HRH Princess Marie
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.
On 24 May 2008, Marie Cavallier married HRH Prince Joachim of Denmark and, inconnection 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.
HH Prince Henrik Carl Joachim Alain, born on 4 May 2009, and HH Princess Athena Marguerite Françoise Marie born on 24 January 2012.
The Princess attended primary school in Paris in the years 1981-1989. In 1989, she 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). 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.
The Princess’s mother tongue is French. She also speaks Danish, English, Italian and Spanish.
Prince Joachim and Princess Marie and the couple’s two children, Prince Henrik and Princess Athena, reside in Paris.
Princess Marie is patron of a great many national organisations, institutions, and foundations, and is an honorary member of various associations and societies
