Kerajaan Gantarang Lala Bata Selayar Royal Blog: The Crown Princess Victoria Fund

The Crown Princess Victoria Fund

Crown Princess Victoria on the National Day of Sweden, 2006

The Crown Princess Victorias Fund was set up in 1997 and is run as a part of Radiohjälpen, the fundraising branch of Sveriges Television and Sveriges Radio. The fund’s aim is to provide support for leisure and recreational activities for children and young people with functional disabilities or chronic illnesses. Applications can be addressed to the fund year round and the use of grants can cover everything from compensations to assistants at recreational trips to leisure activities such as horseback riding, skiing, wheelchair floorball, camps and outings.^{[citation needed]}
Every summer, Sveriges Television carries out fundraising drives for the fund via messages on television, these are especially concentrated around the Swedish national holiday on 6 June and the Crown Princess's birthday, Victoriadagen, on 14 July. On the Crown Princess's birthday, when a long televised entertainment program is aired from Borgholm where the people and the Royal Family celebrate Victoria, the public is also able to call in and donate money at the same time as they compete for prizes.^{[citation needed]}
The Crown Princess Victoria Fund’s means mainly derive from donations by the public, but large companies such as Arla Foods, Swedbank and AB Svenska Returpack are constant sponsor partners. Additional support comes from The Association of Swedish Bakers & Confectioners who every year arrange a national “princess cake week” during which the participating cafés and bakeries give 2,50 SEK per sold princess pastry and 10 SEK per sold princess cake to the fund.^[10] The result of this fund-raising drive is usually presented to Victoria herself on her name day on 12 March every year; in 2007, the total amount was 200,000 SEK. Congratulatory and memorial cards are also issued by Radiohjälpen benefitting the fund, a simple way to pay respects and do a good deed in one act. In 2006, The Crown Princess Victoria Fund raised a total of 5,5 million SEK.^[10]
Every year Victoria visits one or several clubs or projects that have been granted money. These visits are not announced via the official royal diary but kept private, instead Sveriges Television often accompanies her and airs short programs from these visits at some time during the year.^[11]

Personal life

Victoria sailing

Victoria’s first boyfriend was Daniel Collert. They socialized in the same circles, went to the same school and were already friends when their romance developed in the mid-1990s. When Victoria moved to the United States in 1998 to study and recover from her eating disorders, Collert moved with her across the Atlantic and settled in New York.^[12] In September 2000, Victoria's relationship with Collert was confirmed in an interview with her at Expo 2000,^[13] and later by then-Director of the Press and Information Department at the Royal Court Elisabeth Tarras-Wahlberg. They broke up in 2001.^{[citation needed]}
In May 2002, Swedish newspaper Expressen reported that Victoria had a new boyfriend, her personal trainer at Master Training, Daniel Westling. When the news broke and the media turned its attention on him, it was obvious that he did not like being in the public eye. Once Westling was photographed crossing a street against a red light in order to avoid a camera.^[14] In July 2002, Victoria and Daniel Westling were pictured kissing for the first time^[15] at a birthday party for Caroline Kreuger, a close friend of Victoria's.
In a popular personal report called Tre dagar med Victoria, which profiled her work during a three-day period that aired on TV4 in December 2004, Victoria commented on criticism directed at Westling, “Many unfair things are written. I understand that there is speculation, but some day justice will be done there, too.” Victoria also gave her opinion that happiness is important, and that these days it is not so much about background and pedigree but about two people who have to live with each other. She said that if they are not happy and comfortable with each other, it is impossible to do a good job.^[16]
During her April 2005 visit to Expo 2005 in Nagakute, Victoria was interviewed by Mikio Yikuma of the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shinbun. Yikuma brought up the subject of royals marrying commoners, to which the princess responded, "I think the general idea with the Swedes is that the modern way is to marry someone you love, not necessarily based on where she or he comes from." Though she did not mention Westling by name, Victoria did admit, "There is someone in my life", but that marriage was not on her mind then. The interview was conducted at the Swedish embassy in Tokyo and published in the paper on 18 April 2005.^{[citation needed]}

Engagement

Wikinews has related news: Wedding next year for Sweden's crown princess

Swedish media often speculated about upcoming engagements and marriages for Victoria. On 24 February 2009, rumours that wedding plans were imminent became particularly intense preceding an information council between the King and Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt.^[17] Under the terms of the Swedish Act of Succession, the Government, upon the request of the King, gives the final consent for a dynastic marriage of a Prince or Princess of Sweden. The prince or princess otherwise loses their right to the throne. Later that day, it was confirmed that permission had been granted and that Victoria would marry Daniel Westling in the summer of 2010. The wedding date was set in Stockholm Cathedral for 19 June 2010, the 34th anniversary of her parents' marriage.^[18] Her engagement ring features a solitaire round brilliant-cut diamond mounted on white gold.^[19]

