Danish queen discharged from hospital after back surgery

COPENHAGEN: Denmark's Queen Margrethe II, whose half-century reign makes her Europe's longest-serving monarch, was discharged from a Copenhagen hospital Thursday after undergoing a back operation last week, the palace said.

Doctors were satisfied with the Feb. 22 operation and the condition of the 82-year-old queen, the royal household said, adding that “awaiting her now is a lengthy physical rehabilitation process, which may extend over the next few months.''

Earlier the palace had said that the popular queen underwent “extensive back surgery” at the Danish capital's university hospital after experiencing severe back pains.

Several official engagements have either been postponed, canceled or are being handled by other members of the royal family. The queen's oldest son, heir to the throne Crown Prince Frederik, and his wife, Crown Princess Mary, are stepping in, as well as the queen's sister, Princess Benedikte.

The Danish Constitution gives Margrethe, Denmark's head of state, no political power, and her duties are ceremonial. She was proclaimed queen on Jan. 15, 1972, following the death of her father.