General News about Joachim, Marie and Family Part 4: July 2014 - August 2019


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Interesting that they are selling now, wasn't it said a long time ago that Joachim would inherit Château de Cayx?

Just to go back to the documentary, what's the story behind Alexandra being there? nice to see they still get on
 
I think it was mainly an investment.

IIRC Joachim purchased two houses abroad some years ago. This was one of them.
The other was sold pretty quickly. And now that the financial crisis is ending it may have been a good time to sell.
The prices on real estate here in DK are now back to pre-crisis and there is now also an increasing demand for houses outside the cities.
So perhaps that's a global trend?
 
Let's return to the Joachim documentary for a while.

In BB #01, 2018 they have compiled a number of quotes from the portrait.

The docu was a viewer success. 984.000 watched the docu. That's the highest ratings for a DRF programme since 2012. - Apart from the New Year speeches. So people were curious.

Joachim is well aware how he his appearance can be stand-offish.
He has leaned to look and act in a certain way when he is on: "That's why I have a reputation for being somewhat stiff (best possible translation I can come up with) and that has lead to me automatically being arrogant. But I am who I am.
I'm not what you think or hear or in some cases wish me to be".

"I'm well aware of what privileges I enjoy and my children enjoy. But we are also living in 2017 and my children must live a life 100 % according to their own abilities. They must be on par with their contemporaries. They must be amiable, social people and they must be able to say no themselves.
And with a good upbringing and a good education the world is at their feet. My hope is that when they at some time leave the nest they will say that they were also allowed to be children".

After 21 years Joachim sold Schackenborg in 2014. About that he said:
"It was difficult for me to stand face to face with that reality and even more difficult to say publicly: This wasn't possible for me.
There have been occasions for as long as I have lived, where I have been either actively misunderstood or where I haven't lived up to the expectations there have been for my person and then I have become a black sheep to put it very squarely".

The sale would never have taken place had Schackenborg been a better business.
"The sale also had to do with the children. They must not suffer that defeat or be encumbered with such a burden. Now the four children are free"!

About his relationship with Frederik:
"My brother and I laugh a lot together and we are brothers in the same bad-boy/naughty way as we were when we were in our teens and as we were before that.
You can be close without being physically together. That's the special thing when you are siblings".

The divorce:
"I was the first in the core royal family for more than a 100 years who got divorced. This here picture postcard was suddenly wrinkled".
But the break-up was necessary in order for him and Alexandra to move on and still have a good relationship as parents. And not least their lives together would otherwise have "unlivable" without a divorce.

About the aftermath of the divorce and meeting our Marie:
"Back then I had only a very few close friends and with their help and support I slowly pieced together a world again.
With their kind time and wish to listen to me pouring out from the whole thing I pieced together a world again".

That took several years:
"I met a person who could get the last dark shadows off me, so that I again could open up and begin to live".
 
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what sweet words he has for marie and frederik, and a nice reflection of ending his marriage with alexandra.
 
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what sweet words he has for marie and frederik, and a nice reflection of ending his marriage with alexandra.

I love how he desribed his relationship with Frederik. Basically they play up and act as immature as they did when they were kids! That is great to hear!
 
Here is the entire documentary. In Danish, but give it a try, not understanding Danish you may notice details that I haven't.

 
thank you for posting this, Muhler! I was fascinated by this very intimate portrait of the prince...who has ever seen a royal person making his own lunch to take to the office!:lol: I was also very interested to note the fluently bilingual younger children of the prince, it seems both French and Danish are used interchangeably. I admire the language skills of Princess Marie, who seems to understand this very difficult sounding Danish without a problem. One last thing I noticed was how much Prince Joachim looks like his mother...the two sitting on the couch gave a striking image of family resemblance! Although I did not understand the Danish, it seems that Prince Joachim tries to speak with more clarity than his brother; it sounds like he is pronouncing every word with great care! I only wish I could understand what the words were!
 
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You are welcome, Gerry. ?

I and other Danish speaking members will of course be ready to help if you have questions about specific parts of the docu. Just state where it is.

Joachim's Danish is very correct.

And our Marie's language skills are very good! BTW she is to help teach French to a class of high schoolers. She does advocate learning languages as you know. - But more on that event, when we get there.
 
You are welcome, Gerry. ?

I and other Danish speaking members will of course be ready to help if you have questions about specific parts of the docu. Just state where it is.

Joachim's Danish is very correct.

And our Marie's language skills are very good! BTW she is to help teach French to a class of high schoolers. She does advocate learning languages as you know. - But more on that event, when we get there.

