Formal - yet friendly
In the portrait, His Majesty is wearing the full dress uniform of an admiral of the Danish Navy. It is the oldest navy uniform in the world still in use and only worn on formal occasions and when His Majesty performs his duties standing up. For formal dinners he wears a more confortable uniform.
The background to the portrait is a stylised forrest, reminding the viewer of His Majesty's interest in the natural environment.
The forest floor is covered in diary flowers - in Danish "margueriter" or in English "daisies". Daisy was the nickname given to Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark when she was a child.
The Royal Portrait - latest in a long tradition
The official royal portrait of His Majesty King Frederik X was unveiled on 25th September 2026 at Frederiksborg Slot
Museum of National History
Frederiksborg Slot houses Denmark's Museum of National History. This is where you find a vast collection of art illustrating five hundred years of Danish History through art and portraiture, including the official portraits of Danish monarchs. The collection includes not only royalty but also more generally portraits of noteworthy Danes.
The portrait of His Majesty was painted by Cathrine Raben Davidsen (b. 1972) who has a considerable and very successful career behind her as an artist.
Frederiksborg Slot
Originally a royal residence, the castle burned down in 1859, leaving most of the palace as blackened roofless walls. The castle was rebuilt with funds collected among Danish citizens and in 1878 it was officially declared a Denmark's Museum of National History, funded to a great extent by brewmaster Jacobsen of Carlsberg fame. Jacobsen was also the founder of Ny Carlsberg Glyptoteket in Copenhagen
Slotskirken
The impressive seventeenth-century palace chapel survived the 1859 fire more or less intact and it is now where the coats of arms of recipients of Denmark's highest order, the Order of the Elephant, can be found.
The palace garden is a formal garden in the French baroque style. It is a recent recreation of the original eighteenth-century garden and is a must for visiting garden aficionados.
