Death and Funeral of Prince Henrik of Denmark: February 13 and 20, 2018

[Muhler]

No dates.

I think it's most likely his ashes will be spread from Dannebrog at some point.
QMII will board Dannebrog for the season 1st May and I imagine the family will gather aboard at some point and then PH's ashes will be spread somewhere at see. And it might very well be on 1st May, when the ship is sailing from Copenhagen to Helsingør.

As for the urn that has or is to be buried at Fredensborg. I think it's likely that some sort of marker will be placed where the urn is buried and it may IMO not be unlikely to bury the urn in the presence of the family on 1st May as well. When Dannebrog has sailed to Helsingør, QMII will almost certainly drive to Fredensborg afterwards. It's close by. So two ceremonies may take place that day.

So I will look out for three dates: 1st May. PH's birthday 15th June. Or their wedding anniversary. (I can't remember the date.)

[Nordic]

Originally Posted by Muhler

I think it's most likely his ashes will be spread from Dannebrog at some point.
QMII will board Dannebrog for the season 1st May and I imagine the family will gather aboard at some point and then PH's ashes will be spread somewhere at see. And it might very well be on 1st May, when the ship is sailing from Copenhagen to Helsingør.


---it may IMO not be unlikely to bury the urn in the presence of the family on 1st May as well. When Dannebrog has sailed to Helsingør, QMII will almost certainly drive to Fredensborg afterwards. It's close by. So two ceremonies may take place that day.

Officiel ombordstigning på Kongeskibet Dannebrog | Kongehuset
Dannebrog leaves Copenhagen 12.30 and expected time of arrival in Helsingør is 15.30 (3:30 pm).

Crown Prince Frederik has an official event during that time. If family is present for the spreading of the ashes, 1st May is not likely.

[FasterB]

Originally Posted by Muhler

So I will look out for three dates: 1st May. PH's birthday 15th June. Or their wedding anniversary. (I can't remember the date.)

Hrm hrm, Prince Henrik´s birthday is the 11th of June and their weddingday the 10th of June :-)

I think perhaps a press release with(out?) photo(s) will be realeased once the ash has been spread and buried.

[Muhler]

True! I was thinking of Valdemar's Day. (The birthday of Dannebrog, the flag)

Isn't the 11th June also the birthday of the Devil? - And just like the mortgages he has birthday twice a year...

[FasterB]

Originally Posted by Muhler

True! I was thinking of Valdemar's Day. (The birthday of Dannebrog, the flag)

Isn't the 11th June also the birthday of the Devil? - And just like the mortgages he has birthday twice a year...

Oh yes, indeed it is

[iceflower]

.

Today, June 11, would have been Prince Henrik's 84th birthday, on this occasion Queen Margrethe awarded a memorial medal to the Royal Family, the court's staff and persons who have helped in particular with the Prince's disease, death and funeral:



** kongehuset.dk: Mindemedaille for Prins Henrik ** fb post **

[Muhler]

QMII told at the press meeting at Cayz (I can't figure out to spell that name, I've seen at least four different ways of spelling it. Three today alone!)
that PH's ashes had still not yet been scattered at sea, nor buried at Fredensborg.

There were according to QMII still a few things to arrange in that regards.

- I find that pretty odd! Scattering his ashes from a ship can hardly be that difficult to arrange, even if they include his French family.
And if they are commissioning a monument of some sort for Fredensborg, it has taken quite a bit of time to make.
Perhaps they wish to combine both events? That would IMO make sense.

A sea ceremony, attended by the family and close friends and later the same day a urn-burial of some sort at Fredensborg?

[cdm]

On the royal family’s instagram it is spelled Cayx.

I seem te recall an interview with Prince Henrik who told the original spelling was Caix, but then everybody pronounced it wrong and he changed it to Cayx.

[JR76]

Originally Posted by Muhler

- I find that pretty odd! Scattering his ashes from a ship can hardly be that difficult to arrange, even if they include his French family.

Is it hard to get permission to scatter someone's ashes in the sea? How long can you wait before the burial has to happen?

[Friedrich Karl II]

Originally Posted by JR76

Is it hard to get permission to scatter someone's ashes in the sea? How long can you wait before the burial has to happen?

Hard to imaginate that byreocracy would be so slow. Even Finnish byreocracy is slow but not so slow. From funeral service is many months already so surely all paper work should be ready. They probably wait something else.

[LadyFinn]

Originally Posted by Friedrich Karl II

Hard to imaginate that byreocracy would be so slow. Even Finnish byreocracy is slow but not so slow. From funeral service is many months already so surely all paper work should be ready. They probably wait something else.

