The new design shows intent to keep control of Faroe Islands and Greenland - which Trump says he would like the US to buy.
The Danish king has shocked some historians by changing the royal coat of arms to more prominently feature Greenland and the Faroe Islands - in what has also been seen as a rebuke to Donald Trump. The new design (right) features a large polar bear and ram, representing Greenland and the Faroes.
Less than a year since succeeding his mother, Queen Margrethe, after she stood down on New Year’s Eve 2023, King Frederik has made a clear statement of intent to keep the autonomous Danish territory and former colony within the kingdom of Denmark.
For 500 years, previous Danish royal coats of arms have featured three crowns, the symbol of the Kalmar Union between Denmark, Norway and Sweden, which was led from Denmark between 1397 and 1523. They are also an important symbol of its neighbour Sweden.
But in the updated version, the crowns have been removed and replaced with a more prominent polar bear and ram than previously, to symbolise Greenland and the Faroe Islands respectively.
Royal expert Lars Hovbakke Sørensen believes the changes reflect the king’s personal interest in the Arctic, but also send a message to the world. “It is important to signal from the Danish side that Greenland and the Faroe Islands are part of the Danish realm, and that this is not up for discussion. This is how you mark it,” he told TV2.