Thank you Muhler! I am of course secretly (but no longer as I am now writing this) jealous of the Danish language skills demonstrated by both princesses! I am certain however that they are testimony for the advantage of being in an immersive linguistic environment, where you must either sink or swim in the target language! Bravo to both ladies:flowers: I think the part of the documentary that raised most questions for me was the role of Prince Joachim in the classroom of..I think...officer cadets. What is his military expertise that he is passing on to the recruits? BTW I was entertained by his name badge 'Prince Joachim', I imagine he uses this rather than Joachim Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksberg which is a bit awkward on the name tape!:lol:
 
Thank you Muhler! I am of course secretly (but no longer as I am now writing this) jealous of the Danish language skills demonstrated by both princesses! I am certain however that they are testimony for the advantage of being in an immersive linguistic environment, where you must either sink or swim in the target language! Bravo to both ladies:flowers: I think the part of the documentary that raised most questions for me was the role of Prince Joachim in the classroom of..I think...officer cadets. What is his military expertise that he is passing on to the recruits? BTW I was entertained by his name badge 'Prince Joachim', I imagine he uses this rather than Joachim Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucksberg which is a bit awkward on the name tape!:lol:

Yeah, sheer necessity is a good way to master a new language.

Joachim addressed a number of reserve officers. The current job of Joachim is how to best utilize the reserves in the total defense. How to motivate them, how to keep them as active reserves and not least how to upgrade their skills continuously.
It happens more and more these years that officers of the reserves are deployed abroad. Often for specialist functions. That means they are sometimes deployed for a shorter period than regular officers.
Peter Heering, the very close friend of M&F, was deployed to Afghanistan in some sort of specialist function some years ago. For four months, rather than the normal six months. Peter Heering is a lieutenant-colonel of the reserves.
I wonder if Joachim will be deployed at some point. I think he would like to but the politicians are reluctant. Because that means he will have to be accompanied by special forces in most places.
 
In the documentary, Prince Joachim comes across as a man content with his life. His interactions with his family and others seem to be very natural. It was so nice how he helped Felix pick out his confirmation suit. He certainly is a doting father.
 
Here is the entire documentary. In Danish, but give it a try, not understanding Danish you may notice details that I haven't.


I really enjoyed that documentary, thanks Muhler!:flowers:
Joachim seems like a nice person - especially a loving (and very proud) father.
I was escpecially fascinated by his excitement about the vintage cars he spotted:lol:

IIRC you quoted the documenatary film-maker (or was it the author of the book about Fredrik?:ermm:), who said that he was surprised/impressed about how much Joachim has accepted his role as the second son- behind Frederik as the Crown Prince.
Does Joachim say something about this in the documentary (I can't find it myself, but maybe I missed it?) or was it just an off-screen impression by the journalist?
 
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Yeah, sheer necessity is a good way to master a new language.

Joachim addressed a number of reserve officers. The current job of Joachim is how to best utilize the reserves in the total defense. How to motivate them, how to keep them as active reserves and not least how to upgrade their skills continuously.
It happens more and more these years that officers of the reserves are deployed abroad. Often for specialist functions. That means they are sometimes deployed for a shorter period than regular officers.
Peter Heering, the very close friend of M&F, was deployed to Afghanistan in some sort of specialist function some years ago. For four months, rather than the normal six months. Peter Heering is a lieutenant-colonel of the reserves.
I wonder if Joachim will be deployed at some point. I think he would like to but the politicians are reluctant. Because that means he will have to be accompanied by special forces in most places.

Thank you for your explanation, as always Muhler! Such an ideal situation where people who actually have expertise in certain areas are given the opportunity to share their knowledge....a wonderful concept! Prince Joachim strikes me as a good motivator; two scenes in the documentary illustrate his enthusiasm for cars and for people! I was charmed by his delight in the parade of classic automobiles and the copious picture taking that ensued! His speech in English to members of a society whose function I did not understand was charmingly 'over the top' but clearly delighted his listeners. He seemed pretty pleased with himself too; this is a man who enjoys his life:flowers:
 
I think I'll write a running commentary about the documentary.
But that will be tomorrow.

That should answer most questions I think. ?

The quote about how much Joachim accepts his role as the second brother was by the documentarist.
 
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I think I'll write a running commentary about the documentary.
But that will be tomorrow.

That should answer most questions I think. ?

The quote about how much Joachim accepts his role as the second brother was by the documentarist.

