Denmark's Queen Margrethe signs her historic abdication as son becomes king

The long-reigning monarch has handed over the role of sovereign to her son, who becomes Frederik X.

Transcript

00:00 Denmark's Queen Margarethe II signed her historic abdication on Sunday, a step that made her

00:07 son Frederik X immediately become king. After signing the document at a table around which

00:12 royals and members of the Danish government were seated, she rose and gestured to her

00:17 son to take her place, adding "God save the king" as she left the room.

00:26 Fighting health issues, Margarethe, aged 83, is the first Danish monarch to voluntarily

00:31 relinquish the throne in nearly 900 years. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen proclaimed

00:38 Frederik king from the balcony of Copenhagen's Christiansborg Palace.

00:48 The abdication leaves Denmark with two queens. Margarethe keeps her title, while Frederik's

00:54 Australian-born wife becomes Queen Mary. Frederik and Mary's eldest son Christian, aged 18,

01:01 has become crown prince and heir to the throne.

01:07 (crowd cheering)