Wedding

The Duchess and Duke of Västergötland on their wedding day

Main article: Wedding of Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden and Daniel Westling

The wedding took place on 19 June 2010. More than 1200 guests^{[citation needed]} including royalty and ambassadors from various countries were invited to the wedding ceremony which took place at Stockholm Cathedral. After the wedding the newlyweds were driven through Stockholm in a coach and then rowed in the antique royal barge Vasaorden to the royal palace where the wedding banquet was held. On the evening before the wedding, there was a gala concert dedicated to the couple in the Stockholm Concert Hall.
More than half a million^{[citation needed]} Swedes waved with Swedish flags and cheered the couple from in their cortege, from the church to the castle. The popularity of the monarchy exploded after the wedding, and a SIFO showed that more than 70% of the Swedes supported the monarchy and only 16% wanted to abandon it.^{[citation needed]} Following their wedding the Crown Princess and Prince moved into Haga Palace. Prior to the wedding, the Crown Princess resided at Drottningholm Palace.

Motherhood

On 17 August 2011 the Swedish royal court announced that Crown Princess Victoria was pregnant and expecting the couple's first child in March 2012.^[20] On 23 February 2012 at 04:26 CET, Victoria gave birth to Princess Estelle, Duchess of Östergötland,^[21] in the Karolinska University Hospital.^[22] Princess Estelle is second-in-line to the Swedish throne.
On 4 September 2015, the royal court announced that Crown Princess Victoria is expecting her second child in March 2016.^[23]

Godchildren

The Crown Princess is godmother to:^[24]

Vivien Sommerlath (daughter of Jörg and Simone Sommerlath) born 1992
Giulia Sommerlath (daughter of Thomas and Susanne Sommerlath) born 1995
Prince Constantine Alexios of Greece and Denmark (born 28 October 1998)
Baroness Madeleine von Dincklage (daughter of Baron Cornelius and Baroness Sybilla von Dincklage; born 15 March 1999)
Leopold Lundén Sommerlath (son of Victoria's cousin, Patrick Sommerlath and Camilla Lundén) born 2002
Ian de Geer (son of Baroness Kristina-Louisa Silfverschiöld and Baron Hans de Geer) born 20 February 2002
Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange (born 7 December 2003)
Ian Persson (son of Leonie Persson)
Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway (born 21 January 2004)
Prince Christian of Denmark (born 15 October 2005)
Diana Agnes Astrid Engsäll (daughter of Andrea Engsäll)
Isabella Chloé Nilsson (daughter of Caroline Kreuger and Jesper Nilsson)
Princess Eléonore of Belgium (born 16 April 2008)
Princess Leonore, Duchess of Gotland (born 20 February 2014)
Princess Katharina of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (born 30 April 2014)
Desirée Elfrida Christina Magnuson (daughter of Gustaf and Vicky Magnuson; born 11 July 2014)

Health

In 1996, it was established that Victoria suffered from anorexia, it was however not confirmed until the next year.^[25]^[26] Already at that time she was getting professional help, but given her public position in Sweden it was getting increasingly difficult to handle the situation. Victoria had planned to study at Uppsala University, but after intense media speculation and public discussion when pictures of an evidently emaciated Victoria in sleeveless dresses at the Order of the Innocence’s ball and the gala dinner for the incoming state visit from Austria surfaced in April 1997, the Royal Court decided to confirm what was feared.
After a press release from the Royal Court in November 1997 announced that Victoria had eating disorders, plans changed for her and she moved to the United States where she received professional help and studied at Yale University.^[26] By making this drastic decision, Victoria lived an anonymous life while getting professional help and recovering without having to worry about media speculations or if people were recognizing her on the streets.^[25]
In an interview with Björn Carlgren for SVT2^{[citation needed]} in June 1999, Victoria said, “It was a really hard time. This kind of illness is hard, not only for the individual but for the surroundings. Today I’m fine.”^[25]
In November 2002, the book “Victoria, Victoria!” came out, speaking further about her eating disorder. Victoria said: “I felt like an accelerating train, going right down... during the whole period. I had eating disorders and was aware of it, my anguish was enormous. I really hated how I looked like, how I was... I, Victoria, didn’t exist. It felt like everything in my life and around me was controlled by others. The one thing I could control was the food I put in me”. She further said that “What happened cost and I was the one who stood for the payments. Now I’m feeling well and with the insights I’ve acquired through this I can hopefully help someone else”.^[27]
Princess Victoria made her first public comment about her anorexia at a conference on bullying held at the University of Örebro.^[when?] In 2008, she also spoke about her face blindness.

Titles, styles and honours

Styles of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland

Reference style	Her Royal Highness
Spoken style	Your Highness
Alternative style	Ma'am

Crown Princess Victoria's coat of arms

Titles

14 July 1977 – 31 December 1979: Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria of Sweden
1 January 1980 – 9 January 1980: Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden
9 January 1980 – present: Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland