Princess Madeleine, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland

Early life

Madeleine was born on 10 June 1982 at 19:05 CEST at Drottningholm Palace and is a member of the Swedish Royal Family from the House of Bernadotte. She was christened at The Royal Palace Church on 31 August 1982, her godparents being her father's maternal cousin the Hereditary Prince of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, her maternal uncle Walther L. Sommerlath, her father's paternal cousin Princess Benedikte of Denmark, and her paternal aunt Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson. Her fourth name, Josephine honours her ancestor Josephine of Leuchtenberg. She was given the honorary title of Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland. It was the first time since the early 17th century (when such titles were still more than honorary) that a Swedish ducal title included more than one province.

Education

From 1985–1989, Madeleine began her education at Västerled Parish Pre-School. In the Autumn of 1989, she entered Smedslättsskolan in Bromma, attending at the junior level. For the intermediate level, she proceeded to Carlssons School in Stockholm, and then went on to Enskilda Gymnasiet in Stockholm, which she attended at the senior level. She also completed upper secondary school at Enskilda, from which she graduated in 2001. During the Autumn of 2001, she lived in London, where she studied English. In the spring of 2002, she took a basic module in Introduction to Swedish Law and studied for the European Computer Driving Licence. In January 2003, she enrolled at the Stockholm University where she began studies in art history. She took 60 Swedish academic units in this subject (two semesters). In the Autumn of 2004, she began a course in ethnology at the same university. She speaks English, German and Swedish fluently, and also intermediate level French. She graduated 23 January 2006 with a Bachelor of Arts in art history, ethnology and modern history. During 2007, she studied child psychology at University of Stockholm.

Leisure pursuits

Madeleine is an enthusiastic equestrian. She has owned horses (which were stabled at the Royal Stables) and competed in showjumping under the name "Anna Svensson". She also enjoys skiing, and is interested in theatre, dance and art. In recognition of her age of majority in 2001, a scholarship fund was created in her name by the Gävleborg province, which comprises her duchies of Hälsingland and Gästrikland. It encourages and supports young people involved in horse riding. In 2001, Madeleine first distributed such awards as 'Pony Rider of the Year with trainer in Gävleborg' and 'Gold Rider'.

Activities

Madeleine undertakes various engagements on behalf of her father and the people of Sweden. She participates in the celebrations of Sweden's National Day, the Nobel festivities, dinners and state visits with other members of the royal family. She represented Sweden at the opening of the New Sweden Gallery on 5 June 2011, at the American Swedish Historical Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania which features an animated map of the New Sweden settlement by Sean Moir.

Charity work

Madeleine is the patron of the organisation Min Stora Dag (the Swedish equivalent of Make-A-Wish Foundation, more commonly known as My Big Day, (its translation into English). She is also affiliated with Europa Nostra, Carl Johan-League and the Royal Motorboat Club. In 2006, she interned for UNICEF for six months in New York City and worked for the division of Child Protective Services. In 2012, she co-founded the ThankYou by Childhood campaign which works to raise awareness of the issues surrounding the sexual abuse of children and the work the World Childhood Foundation does to prevent it.

Personal life

On 11 August 2009, Madeleine announced her engagement to lawyer Jonas Bergström (b. 1979). Madeleine said in her engagement interview that they became engaged in Capri in early June 2009. An engagement dinner took place on the engagement day in Solliden Palace on Öland. The engagement could only take place after Bergström had been awarded the official approval of the Swedish Cabinet Regeringen and that had been communicated to her father, the King.

The wedding was originally due to take place in the second half of 2010 but was postponed due to "many things happening in an intense period of time", mainly her sister Victoria's wedding in June. Despite rumours of relationship issues, Queen Silvia stated in April 2010 that the couple was "fine" and that everything was "okay". However, media reporting of the relationship issues escalated, and on 24 April 2010 it was announced that the wedding would not be going ahead, and the engagement was broken off. After her relationship with Bergström ended, Madeleine moved to New York City, where she worked for the World Childhood Foundation, the organisation that her mother co-founded. On 25 October 2012, the Swedish Royal Court announced her engagement with the financier Christopher O'Neill.

Marriage

On 23 December 2012, it was announced that the wedding would take place on 8 June 2013, at the Royal Palace chapel in Stockholm. Members of various royal families attended the wedding, and Madeleine wore a Valentino Haute Couture wedding gown. O'Neill is untitled and undertakes no engagements on behalf of the royal family. A member of the Swedish Royal Family must hold Swedish citizenship, but O'Neill had refused.

Motherhood and children

In September 2013, Madeleine and her husband Christopher announced they were expecting their first child. Their daughter Princess Leonore was born in New York City on 20 February 2014. Prior to the birth, Madeleine had announced on her Facebook page that she would be unable to travel to Stockholm for the Nobel Prize ceremony due to her pregnancy and also mentioned that she was expecting a girl.

On 19 December 2014, it was announced that Madeleine and her husband were expecting their second child, and their son, Prince Nicolas, was born in Stockholm on 15 June 2015. In February 2015, the Swedish Royal Court announced that the family had moved to Stockholm from New York. In May 2015, the Swedish Royal Court announced that O'Neill had moved to London, United Kingdom in April. In Autumn 2015, several months after the birth of Prince Nicolas, the entire family moved to London, where O'Neill's business is located. Chris O'Neil said in a statement with People Magazine that he and the princess wish for a large family, with at least three or four children.

Title

Madeleine is styled as: Her Royal Highness Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Duchess of Hälsingland and Gästrikland.

Swedish honours

Foreign honours