Thank you Muhler! It would be lovely if you could help lift the linguistic curtain to better understand the points being made by the film maker in documenting the Prince's activities. In diving into the world of youtube, I have discovered several documentaries about the Danish royal family that have English language subtitles. I am struck by how central the role of history is; Queen Margrethe declared that she would have become an archaeologist if she had not been proclaimed queen! I do indeed wonder whether history plays such an important role in the lives of her sons and their families; clearly their positions are due to historical 'accidents', but I am curious whether the two men share their parents' (I am certain that Prince Henri père is also an historian!) passion for the past!:whistling:
 
Okay, in to get a better understanding of what is going on in the documentary I will write a running commentary and insert the quotes where they are said.

So here we go.

The whole thing starts with Joachim explaining that he is a sensitive person and "That's why I have a reputation for being somewhat stiff (best possible translation I can come up with) and that has lead to me automatically being arrogant. But I am who I am.
I'm not what you think or hear or in some cases wish me to be".

After having made sure Athena has made sure the road is safe to cross, she and dad go over to the car.
In the car she explains she's been making a drawing for Henrik, but now mum will have it instead. But how about Felix next Saturday? (His confirmation).
She will draw one for him and then Henrik is picked up from school.
No homework for Henrik for the entire week. - Yeah, but when dad was a boy...!
In the car Joachim remember when his morfar, Frederik IX, died and his mother became Queen.

04:50 - Mum and dad leaving for an official dinner. And our Marie is presented with the drawing mentioned earlier. There is some uncertainty as to what it actually depicts though.

The divorce.
Joachim asked himself a lot of questions of the consequences of the divorce in regards to the DRF and the status of the DRF. "It was no fun!"
07:45 - "Back then, in the darkest period, I had only a very few close friends and with their help and support I slowly pieced together a world again.
With their kind time and wish to listen to me pouring out from the whole thing I pieced together a world again".

08:10 - Marie being presented with the Legion of Honor at the French embassy.
08:40 - "I met a person who could get the last dark shadows off me, so that I again could open up and begin to live".

10:45 - There is no such thing as half-siblings to Joachim's children. All four are full siblings.

10:55 - Picking up Nikolai after he has passed his driving test and got his temporary driving license.
Joachim can't quite help being backseat driver. But dad is pleased with his driving.
12:35 - They are discussing a party Nikolai is to go to with his high school friends. Five parties actually, including one at J&M's home. - Remember, no smashing things! That's unacceptable. - No, no.

12:40 - "I'm well aware of what privileges I enjoy and my children enjoy. But we are also living in 2017 and my children must live a life 100 % according to their own abilities. They must be on par with their contemporaries. They must be amiable, social people and they must be able to say no themselves.
And with a good upbringing and a good education the world is at their feet. My hope is that when they at some time leave the nest they will say that they were also allowed to be children".

15:08 - Athena: "Are we going home"?

15:55 - No running around, you two!

16:25 - One day their cousin will be king, so they need to be prepared for not standing in the front row, but the row right behind. That means they have to live up to expected norms.

17:20 - "It was difficult for me to stand face to face with that reality and even more difficult to say publicly: This wasn't possible for me.
There have been occasions for as long as I have lived, where I have been either actively misunderstood or where I haven't lived up to the expectations there have been for my person and then I have become a black sheep to put it very squarely".

18:45 - They are being interviewed for Southern Jutlandic magazine, directed at people living both north and south of the Danish-German border.
Joachim explains he took over a manor that was in debt and no matter what was done, the debt could not be brought down.

21:00 - "The sale also had to do with the children. They must not suffer that defeat or be encumbered with such a burden. Now the four children are free"!


21:40 - Klampenborg. The part of Copenhagen where they live now.
Joachim's office is at Kastellet. About a kilometer from Amalienborg and Mary has often been seen jogging around the ramparts there.

23:45 - Joachim is speaking to officers at the Army Combat School in Jutland. - You are leaders and must also set an example.

24:25 - Dad going completely ga-ga over vintage cars! Damn phone!

26:00 - The second Frederik became Crown Prince, he would, dynastically speaking only advance, while Joachim will only move back for each child Frederik is having and as such he, Joachim, will remain a part of the DRF but more as a back-up. That's how it is.

27:00 - "My brother and I laugh a lot together and we are brothers in the same bad-boy/naughty way as we were when we were in our teens and as we were before that.
You can be close without being physically together. That's the special thing when you are siblings".
So it annoys him there are rumors of them not getting along.

27:45 - A bit early, so they are waiting a few minutes so they can arrive on time.

28:45 - The children are well aware that things are written in magazines and papers about their cousins, about their parents and themselves. And some of it may not be nice reading, but they know the truth.

