Crown duel Republicans stir as king takes throne

When the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, appeared on the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen last Sunday to announce the new monarch, she was met by a sea of cheering faces.

- Miranda Bryant

Tens of thousands of people gathered on the streets of the Danish capital to greet Frederik X and bid farewell to Margrethe II, who became the first Danish monarch in nearly 900 years to abdicate voluntarily.

But one figure in the crowd showing no support for the new king was Mads Rundstrøm. Instead, the 27-year-old unfurled anti-royalist banners in the square outside the Danish parliament, where he was joined by protesters from Denmark and Sweden.

Inspired by protests in Britain during last year's coronation of King Charles, Rundstrøm, the new chair of anti-monarchy group Republik Nu (Republic Now), believes it is an opportune time to start a conversation about the future of the Danish monarchy.

"This is the perfect time for us as a nation to take a break and say, 'Hey, is this what we really want?"" he said.