Princess Marie’s Coat of Arms Revealed

The coat of arms of Denmark’s Princess Marie, and her father Alain Cavallier, were revealed earlier this month, when their crests were added to the walls of the Frederiksborg Palace Chapel.

The Knights Chapel of the Royal Orders is where the crests of all individuals who have a Danish Royal Order are displayed. The two Danish Royal Orders are the Order of the Elephant, the country’s highest, and the Order of the Dannebrog. Princess Marie was made a Knight of the Order of the Elephant on May 24th, 2008 – the day she married Prince Joachim. Mr Cavallier was given the Grand Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog on the same day.

Princess Marie’s crest has two shields – the one on the lef-hand side is that of Prince Joachim’s, in accordance with Danish Royal Family tradition, in which the coat of arms of a Princess who married into the family is joined with her husband’s to create an ‘alliance’ crest (similarly, Crown Princess Mary’s crest features the coat of arms of Crown Prince Frederik). As is also custom with Princes and Princesses, the crest is topped with a Princely crown.

The second shield making up Princess Marie’s crest is her personal coat of arms. The central figure of the Princess’ coat of arms is a horseman, representing her maiden name, Cavallier (meaning knight or horseman). The secondary figures of the coat of arms are a combination of Danish and French national symbols – a heart and a fleur de lys. On Princess Marie’s coat of arms, three red hearts (symbolising Denmark, Marie’s adopted homeland) are cut with the fleur de lys (symbolising France, the country of Marie’s birth). According to Jyllands Posten, there is also a reference to the Virgin Mary in the coat of arms (symbolising the Christian name of the Princess). If anyone can spot this reference, you must have incredible eyesight.

Princess Marie’s crest is boarded with the collar of the Order of Elephant, and reads “Marie Principissa Daniae – Die XXIV Maji An: MMVIII” around the outside (Latin for “Marie, Princess of Denmark – The 24th of May, 2008”).

Mr Cavallier’s crest only features one shield, his personal coat of arms. Like in his daughter’s arms, the main figure of Mr Cavallier’s is a horseman. His coat of arms also features three red fleur de lys, and several white lilies to signify France. The outside of Mr Cavallier’s crest is boarded with the ribbon of the Order of Dannebrog, and bears Mr Cavallier’s name and the date he received the Order in Latin.

Click here to read more about Marie’s coat of arms.

Filed under Denmark
Tagged Coat of Arms, Frederiksborg Palace, In-Laws, Order of the Dannebrog, Order of the Elephant, Orders, Princess Marie of Denmark.