29:00 - Henrik volunteers to cut the ribbon. - No hands in your pockets!

29:30 - They can each select one animal from the shelves. And Joachim has got some critisizm for nudging his daugher away from choosing a pink turtle. "Turtles are not pink in real life" And it's ugly! (Well, I wouldn't have mind what color the thing has, as long as my daughter liked it. But parents are different). No unicorns, please. Miss Athena is not quite in agreement that a realistic colored seal is more cute than a pink one... She almost got her way, but then dad found a creature with a baby. - So in the end dad got his way...

31:00 - Rehearsing his speech to young researchers - and the computer is down.

31:50 - His role is defined by being the brother of the Crown Prince and one day being the brother of the king. - That means being the occasional Rigsforstander and take on the DRF's duties.

32:30 - Yearly board meeting of the Nikolai and Felix Foundation.

33:00 - Planning meeting with J&M and their private secretaries. Some things must be adjusted to fit in with meetings (PTA) at school.

33:50 - Are you hungry? Well don't eat chocolates we are having a sandwich later.

34:00 - Joachim visiting Nepal for CARE. At the same time we follow a Skype between Joachim and his family back home.
After such trips he tries to explain to his children what it is, he's seen. He tries to make them visualize the worst conditions they can imagine and then says it's worse or better than that. That is the yardstick used to make them understand what it is dad is seeing on his travels.
These people know they will starve. The question is whether they will starve for one month or as much as four months. And yet they hang on - with dignity.
So it put things in perspective when you from time to time think things are pretty bad for yourself.

41:50 - Serious drooling over a race-car!
42:10 - Athena is casually asked to put the car in neutral.

42:50 - QMII has now been curious enough to see what it is her youngest is doing. And that means a lot to Joachim.
43:08 - Athena: "What fine ear rings you are wearing"

Towards the end Joachim hope that when his children reflect on their childhood, that they will say that they were allowed to be children.
 
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Thank you Muhler! It would be lovely if you could help lift the linguistic curtain to better understand the points being made by the film maker in documenting the Prince's activities. In diving into the world of youtube, I have discovered several documentaries about the Danish royal family that have English language subtitles. I am struck by how central the role of history is; Queen Margrethe declared that she would have become an archaeologist if she had not been proclaimed queen! I do indeed wonder whether history plays such an important role in the lives of her sons and their families; clearly their positions are due to historical 'accidents', but I am curious whether the two men share their parents' (I am certain that Prince Henri père is also an historian!) passion for the past!:whistling:

Well, Joachim is a history-geek! :graduate:
And it's my impression that Frederik is pretty well-versed in history. Perhaps not as passionate as Joachim though. Joachim is very much his mother's son in that respect.
 
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Thank you so much, Muhler! I watched the key scenes again with your translations/comments in mind and it's even more interesting now.
Still love how excited he is about the vintage cars :lol: (What are the last two (disappointed?) words he says in that scene? To me it sounds like "tysk tysk" but that doesn't make sense to me...

I understand that Joachim is rather strict with his children about a few topics he finds important. But because he does so in a loving and kind way, it doesn't seem inappropiate or too strict to me. E.g. when Athena and Henrik select the animals - obviously he has his own opinion about the choices Athena makes, but to me it seems that he explains his critic and kindly tries to give alternatives. Personally I may have let her choose the (really ugly:lol:) pink turtle, too - but it doesn't feel to me as Athena had no choice if she really had wanted that and no other.
 
You are welcome. ?

Well, Joachim was snapping away when he decided he'd rather film the cars instead. But by the time he had changed to video-mode the last car had passed, so he exclaimed: "Typisk! Typisk! = Typical!" :w00t::photo::ohmy::bang:
Daddy Joachim should have left the whole thing to his son, and just enjoy the sight of the cars Such a switch only takes a few nano-seconds for modern kids, but for us ooold dads... :yoda:
 
12:40 - "I'm well aware of what privileges I enjoy and my children enjoy. But we are also living in 2017 and my children must live a life 100 % according to their own abilities. They must be on par with their contemporaries. They must be amiable, social people and they must be able to say no themselves.

[...]

16:25 - One day their cousin will be king, so they need to be prepared for not standing in the front row, but the row right behind. That means they have to live up to expected norms.

Thank you for summarizing the documentary. Does this signify that Prince Joachim expects his children to keep their royal rank but work to support themselves, as it happened with Princess Elisabeth?
 
