John Donaldson, the father of Denmark's Australian-born Queen Mary, dies at 84

John Donaldson, center right, father of Mary Donaldson, the fiancée of Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik, and his wife, Susan Moody, center left, speak to the crowd in front of the Danish Parliament in Copenhagen, May 13, 2004. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo, File)

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — The father of Denmark’s Australian-born Queen Mary, John Donaldson, has died in Tasmania, the royal house in Copenhagen said Sunday. He was 84.

Donaldson died in Hobart, a royal statement said, without giving further details. It said that his health had been declining over the past few years, and that the queen last visited him at the end of March.

John Dalgleish Donaldson, born in Scotland on Sept. 5, 1941, was a professor of applied mathematics.

Mary became Denmark’s queen in January 2024 after two decades as crown princess when her husband became the Scandinavian country’s monarch. He was proclaimed King Frederik X following the abdication of his mother, Queen Margrethe II.

Frederik and Mary met during the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. They married in 2004.

Sunday’s statement quoted Mary as saying that “my heart is heavy.”

“But I know that when the grief settles, the memories will brighten my day, and what will remain strongest is love and gratitude for everything he gave me and taught me,” she added.

Mary’s mother, Henrietta Clark Donaldson, died in 1997. Her father married Susan Moody in 2001.

The statement said the family will hold a private memorial service for Donaldson “at a later date.”