Crown Princess Mary went from "commoner" to Danish royalty when she married Crown Prince Frederik in 2004.
Australian-born Mary Donaldson grew up in Hobart, Tasmania with her parents and siblings.
She was interested in both sport and music as a child and proved her flair for learning languages during her education.
Mary later obtained a Bachelor's degree in Commerce and Law from the University of Tasmania in 1994 and later carved out an advertising career.
As Mary prepares to become Queen of Denmark when her husband is proclaimed King on Sunday 14 January, what do we know about her family?
Mary Elizabeth Donaldson was born on 5 February 1972 to Scottish parents, John Dalgleish Donaldson and Henrietta Clark Donaldson.
The couple married in Edinburgh, Scotland in 1963 and later that year they emigrated to Australia, becoming Australian citizens in 1975.
Mary's father John is a Professor of Applied Mathematics. Her mother Henrietta, who worked as the Executive Assistant to the Vice Chancellor of The University of Tasmania, sadly passed away in November 1997 after complications from heart surgery.
Professor John Donaldson later married British crime novelist Susan Horwood, who writes under the pen name of Susan Moody.
Mary is the youngest of four children. She has two sisters, Jane Alison Stephens, born in 1965, and Patricia Anne Bailey, born in 1968, as well as a younger brother, John, born in 1970.
Jane and Patricia were Mary's bridesmaids on her wedding day to Crown Prince Frederik.
Mary's eldest sister Jane has three children with her husband Craig Stephens. Patricia also has three children; her eldest two she shares with her first husband Ken Woods. John and his wife Leanne have one child together.
Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary are parents to Prince Christian, 18, Princess Isabella, 16, and twins Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine, who turn 13 on 8 January.
Frederik's brother Prince Joachim has two sons, Count Nikolai, 24, and Count Felix, 21, from his first marriage to Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg.
He and his second wife, Princess Marie, are parents to Count Henrik, 14, and Countess Athena, 11.