The Princess’s parents are Alain Cavallier and Françoise Grassiot, married on 14 June 1975 and subsequently divorced. Alain Cavallier is the former co-owner of an advertising agency and has retired. Françoise Grassiot is the owner of the hotel “Chateau de la Vernède”. On 7 November 1987, she married Christian Grassiot, a financial adviser. The Princess has four half-brothers, Benjamin and Gregory Grandet, both born in Switzerland, and Charles and Edouard Cavallier, both born in Paris. Like the Princess, all four half-brothers grew up in Paris.

Prior to marrying HRH Prince Joachim, Princess Marie was a French citizen and belonged to the Roman-Catholic Church. In connection with the marriage, The Princess joined the Evangelical Lutheran Church and became a Danish citizen.

Wedding
On 24 May 2008, Marie Cavallier married Prince Joachim of Denmark and, in connection with the wedding, became HRH Princess Marie, Countess of Monpezat. The wedding ceremony took place in Møgeltønder Church, and the wedding banquet was held at Schackenborg Castle.

Children
HE Count Henrik Carl Joachim Alain, born on 4 May 2009, and HE Countess Athena Marguerite Françoise Marie born on 24 January 2012.

Residence
Prince Joachim and Princess Marie and the couple’s two children, Count Henrik and Countess Athena, reside in Washington.

Education
The Princess attended primary school in Paris in the years 1981-1989. In 1989, Her Royal Highness moved to Beau-Soleil International Boarding School in Villars, Switzerland and stayed there until the upper secondary examination in June 1993.

The Princess studied international business and economics at Babson College, Boston, Massachusetts, USA (1995-1997) and economics at university in Genève (1994-1995). The Princess has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Marymount Manhattan College, New York (1997-1999).

Business background
During her years of study, The Princess worked at Estee Lauder in Paris as an assistant to the public relations manager in the summer of 1994 and as an assistant to the managing director of ING Numismatic Group SA in Genève, Switzerland in the summer of 1997. In addition to pursuing university studies, The Princess taught French.

After having completed university studies, The Princess worked at the advertising agency DoubleClick Inc. in New York as an international marketing co-ordinator. In 2002, The Princess moved back to Paris and worked in the press department of the French advertising agency Media Marketing.

In 2004, The Princess became an assistant to the managing director of the Reuters financial news agency’s Radianz in Genève. From January 2005 until her marriage to Prince Joachim, The Princess worked as an executive secretary in ING Numismatic Group SA.

Association with the Danish Emergency Management Agency
In 2011, The Princess completed introductory professional emergency preparedness training in the Danish Emergency Management Agency. The Princess is an honorary first lieutenant in DEMA. Through the years since then, the Princess has acquired a fundamental knowledge of the agency’s handling of its duties through visits to the Danish Emergency Management Agency and several of the agency’s partners.

in 2016, Princess Marie began as a special project staff member in the area of prevention at the Danish Emergency Management Agency in Birkerød.

On 27 April 2023, Princess Marie participated in educational modules for the Danish Emergency Management Agency’s Response Manager training.  After taking part, Her Royal Highness was appointed as an honorary section leader.

Association with Denmark’s embassy in Paris
From 2021 to 2023, Princess Marie took on the role of Special Cultural Representative with the cultural affairs section of Denmark’s embassy in Paris as part of a new effort to strengthen Danish culture and cooperation.

Language
The Princess’s mother tongue is French. Her Royal Highness also speaks Danish, English, Italian and Spanish.