Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden
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Crown Princess Victoria, Victoria Ingrid Alice Desirée, (born July 14, 1977), Duchess of Westregothia, is the heir apparent of Sweden, being the first-born child of King Carl XVI Gustaf and his commoner Queen Silvia. She was created crown princess and heir apparent on January 1, 1980, by a constitutional reform. The old principle of agnatic primogeniture, which meant that the throne was inherited by the eldest male child of the preceding monarch, was replaced by the principle of full cognatic primogeniture. This meant that the throne would be inherited by the eldest child without regard to sex, and Sweden was the first country to adopt it.
As a Princess, and as heir to the throne, Victoria is prohibited by the Swedish constitution from becoming the regent and head of another state, either by election, succession or marriage, unless approval is granted by the King and the Riksdag (parliament), by forfeit of all rights of succession for herself and her heirs.
Victoria attended a state elementary school and a private gymnasium (secondary school) in Stockholm, graduating in 1996. Afterward, she has studied for a year at Université Catholique de l'Ouest in Angers in France, and for two years at Yale University in the United States. She has also spent considerable time studying and following the work of the Swedish government at the local, national and EU levels, as well as familiarizing herself with the Swedish economy.
In addition to her studies, Victoria has worked as a trainee at the United Nations in New York and at the Swedish Embassy in Washington, DC, and she has also visited three week introduction to a Swedish Defence Forces course that aims to prepare its participants for international missions. Victoria has also studied conflict solving and international peacekeeping, completed an educational programme with the Swedish International Development Agency, interned at the Swedish Trade Council in Berlin and Paris, and studied forestry and agriculture.
Victoria has increasingly participated in official state visits and other responsibilities in preparation for her role as the head of state. She performs official duties on behalf of the Royal Family on a weekly basis, and is also the protector and honorary member of several organisations.
Victoria has done many official trips and visits abroad as a representative of Sweden. Her first major, official visit on her own was to Japan in the fall of 2001, where she promoted Swedish design. In the beginning of 2004, she also paid an official visit to Saudi Arabia, as a part of a large official business delegation from Sweden. One of the most recent official trips she has done on her own was to Hungary in October 2004, where she opened an exhibition of great historical significance.
Victoria's namesday on March 12 and her birthday on July 14 are official flag days in Sweden.
See also
de:Kronprinzessin Viktoria sv:Kronprinsessan Victoria ja:ヴィクトリア王女 (スウェーデン)
