Queen Mary 'lost for words' during unscheduled moment at final engagement in Hobart
It was the speech that came without a warning but will, undoubtedly, be the defining moment of Queen Mary and King Frederik X's state visit to Australia.
The Danish King, 57, and Queen, 54, arrived at Government House, in Hobart, for the final engagement of their historic royal tour to Australia on Thursday evening and minutes after walking into the ballroom, Mary stepped up to the lectern.
"I'm a bit lost for words, I'm a bit overwhelmed," Queen Mary said, her voice breaking with emotion.
The Queen paused briefly. She was not due to speak at the event; King Frederik was.
"But thank you everyone for being here. Last night [Wednesday] I ended a speech in Melbourne saying how privileged I am that my roots are grounded both in Australia and Denmark.
"But they do go a little bit deeper in Tasmania.
"There really isn't a more special place to end what has been a unique, rewarding, moving, exciting, curious tour – state visit – to Australia from Denmark."
Queen Mary hugged her sister Patricia Bailey, one of the guests at the state reception at Government House on Thursday night.
One of Mary's sisters, Patricia Bailey, was among the 150 invited guests and the Queen nodded towards her when she made reference to her "family and friends" in Tasmania.
Mary, and her husband King Frederik, returned to Hobart on Thursday in an official capacity for the first time since 2005 when they visited just months after the royal wedding in Copenhagen.
While they have been back several times since then, each have been for private family holidays without all the pomp and ceremony – and formality – that comes with a state visit.
This time it was Mary, Queen of Denmark, visiting Tasmania.
The Danish royals were running behind schedule but spent time meeting the crowds along the Hobart waterfront.
Long gone were the days of Mary Donaldson, who was born in Hobart in 1972 and went to Sandy Bay Public, Taroona High School and later the University of Tasmania.
One the King and Queen's first engagements in Hobart was a boat ride which took Mary past her former high school. It would have been a surreal moment for the Queen.
The boat slowed down to allow Mary and Frederik to pose for photographs as they went by, giving them a chance to take in the building overlooking the Derwent River.
Queen Mary's boat ride took her past her former high school in Hobart.
The Queen told the media on the companion boat travelling next to them – on which nine.com.au was on board – "some good memories popped up" as she passed by the school.
Hours later, Mary said she was "completely overwhelmed" by the turnout of people who had lined Hunter Street for the second, and final, public walkabout of the tour.
The reception from her former hometown was "fantastic" and "one for the history books", Mary told the Danish media contingent covering the tour.
The Danish royals' final leg of the tour in Hobart was jam-packed.
Some insiders suggested the itinerary was a little ambitious for one day, but it was a reflection of just how important Tasmania and its people, industry and natural wonders are to Mary and Frederik and their enduring connection to the state where the queen was born and spent her childhood.
The Queen's speech at Government House reflected her desire to thank Tasmanians for welcoming her back. While Hobart is no longer home Tasmania, and its capital, will always hold a piece of Mary's heart.
"Today has been a fast-paced day, I must say, it's been hellraising," Mary said, with a laugh.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DWDyoI-mHXp/?utm_source=ig_embed&"I would also like to say a huge thank you to all the Tasmanians that have made us feel so welcome.
"It has been extremely touching for both Frederick and I to feel so much warmth and interest, so thank you for making our time here unforgettable."
The Queen then raised a toast, hoping for "an ambition for both our countries and that is for a future that is peaceful, secure, prosperous and sustainable".
The state reception at Government House, regarded as one of the best vice-regal residences in the Commonwealth and rumoured to be one of the late Queen Elizabeth II's favourites – was a fitting end to Mary's turn as homecoming queen.
Inside the state reception
Nine.com.au was one of just three Australian media outlets with official accreditation to the state reception.
And as royal watchers know, such events are a privilege to attend – even when you are part of the media pack and not, technically, one of the invited guests.
Queen Mary and King Frederik arrived at 6pm, with Mary re-wearing a white blouse by Melbourne brand Clea, black cropped trousers and the 'gypsy' earrings by Danish fine jeweller Ole Lynggaard.
Mary's choice of outfit was yet another example of 'diplomatic dressing' where the tour wardrobe includes a mixture of brands from their home country (Denmark) and the hosts (Australia).
The menu featured the very best of Tasmanian produce: Pittwater oysters, Tasmanian Aboriginal Seafoods abalone, Robbins Island wagyu, Huon Valley shiitake mushroom pâté, Rannoch quail and Flinders Island scallops.
Beverages included wines, beer, juice and water from across the state including Launceston, Richmond and Bream Creek.
The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra played as guests mingled with the royal couple.
It was standing room only inside the ballroom and, after the official welcome by Tasmania's governor Barbara Baker, and the unplanned speech by Queen Mary, it was time for the Danish royal couple to celebrate the success of the state visit.
King Frederik and Queen Mary drew huge crowds in Hobart for their final walkabout of the Australian state visit.
We don't know King Frederik's feelings about the end of the tour, as he chose not to speak at the reception – allowing Mary to shine instead.
The King has largely played a supporting role to his wife during their six-day visit but it is one he's done so with ease and without any signs of envy, knowing full well who the public (and let's face it, most of the media) want to see.
But, make no doubt about it, the Australia tour was not only significant for Mary but for Frederik X too.
Under Danish protocol, a country can receive just one state visit from a monarch during their reign. The last Danish state visit was in 1987, when Frederik's mother, Margrethe II, was queen.
It was also Mary and Frederik's first visit to Australia since the change of throne in January, 2024, and their first official return in 13 years.
If and when Mary and Frederik come back to Australia in an official capacity, it will be on a much smaller scale.
The King is due in Copenhagen on Tuesday when Danes go to the polls after Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called an early election.
Queen Mary is expected to stay in Hobart until at least Tuesday to spend time with her father John Donaldson who, at 84, has been unable to travel to Denmark in recent years.
The Queen is scheduled to attend the Danish Heart Association's annual awards ceremony at Hotel d'Angleterre in Copenhagen on Thursday.
There would be no better way for Mary to relax after the chaos of a royal tour than by spending time with family and friends, inluding her bridesmaid Amber Petty, who was seen hugging Mary at Government House on Thursday during the arrival ceremony.
As the Queen said at the reception last night: "my roots are grounded both in Australia and Denmark".
Just outside the doors of Government House are two Tasmanian Myrtle trees planted by Mary and Frederik during their last official tour to Hobart, in March 2005, when they were Crown Prince and Crown Princess.
Mary's tree is large and flourishing. The King's is smaller and pales in comparison to that of his wife's.
Make of that what you will.
Mary is returning to the place she has called home since 2002 when she moved to Denmark for love, marrying her prince (now King) two years later.
But it is clear for everyone to see that a part of Queen Mary will always still call Australia, and Tasmania, home.
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