras]

Originally Posted by Alisa

I beg to differ.The only people who Frederik should be worried about pleasing are the ones who maintain his position as Crown Prince, Danes.

Why? Then what is the point of Frederik coming to NYC, twice already, promoting/backing the Danish design and products? Frederik does have a position in the world, in which his actions are of importance. If he were not viable for Denmark to the rest of the world he wouldn't make the effort. Frederik's position in the world is not as insular, rather isolated, to Denmark as you think.

What is the point if he flys to another country, desperately seeking a position on the IOC, or visits the EU headquarters? If he's nonchalant (or dare I say "doesn't care") about his position or that of Denmark's on the world scene then why are the Danes paying for his lifestyle (because he looks cute in a suit? Come on...), or to be frank about it, his status/title/position in life? At this point, if he doesn't care, there really is no need for a monarchy after Margrethe.


Echoing Marengo's sentiments:

No that is not all that counts IMO. Though it comes in handy if people ´like´ their monarch/royal it is not a job requirement. It doesn´t say anything on how a royal does his/her job, just that he/she is likable. But as reigning royalty do not participate in some sort of popularity programme but actually are expected to contribute something to society and represent their country both at home as abroad I think there are much more things than just somebody´s likability that count.

And besides that, with arguments like that (the Danish taxpayer likes him so why would anybody else discuss it) a discussion will be largely impossible here, which is not something we (the moderators) would like.

[royalone3]

I've always liked Prince Fredrick,there's something about him,I can just tell he's got a very kind heart.