Why Queen Mary cuts ties with Australian cause close to her heart

Queen Mary of Denmark has unexpectedly ended her patronage of an Australian charity close to her heart, the Alannah and Madeline Foundation.

The non-profit organisation was founded in the memory of two little girls killed in the Port Arthur massacre – one of the darkest days in the history of Mary’s home state of Tasmania.

On 28 April 1996, a loner named Martin Bryant killed 35 people and wounded 23 others in the tourist town of Port Arthur – the deadliest massacre in modern Australian history.

Three of his victims were Alannah and Madeline Mikac, aged six and three, and their mother Nanette.

A year after the tragedy, the girls’ father Walter Mikac AM launched the Alannah and Madeline Foundation in his daughters’ memory with the mission to keep all children safe from violence.

Mary had been an International Patron of the foundation, which has since become one of Australia’s most famous charities and is now based in Victoria, for 19 years.

‘We extend our heartfelt thanks and gratitude to Her Majesty for her wonderful support, kindness and inspiration as our International Patron since 2005,’ the Alannah and Madeline Foundation said in a statement. 

‘As we thank Queen Mary for her inspiration and support, we reflect on the remarkable journey we have shared with her over the years.’

Queen Mary has been a staunch advocate for mental health since she stepped on to the world’s stage and has described it as ‘one of the great challenges of our time’. 

The reason for the Queen stepping away from the foundation is largely a matter of logistics surrounding her new title.

After Hobart-born Mary assumed the title of Queen of Denmark in January, there was a controversial ‘reassessment of the existing royal patronages’ that angered some of her Danish constituents and resulted in the Australian charity being dropped.

Queen Mary has retained a close relationship with her homeland, and was last back in her native Australia for the Christmas holidays with her family last year.

It comes amid a period of immense change at Amalienborg Palace following Mary’s appointment as queen. 

Queen Mary and King Frederik have likely infuriated thousands of Danes by sending a ‘clear message’ about their new reign – after months of scrutiny surrounding their rumoured marriage troubles. 

The newly minted royals have decided to slash the amount of charities and community groups that are able to be supported by the royal family at any time.

In doing so, 118 groups have been cut from the official list of royal patronages, leaving 140 to be represented by the family.

‘Through our royal patronages, we wish to support efforts which promote Danish culture, science and enterprise, protect our nature, and give a voice for the marginalised and vulnerable in our society,’ a statement from the King and Queen read.

‘This longstanding tradition serves to bring us together in small and large communities.’

Copenhagen Zoo was dumped from the list of patronages supported by Queen Mary, despite naming a whole section after her. 

The Danish Golf Union, the Danish Swimming Union, the Odense Flower Festival, the Greenlandic Christmas Stamp Fund and the Hearing Association have also been cut.

The royals will also only sign up to a five-year term as patrons for any one group; once that term is over, the charity or organisation will have to apply to be considered again.

‘The time limitation means that there will be continuous opportunity for The Royal Family to take on new patronages as society develops,’ the royals said.

This is the first time since taking the throne that a matter of policy has outshone the couple’s alleged romantic differences. 

Royal expert and Danish historian Sebastian Olden-Jørgensen said the shake-up would upset many – and have a huge financial affect on the organisations that have been cut off.

However, he does think the new King and Queen are opting for less patronages so they can put more effort into each one. 

‘Now they have to live up to this. The royals must show that when you are a member of the Royal House, you actually engage in the protectorates. And the fact that they will be time-limited is again a promise that there will be activity,’ he told B.T.  

As the Crown Princess, Mary had 36 patronages to her name. Now as Queen she has just 23, some of which have never been represented by the crown before.

The Queen added the Danish Hospital Clowns, a group she’s previously posted about on Instagram, and WeShelter which focuses on particularly disadvantaged and vulnerable groups in the country.

She has also opted to represent the Independent Research Fund Denmark and to stay committed to the UNEP Patron of Biodiversity and The Danish Nature Fund.

The Queen has taken patronages of The Royal Danish Academy of Music, The Danish Cancer Society and of Diakonissestiftelsen, a healthcare organisation established in 1863 by Queen Louise from Queen Margrethe.

Just 16 groups from her previous portfolio survived the drastic changes..

King Frederik’s portfolio has also changed dramatically – keeping just eight of his old patronages despite only dropping from 32 to 27 in total.

The King has assumed 14 of his mother’s patronages which includes the American-Scandinavian Foundation, The Danish Bible Society, The Sports Confederation of Denmark (DIF), The Greenlandic House and The Royal Danish Geographical Society.

He also opted to become ‘patron of North Atlantic House in Odense and Projekt Koltur on the Faroe Islands, both of which have the objective of promoting knowledge of the Realm’s culture and nature, as well as of The Danish Architecture Center, The Brain Prize and The Léonie Sonning Music Prize, which each in their own way focus on Danish design, science and culture in an international context.’

The King is expanding his involvement in the green agenda as patron of The Copenhagen Climate Ministerial. 

His mother, Queen Margrethe, experienced a huge cut in her portfolio – going from 81 to 20 groups and organisations. 

Prince Joachim will represent just 24 groups and organisations – dropping from 40. And Princess Benedikte will also work on a slimmed-down portfolio dropping from 44 to just 25.

Princess Marie, Joachim’s wife, will take on more responsibilities and has agreed to become the patron of Prince Henrik School and of the organisation Stop Wasting Food.

She will also take on King Frederik’s  patronage of The Danish Dyslexia Association and Queen Mary’s patronage of Hjernesagen, an organisation for people affected by brain injuries.

All patronages were suspended on January 14 when Queen Mary and King Frederik stepped up to the throne.

Since then the royal household has been discussing how they should be divided, and who they should work with.

King Frederik and Queen Mary want to make it clear they will continue to do work outside their patronages – and that while each royal’s list of patronages reflect their passions and interests it is ‘far from a complete overview’.

The majority of The Royal Family’s 4-500 annual official programme items consists of visits to institutions, organisations, companies and authorities that are not a part of the patronage portfolio.

Click here to resize this module