In Finland:
According to the Funerary Services Act, the ashes of the deceased must be laid in one single place within one year from death.
Basic instructions for the family of the deceased _ Finnish Association of Funeral Services

Is it ok in Denmark to lay the ashes to two different places?

[Muhler]

Originally Posted by JR76

Is it hard to get permission to scatter someone's ashes in the sea? How long can you wait before the burial has to happen?

I actually had to look it up.

A last will regarding a wish to have your ashes spread over the sea (but not lakes.) can be obtained via borger.dk (*) and that's it. It's valid at once. You just print a copy which you include with your other relevant papers (or pdf. files) or a signed piece of paper in which you have expressed your wish to have your ashes spread over the sea. Complete with name, address and social security number. Which you submit to the Ministry of Church (that's done by the undertaker) asking for permission to spread the ashes.
You also apply permission to have your urn buried outside a public cemetery to the Ministry of Church.

You can also obtain a special permission if there is nothing in writing but only a verbal wish.

Once you have these permissions it's up to the family to in this case spread PH's ashes and bury his urn at Fredensborg.

The rules are clear:
The ashes must be spread at least 200 meters from shore.
It has to be performed in a dignified and solemn manner.
It has to be carried out discreetly. - No public spectacle!
The urn must be destroyed afterwards.

This is how it's performed from navy ships. (Dannebrog is a navy ship, #1 in the navy to be exact.)

The flag is lowered to half mast. (In the navy Dannebrog is not called a colour, but an orlogs-flag (after the Dutch orlop for warships/man-of-war.) The orlogsflag is always flying from the stern of the ship.
The ships-bell (the spirit of the ship) is rung lightly and quickly for a couple of minutes prior to the ceremony.
The ship is turned up against the wind. (So that the ashes blow away from the ship.) And the speed is slowed down.
Everyone gathers at the quarterdeck. (Relatives, as well as, I presume, an honor guard from Dannebrog.)
The ships-bell is tolled again.
The urn is opened and the ashes spread into the sea.
There will be a short sermon lead by the captain. (Or another navy officer, but since the captain of Dannebrog is the highest ranking captain in the navy, as well as the Monarch's personal captain, it's unlikely another officer will take over.) That is ended with a communal Lord's Prayer.
Then the relatives will spread flowers over the sea.
The ships-bell tolls again.
The flag is raised to full mast.
And finally the time and position for spreading the ashes, as well as the name of the diseased, the birthday and date of death is entered in the ships log.

(*) Borger.dk - The website where you must handle all your dealings with the state, regional, municipal authorities as well as other public services.
That can be anything from applying for a new passport, change your address, renew your hunting license, report rats, get a copy of your criminal records, apply for subsidies for paying your rent, register as an organ-donor, order transport if you are handicapped and so on and so on...

However, I read an article in the magazine edition of BB this week.
QMII's is having a new captain of Dannebrog.
The new captain will be Peter Schinkel Stamp, who served as one of her adjutants in 2003-2005. He is currently heading the navy NCO school.

QMII's current captain is Christian A. Nørgaard, who will retire after the last cruise with Dannebrog has ended in early September. (Being the highest post a captain of a ship can hold in the Danish navy, they typically retire with Dannebrog being their last command.)
I wonder if the last duty of the current captain, who has served for five years, will be to oversee the spreading of the ashes of PH?
That would IMO be a very neat gesture to a captain who has served and come to know all the members of the DRF well.

ADDED: About permissions.
QMII is the head of the State Church, which belong under the Ministry of Church. It is very hard to imagine there would be any delays in regards to permissions. On the contrary!

[eya]

The Palace announcement today:

"Prince Henrik's last wishes were done.

As the Palace announced in connection with Prince Henry's death and funeral in February this year, the Prince wanted the ash to be divided into two places.

One part of the ash should be reduced to an oath in the private garden at Fredensborg Castle. The other part would spread in Danish waters. The Prince's wishes are now done and the royal family was gathered on both occasions."

Prins Henriks sidste ønsker opfyldt | Kongehuset

(..) The Friday 7 September afternoon after the official goodbye ceremony for Queen Margrethe in Svendborg , CP Frederik, CP Mary, Prince Joachim and Princess Marie were seen arriving on the Dannebrog as local newpaper reports:

" Long after the official part of the royal visit was over, the royal yacht stayed at dock. In fact, so long that many readers approached the newspaper to ask why and when it would leave port, but we could not give them an answer.
However, part of the explanation may be that the ship was waiting for a few very special guests. It turns out that Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary, Prince Joachim and Princess Marie embarked on the royal yacht in Svendborg.
Both Frederik, Joachim, the two princesses Marie and Mary and Queen Margrethe stood stern while the ship sailed away from Svendborg.
We waved and they waved back, Torben Boding says.
Prince Joachim and Princess Marie arrived on Krone 65 at about 3 pm, and about half an hour later, the Crown Prince and Mary arrived.
And a few minutes later, they left dock,"
(..)