Ah, that makes much more sense, thank you:)
Surely his son would have been the better/faster smartphone user - but then Felix (while certainly eager to help his Dad at this important moment;)) didn't seem too impressed with all the cars - so maybe he would have filmed the wrong details or - even worse I guess - the wrong cars :eek: Imagine Joachim nervously waiting for his son to send him the fantastic video of the Chevrolet - only do discover that Felix has filmed a VW Beetle:sad:
 
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:previous::lol:

Thank you for summarizing the documentary. Does this signify that Prince Joachim expects his children to keep their royal rank but work to support themselves, as it happened with Princess Elisabeth?

Your guess is as good as mine. ?
But it seems very likely.
 
:previous::lol:



Your guess is as good as mine. ?
But it seems very likely.

I add my thanks to the other non-Danish speakers! Clearly the Prince Joachim maintains a privileged lifestyle that he realizes is not open to all. However, he is also aware that great privilege entails great responsibility so that he does his best to meet those responsibilities and be a 'good prince'! On another, but not entirely unrelated note, the NY Times ran a widely circulated article on the correlation between 'happy nations' and 'constitutional monarch'; apparently Americans have been writing to HM Queen Elizabeth if she would please take them back!
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/06/world/europe/monarchy-us-advantage.html
 
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https://www.bt.dk/royale/medie-kong...e-over-storebaeltsbroen-med-alt-for-hoej-fart

Someone was overtaken the other day by a crown car, passing at a speed of 150 Km/h - which is speeding.
In order to film the transgression, the person in question sped up (that's illegal) in order to keep up and ended up having eye contact with our Marie who was a passenger in the car, before pulling back again.
The person gestured to the driver to slow down, that was ignored. (Of course it was!) And they stayed behind the crown car for several kilometers, before the general speed was reduced to 120 Km/h.

The court has said that their drivers must naturally abide by the traffic rules. Any transgressions will be handled internally.
 
:previous: oh oh :ohmy: on both cases
the driver of Marie for speeding and the other driver worse for speeding up
 
Yep, the driver who pursued them is getting a hard time in the comments section on EB as well.
 
https://www.bt.dk/royale/royale-bry...-nettet-aldrig-set-foer-i-det-danske-kongehus

It has happened again. The gossip mag Her & Nu this week writes about photos of our Marie tanning herself on a beach at Saint Tropez. She was topless but lying on her belly, however at some point she raised herself on her elbows exposing most of her breasts and that's when a waiting paparazzi took the photos.

The magazine Her & nu has not brought the photo, and it's very questionable if they ever will.

The court has declined to comment on whether the court will take action and perhaps via the courts demand the photos being removed.

- Perhaps a French member can tell us about the French laws on privacy?

- It is of course a mistake by Marie. For all celebs and royals the second you are no longer inside or in a fenced off area a camera may be pointing at you. And a beach at Saint Tropez of all places...

It is not the first time members of the DRF have been photographed in the buff. It has happened with Frederik at Chateau Cayz, where Frederik jumped into a local river - with the future of the realm in full view...
And for PH as well, he was standing at the chateau, also in the buff.

It will IMO hardly cause an outcry here in DK, more likely a chuckle. But of course if the photos are published somewhere they will naturally be in circulation because people are curious.
So poor Marie will have to bear the embarrassment and live with it.

--------------------------------------

Follow up.

https://www.bt.dk/royale/bureau-sae...nsk-prinsesse-ville-have-slettet-dem-hvis-det

It's a Dutch image library, Hollandse Hoogte, that is in possession of the photos of Marie. The photos were sold to them by a French photo agency, E-Press Photo.
The Dutch manager of Hollandse Hoogte, Bas van Beek, says to BT that they didn't even know it was Marie because they hadn't studied the photos.
Hollandse Hoogte represent (sell for) E-Press Photo in the Netherlands, but it is not known who, if any, represent E-Press Photo in Denmark. None of the major picture libraries in DK co-operate with E-Press Photo and if offered the photos they will not buy them anyway.

Bas van Beek says that if the photos had depicted a member of the Dutch royal family, the pictures would be destroyed. Otherwise it might very well have consequences.

But doesn't Hollandse Hoogte have a moral responsibility for not selling such intrusive paparazzi photos? - Well, yeah. But there is good money in such photos. (That's not exactly his reply, but is sure was what he meant!)
So the photos are still for sale...

ADDED:

https://ekstrabladet.dk/flash/konge...r-billeder-af-toploes-prinsesse-marie/7122333

Hollandse Hoogte has told Ekstra Bladet that the photos of Marie will be deleted.
 
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Did the 10th wedding anniversary of Prince Joachim and Princess Marie's wedding pass by without new pictures? Or did I miss them?
 
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