Published : Oct. 25, 2012 - 17:51
Princess Madeleine of Sweden. (AP)
Another royal wedding beckons in Europe: This time it is Sweden's Princess Madeleine who is getting ready to tie the knot.
Madeleine and her U.S.-British boyfriend Christopher O'Neill announced their engagement on the royal palace website on Thursday.
The 30-year-old Madeleine is the youngest of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia's three children and is fourth in line to the throne.
The tabloid Expressen reported early Thursday that O'Neill, a 38-year-old financier she met in New York, had proposed to the princess, and the couple confirmed the news in a brief video clip posted on the royal website.
``Chris proposed to me in New York at the start of October, and we are very happy,'' Madeleine said in the video, which was recorded Wednesday at the Drottningholm Palace outside Stockholm.
``Madeleine and I have known each other for two years and I recently summoned up the courage to ask her to marry me. Thankfully she said yes,'' O'Neill said in English with a British accent. He added a few words in Swedish, saying he was trying to learn the language ``but it is difficult.''
Madeleine said the wedding would take place in Sweden in the summer of 2013, and that more details would be released later.
Madeleine lives in New York where she works for the World Childhood Foundation, a nonprofit founded by her mother.
In 2010, she broke off an earlier engagement after media reports that her then-fianceuro had cheated on her.
O'Neill was born in London and holds dual American and British citizenship, according to a CV released by the royal palace. He studied at a boarding school in St. Gallen, Switzerland, and holds a bachelor's degree in international relations from Boston University and a master's degree from Columbia Business School in New York.
O'Neill now works as a partner and head of research at Noster Capital, a hedge fund with offices in London and New York. His interests include Alpine skiing, tennis, golf, music, literature and the Chelsea Football Club in London, the palace said.
Madeleine's elder sister, Crown Princess Victoria married her former fitness trainer Daniel Westling at a lavish ceremony in Stockholm in 2010. The couple had a baby, Princess Estelle, this year. O'Neill accompanied Madeleine to Estelle's baptism ceremony in May.
The Swedish royal family has only ceremonial duties, such as attending award ceremonies, promoting Swedish businesses abroad and supporting charities and foundations. As the head of state, the king also receives foreign dignitaries on formal visits to Sweden.
News of Princess Madeleine and O'Neill's engagement comes just days after another royal union was celebrated in Europe. Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg and Belgian Countess Stephanie de Lannoy were married Saturday in the tiny duchy's Notre Dame Cathedral. (AP)
‘미모의 스웨덴 공주’ 약혼자 외도 후에..
스웨덴 왕실의 마들렌 공주가 미국인 남자친구 크리스 오닐과 약혹했다고 현지 언론이 보도했다.
현지 타블로이드 신문 '익스프레슨'은 오닐이 한 달 전 마들렌 공주의 아버지인 칼 구스타브 16세 국왕에게 결혼 허락을 구한 이후 미국 뉴욕에서 공주에게 프러포즈를 했다고 25일(현지시간) 보도했다.
마들렌 공주는 국왕과 실비아 왕비 사이에서 태어난 막내 딸이다.
스웨덴 왕실은 약혼 보도에 대해 아직 공식 입장을 밝히지 않았지만 왕실 경호실 관계자는 25일 오후 왕실 웹사이트를 통해 관련 정보가 공개될 것으로 보인다고 말했다.
마들렌 공주는 2010년 전 약혼자의 외도를 이유로 파혼한 이후 미국으로 건너가면서 현 남자친구인 오닐을 만났다.
이후 현재까지 미 뉴욕에 거주하고 있으며 어머니인 실비아 왕비가 설립한 비영리단체 세계어린이재단(World Childhood Foundation)에서 근무하고 있다.
오닐은 콜롬비아 대학을 졸업하고 현재 투자업계에 종사하고 있다고 익스프레슨은 전했다.
두 사람의 열애설은 2011년 초 불거졌으며, 오닐은 올해 5월 에스텔 공주의 세례식에서 처음으로 왕실 가족과 공식석상에 동행했다.