Princess Sofia, Duchess of Värmland (born Sofia Kristina Hellqvist; 6 December 1984), is a member of the

Swedish royal family The Swedish royal family ( sv, Svenska kungafamiljen) since 1818 has consisted of members of the Swedish Royal House of Bernadotte, closely related to the King of Sweden. Today those who are recognized by the government are entitled to royal ti ...

. Before marrying

Prince Carl Philip A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and becoming a princess of Sweden in 2015, Sofia was a

glamour model A model is a person with a role either to promote, display or advertise commercial products (notably fashion clothing in fashion shows) or to serve as a visual aid for people who are creating works of art or to pose for photography. Though ...

and

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

contestant. They have three sons, Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel and Prince Julian, who are fifth, sixth and seventh in the

line of succession to the Swedish throne The line of succession to the Swedish throne is determined by the Act of Succession ( sv, Successionsordningen), originally approved jointly by the Riksdag of the Estates assembled in Örebro and King Charles XIII in 1810. In 1979, the Riksdag i ...

, respectively.

Early life and education

Sofia Hellqvist was born in 1984 at

Danderyd Hospital Danderyd Hospital ( sv, Danderyds sjukhus) is a public teaching hospital in Danderyd Municipality in northern Greater Stockholm opened in 1922. Until 1964 it was called ''Centrallasarettet i Stocksund''. Danderyd Hospital is one of Sweden's large ...

Danderyd Danderyd Municipality (''Danderyds kommun''; ) is a municipality north of Stockholm in Stockholm County in east central Sweden. It is one of the smallest municipalities of Sweden, but the most affluent. Its seat is located in Djursholm and it is ...

, to a Swedish mother, Marie Britt Rotman (born 1957), a marketing manager in the plastics industry, and a

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

–Swedish father, Erik Oscar Hellqvist (born 1949), an employment counsellor at the Swedish employment agency.Kvarnkullen, Tomas (11 June 2015). She was baptised on 26 May 1985 in Tibble Church. She moved to

Älvdalen Älvdalen (Elfdalian: ''Övdaln'' or ''Tjyörtjbynn''; literally meaning ''The River Valley'') is a locality and the seat of Älvdalen Municipality in Dalarna County, Sweden, with 1,810 inhabitants in 2010. The parish is widely known for being the ...

at the age of six. She has two sisters, Lina Hellqvist (humanitarian project coordinator, born 1982) and Sara Hellqvist (

criminologist Criminology (from Latin , "accusation", and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'' meaning: "word, reason") is the study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is an interdisciplinary field in both the behavioural and so ...

, born 1988). She attended Älvdalen Montessori School and Älvdal School. She studied the arts programme at Vansbro Education Centre.

Career

At the age of 20, Hellqvist was published in photos in the men's magazine ''

Slitz ''Slitz'' was a Swedish men's magazine that was published in Stockholm, Sweden, between 1980 and 2012. History ''Slitz'' was initially created in 1985 when the two music magazines '' Schlager'' and '' Ritz'' merged. The magazine continued to be a ...

'' wearing only a

bikini A bikini is a two-piece swimsuit primarily worn by women that features two triangles of fabric on top that cover the breasts, and two triangles of fabric on the bottom: the front covering the pelvis but exposing the navel, and the back coveri ...

bottom and a live

boa constrictor The boa constrictor (scientific name also ''Boa constrictor''), also called the red-tailed boa, is a species of large, non-venomous, heavy-bodied snake that is frequently kept and bred in captivity. The boa constrictor is a member of the family B ...

around her upper body and was later voted ''Miss Slitz 2004'' by readers. When her relationship with Prince Carl Philip was revealed in 2010, ''

Expressen ''Expressen'' (''The Express'') is one of two nationwide evening newspapers in Sweden, the other being '' Aftonbladet''. ''Expressen'' was founded in 1944; its symbol is a wasp and its slogans are "it stings" or "''Expressen'' to your rescue". ...

'' republished the photos. Following the ''Miss Slitz'' win, Hellqvist was cast in the ''

Paradise Hotel ''Paradise Hotel'' is an American reality television program. In the show, a group of singles live in a luxurious hotel resort, competing to see who can stay in the hotel the longest. Each week, the contestants pair off into couples, and must sh ...

