The second daughter and youngest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia, wife of British-American financier Christopher O’Neill, shares a photo of daughter Leonore to mark her sixth birthday.
Princess Madeleine of Sweden shared the photo on instagram of her oldest daughter in a pineapple dotted white dress and headband while standing in front of a body of water. The doting mum sweetly captioned the snap: “Happy birthday to our sunshine! You make us smile everyday!”
On 7 October 2019 Madeleine’s father the king issued a statement rescinding the royal status of her three children in an effort to more strictly associate Swedish royalty to the office of the head of state; they are still to be styled as princesses and prince, as well as duchesses and duke of their provinces, and they remain in the line of succession to the throne. Madeleine took to Instagram so ascertain that: “This change has been planned for a long time. Chris and I think it is good that our children now have a greater opportunity to shape their own lives as individuals in the future.”
The changes in title also applied to Madeleine’s brother Prince Carl Philip’s two sons, Alexander and Gabriel. Carl and his wife Princess Sofia released a similar statement addressing the fact that their children’s names will no longer be styled as Royal Highness, writing: “We see this as a positive as Alexander and Gabriel will have freer choices in life. They will retain their Duke titles and their duchies, Södermanland and Dalarna, which we value and are proud of. Our family has strong connections to both areas and we maintain our commitment there. We will continue to focus on issues close to our heart. We will also continue to support the King and the Crown Princess – our future head of state – and participate in the King’s activities.”
Madeleine who is based in Miami, works for the World Childhood Foundation, the organisation that her mother Silvia co-founded and her brother Carl Philip and his wife Sofia will also continue to support their charity, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia’s Foundation.
