Princess Isabella begins military service, declines army pay

The 19-year-old princess, the eldest daughter of King Frederik X and Queen Mary, reported for duty on August 3 after completing her education.

COPENHAGEN: Denmark’s Princess Isabella has begun her mandatory military service, becoming the first member of the Danish royal family to complete the country’s full compulsory military training under its updated national service program.

The 19-year-old princess, the eldest daughter of King Frederik X and Queen Mary, reported for duty on August 3 after completing her education. She is expected to serve for 11 months as part of Denmark’s expanded military service requirements.

In a gesture that has drawn public attention, Princess Isabella has declined to receive the salary and daily allowances provided to military recruits. According to the Danish royal household, she will instead rely on financial support from her parents to cover her personal expenses during training.

Her older brother, Crown Prince Christian, previously completed military training, but Isabella is the first royal to undertake the extended compulsory service introduced under Denmark’s revised defense policy.

Denmark expanded mandatory military service to include women in 2024 and increased the duration of service from four months to 11 months. The changes were introduced in response to Europe’s evolving security environment, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and growing strategic concerns in the Arctic region.

This week, around 1,600 young recruits began their military service across the country, while Denmark is also preparing to deploy personnel to Greenland for the first time as part of its strengthened defense strategy.