Her 40th birthday celebrations are making headlines across the globe, but just who is Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden?
You may have spotted Princess Victoria in the news after she received some media attention for a recent revealing interview, in which she discusses her past mental health battles. With the traditional Royal reputation being associated with a 'stiff upper lip' it's good to see that Prince Harry and Prince William have been paving the way for others to open up about their mental health struggles.
Crown Princess Victoria was bullied at school because of her dyslexia. "I used to think I was stupid and slow," she recalled in an interview this week. Her father, King Carl XVI Gustaf, is also dyslexic. She assumed royal duties on turning 18, later admitting that the pressure triggered an eating disorder. "I wanted all the time to do and be so much more than I realistically could do, or could be," she revealed.
Princess Victoria moved to the USA to seek treatment for anorexia and study at Yale. Having conquered her eating disorder, she returned to Sweden to complete her studies at Uppsala University. The Crown Princess admits that she continues to struggle with "performance anxiety", however. "I've been given different kinds of tools and learned how to manage it," she reveals.
She does not blame her public role for her difficulties. "There are as many reasons to feel bad as there are people," Princess Victoria asserted this week, citing her concerns about "all the perfect images that are uploaded" on social media. The idea that everything must be "polished" puts undue pressure on young people, she says. "For me, it is important that children be children," she declared. "My parents felt exactly the same about me."
Who Is Crown Princess Victoria Of Sweden?
The eldest child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, Crown Princess Victoria was born at Karolinska University Hospital in Solna on 14th July 1977. She is the great-great-great-granddaughter of Queen Victoria, and first in line to the Swedish throne. If she succeeds to the throne, as expected, she will become Sweden's fourth female regent, and its first since 1720.
Victoria was designated Crown Princess in 1979, becoming heiress apparent to the Swedish throne in 1980, when a Parliamentary change to the Act of Succession introduced the principle of ‘absolute primogeniture', giving the female children of the Swedish Royal Family the same rights of succession as males. This put Princess Victoria ahead of her younger brother, Prince Carl Philip, in line to the Swedish throne. However, her father, King Carl XVI Gustaf, objected to the change, favouring tradition.
Princess Victoria also has a younger sister, Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland. The 35-year-old princess is married to British-born American financier Christopher O'Neill.
Crown Princess Victoria married her personal trainer, Daniel Westling, on 19th June 2010, the 34th anniversary of her parents' own marriage, following an 8-year courtship. Westling became Prince Daniel of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland, on joining the Swedish Royal Family. "I think the general idea with the Swedes is that the modern way is to marry someone you love, not necessarily based on where she or he comes from," the Crown Princess asserted ahead of the wedding.
The couple's first child, Princess Estelle, was born on 23rd February 2012, followed by Prince Oscar on 2nd March 2016. The children will join the rest of the Swedish Royal Family in today's birthday celebrations, which began with a Te Deum service in the Royal Chapel at Stockholm Palace, followed by a garden reception at Logården palace. The festivities will continue at the Borgholms IP stadium this evening.
