King Carl XVI Gustaf Of Sweden To Celebrate 70th Birthday On April 30

The Swedish royals will celebrate King Carl XVI Gustaf’s 70th birthday on April 30. A host of celebrations have been lined up for the milestone birthday of the monarch. Lavish banquets, carriage processions, a gun salute and musical concerts have been organized by the Royal Palace.

According to tradition, the festivities will begin from 8 o’clock in the morning on April 30. Forty three Swedish flags will be hoisted in the outer courtyard of the royal palace in Stockholm with a royal band playing in the background. The entire family including the king, his wife Queen Silvia and their three children Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine will attend the Te Deum thanksgiving service at 10 am in the royal chapel.

The princesses husbands Prince Daniel and Chris O’Neill are expected to attend the church service. But, it is not known if Carl Philip’s wife Princess Sofia will attend. The couple are expecting their first child in April and the princess is already on maternity leave.

Carl Gustaf will come out of the West Gate of the palace later in the morning when the army band will play a parade march. The monarch will then greet well-wishers in the outer courtyard of the palace, when children will have the opportunity to present him with flowers. Twenty-one gun shots will be fired from Skeppsholmen, one of the islands in Stockholm.

Scouts and armed forces will also march along the procession route that passes landmarks, including the City Hall. The Swedish royals will also host a reception and lavish banquet for the king and his VIP guests in the State Hall of the Royal Palace. The monarch will also be joined by his family on the palace balcony where he will wave to the crowds waiting to have a glimpse of him.

There will be a five-day celebration for Carl Gustaf’s birthday from April 25 to April 30. The Swedish monarch, who is popular among the public has been on the throne for 42 years. Besides, a concert will be held on the night prior to the king’s milestone birthday at the Nordic Museum in Stockholm.

It will be followed by a reception for the king’s family, friends, Swedish authorities and other royal guests. Carl Gustaf’s Spanish counterparts King Felipe and his wife Queen Letizia, and Queen Margrethe II of Denmark are expected to attend the celebrations. However, the royal family has not yet revealed the royal guest list.