[muriel]

Originally Posted by eya

The Palace announcement today:

"Prince Henrik's last wishes were done.

As the Palace announced in connection with Prince Henry's death and bailiff in February this year, the Prince wanted the ash to be divided into two places.

One part of the ash should be reduced to an oath in the private garden at Fredensborg Castle. The other part would spread in Danish waters. The Prince's wishes are now done and the royal family was gathered on both occasions."

Prins Henriks sidste ønsker opfyldt | Kongehuset

Good to hear it has all been completed privately.

Do we know if there will be a bigger memorial service with overseas royals and members of government present?

[Muhler]

Originally Posted by muriel

Good to hear it has all been completed privately.

Do we know if there will be a bigger memorial service with overseas royals and members of government present?

I think that is doubtful and in contrast to PH's last wishes.
Even the more subdued events after his death was no doubt "bending" his last wishes.

The press has contacted the court, but so far they have refused to say, where, when and who were there.

If I am to venture a guess. I'll say today, the family would have been sailed out to Dannebrog on her way up through Øresund (the strait between DK and Sweden) this morning. The ashes would have been spread over the sea. Then Dannebrog and the family would have moored at Helsingør, very close to Fredensborg, where the other half of the ashes would have been buried.
An alternative could be late Friday afternoon. That depends on how fast Dannebrog sails from Svendborg to Copenhagen.

Why this Saturday and not say last weekend?
Because it is bound to leak out eventually when and where, and the Court is likely to issue a statement before any rumors surface in the media.
Why aboard Dannebrog?
PH loved this ship and it's also a question of having the family there. That's more difficult on say a sailing boat or a even a chaluppe.

[Curryong]

It's rather romantic to have your ashes cast out to sea, I think, especially as he loved the royal yacht so much.

So are the rest of Henrik's ashes in an urn in the gardens at Fredensborg Castle or buried in the garden?

[Muhler]

The urn is now buried at Fredensborg.

[Duke of Marmalade]

Thanks for the info, is Frederik already out of hospital? They will for sure not have done it without him present.

[Muhler]

Originally Posted by Duke of Marmalade

Thanks for the info, is Frederik already out of hospital? They will for sure not have done it without him present.

Frederik was out of the hospital within 24 hours after being committed.

If his surgery was acute they might have had to do the service without him if it took place during the past week.
But with the help of a simple phone he could have followed everything live.

I think this is very much a question of logistics. I imagine at least some of PH's French relatives were present and as for the DRF members it had to be arranged at a time that wouldn't conflict with their schedule.
It's after all not about just finding a couple of hours and then leave again. I imagine the family would have liked to spend a few hours together apart from attending the ceremonies.

Okay, the burying of the urn at Fredensborg is logistically the easiest thing to arrange IMO. That's a matter of agreeing on a particular date.

Scattering the ashes at sea is another matter.
It has to happen from a boat, ship or even a ferry out at sea. So here the logistics is a little more tricky.
It's a beautiful ceremony most relatives would no doubt wish to attend, so it has to happen from a vessel large enough to accommodate the family. (For the DRF alone that's at least five adults - not counting Benedikte - and eight children - counting Nikolai. Plus French relatives.)
Then there is the weather. You have to be sure the weather if fine enough for the ceremony to be carried out safely or alternatively have a vessel large enough to disregard the weather (mainly rain and wind) to at least some degree. - In comes Dannebrog.
Then there is getting the family aboard Dannebrog, preferably discreetly. (The mood is undoubtedly pretty somber.) That can happen from many places along the coast.
Once the ashes is scattered, the family can gather in the lounges of Dannebrog from some reflection before disembarking for Fredensborg. There is also a question of getting the family off the ship in a quiet place and driven to Fredensborg. Where it is also likely the French relatives will stay the night or at least refresh themselves.

But of course these two ceremonies didn't have to happen on the same day. However, I'm certain they did. It's simply more practical that way.

This Saturday morning would be ideal I think. The children are off from school. Nikolai is probably on leave from the army and there are AFAIK no other event for the DRF to carry out today.

Yes, I know, I got carried away. But I work in logistics, so this fascinates me.

[Duke of Marmalade]

Thanks Muhler!
Have we already seen pictures of Frederik, is he already able to walk (forgive my limited medical knowledge)