Princess Marie joined by furry family member in birthday portrait

Princess Marie of Denmark is 49! Prince Joachim's wife celebrated her birthday on Thursday, Feb. 6. In honor of her special day, the Danish Royal House shared a photo of the Princess on Instagram.

"Her Royal Highness Princess Marie has a birthday and turns 49 today 🇩🇰," the picture was captioned (translated to English). The photo, taken by Lars H. Laursen, shows Marie sitting on steps, dressed in a floral print dress. The Princess was joined in the photo by her family's dog, Cerise, who sat next to her.

Cerise was welcomed into their family in the summer of 2019. In an Instagram post introducing the new furry family member, the Royal House wrote (translated to English), "It is a bichon frise of Danish descent, and its name is Cerise. In Danish it means cherry, and Their Royal Highnesses are thus continuing the tradition of naming their dogs after a fruit – the family's previous dog was named Apple."

The newly released photo of Marie appears to be part of a series that was shared by the same photographer last September. Alongside the photos of the Princess at Amalienborg Palace, Lars wrote, "H.K.H. Princess Marie photographed for Naturli magazine. The princess became the patron of the Stop Wasting Food association in 2024 and was interviewed by the magazine on that occasion."

Marie, who was born in Paris, France, is married to King Frederik of Denmark's younger brother, Prince Joachim. The couple wed in May of 2008. Marie is Joachim's second wife. The Prince and Princess share two kids: 15-year-old Count Henrik and 13-year-old Countess Athena. Joachim also has two older sons, Count Nikolai, 25, and Count Felix, 22, from his first marriage to Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg.

Joachim and Marie live in the United States with Henrik and Athena. In 2023, the couple moved to Washington, D.C., where the Danish Prince works as the defence industry attaché at the Embassy of Denmark. In an interview with The Washington Post, published last April, Joachim said: "We’ve lived here for seven months now, and very few people know who we are, Danes apart."

Joachim and Marie will be traveling to Canada this month. The pair are set to attend Prince Harry's 2025 Invictus Games. According to the Danish Royal House's official program, King Frederik's brother and sister-in-law will be at the Invictus Games on Valentine's day, Feb. 14, and on Feb. 15.