'' reality show on

TV4 TV4 or TV 4 may refer to: *TV4 (Poland), a private Polish television station *TV4 (Sweden), a Swedish television network **TV4 Group, owners of the Swedish television station *South African Broadcasting Corporation TV4, a channel operated by the st ...

where she made it to the final. In the show, she had a much publicised feud with

Olinda Castielle Olinda Joy Elisabeth Castielle (born Olinda Borggren, September 30, 1976) is a Swedish television personality who was a contestant on the American reality show ''Joe Millionaire'' and on the first season of the Swedish version of ''Paradise Hot ...

and finally voted Castielle off the show. In 2005, she moved to New York to study accounting, specialising in business development. She has also studied global ethics, child and youth science, children's communication and the

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (commonly abbreviated as the CRC or UNCRC) is an international human rights treaty which sets out the civil, political, economic, social, health and cultural rights of children. The Con ...

in theory, and in Swedish practice at Stockholm University. She is also a certified yoga instructor and worked as such in New York. Back in Sweden she studied in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, where she also worked part-time as a

waitress Waiting staff (British English), waitstaff (North American English), waiters (male) / waitresses (female), or servers (North American English), are those who work at a restaurant, a diner, or a bar and sometimes in private homes, attending ...

and

. Hellqvist was mentioned in some newspapers for having kissed American adult film star

Jenna Jameson Jenna Marie Massoli (born April 9, 1974), known professionally as Jenna Jameson (), is an American model, former pornographic film actress, businesswoman, and television personality. She has been named the world's most famous adult entertainme ...

while in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

to do a Swedish version of reality show ''

''.

Marriage and motherhood

Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia 2015-8064

In July 2010, the Swedish Royal Court confirmed the relationship between Hellqvist and

. In April 2011, the couple moved in together in

Djurgården Djurgården ( or ) or, more officially, ''Kungliga Djurgården'' (), is an island in central Stockholm, Sweden. Djurgården is home to historical buildings and monuments, museums, galleries, the amusement park Gröna Lund, the open-air museum ...

of Stockholm, which was confirmed by the palace. On 27 June 2014, the couple's engagement was announced, and in December, Hellqvist made an appearance at the

Nobel Banquet The Nobel Banquet ( sv, Nobelfesten) is an annual banquet held on 10 December in the Blue Hall of Stockholm City Hall, after the Nobel Prize ceremony. At the banquet, for which a formal dress code exists, a multi-course dinner is served and en ...

with her future husband. In May 2015, it was announced that she would receive the title of princess. The couple

married Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

at Slottskyrkan in Stockholm on 13 June 2015. On 19 April 2016, Sofia gave birth to their first child, Prince Alexander Erik Hubertus Bertil, Duke of Södermanland at Danderyd Hospital. Their second child, Prince Gabriel Carl Walter, Duke of Dalarna, was born on 31 August 2017 at Danderyd Hospital. Their third child, Prince Julian Herbert Folke, Duke of Halland, was born on 26 March 2021 at Danderyd Hospital. On 7 October 2019, Sofia's father-in-law, the king, issued a statement rescinding the royal status of Prince Alexander and Prince Gabriel in an effort to more strictly associate Swedish royalty to the office of the

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

; they are still to be styled as princes and dukes of their provinces, and they remain in the line of succession to the throne. Sofia and Carl Philip commented that their sons now will have more freedom of choice for their future lives.

Charity work

In 2010, Hellqvist was one of the co-founders of non-profit organisation ''Project Playground'', a charity that assists underprivileged children in South Africa. Princess Sofia is the honorary chair. To mark the occasion of Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia's marriage in 2015, the couple founded Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia's Foundation. The foundation's purpose is to counteract bullying. Princess Sofia is an honorary chair of

Sophiahemmet Sophiahemmet is a private hospital at Norra Djurgården in Stockholm, Sweden. It is associated with the Sophiahemmet University College. Its connection with the royal family goes back to 1884 when nursing education sponsored by Queen Sophia was ...

since 2016. She succeeded

Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnuson, (''Christina Louise Helena'', born 3 August 1943) is the youngest of the four older sisters of Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. She generally uses the name Christina Magnuson. Early l ...

, who had been honorary chair since 1972. In April 2020, the Princess completed a three-day emergency online training course from Sophiahemmet University, created to help hospitals amidst the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. It was announced that she would work as a volunteer at the Sophiahemmet Hospital in Stockholm, where she would support "doctors and nurses through kitchen shifts, disinfecting instruments and cleaning."

Titles, styles and honours

Sofia is styled as Her Royal Highness Princess Sofia of Sweden, Duchess of Värmland.

Honours

National

*: **

Member of the

Royal Order of the Seraphim The Royal Order of the Seraphim ( sv, Kungliga Serafimerorden; ''Seraphim'' being a category of angels) is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the P ...

Member of the Royal Family Decoration of King Carl XVI Gustaf, 2st Class ** SWE King Carl XVI Gustaf Jubilee Medal III

Recipient of the 70th Birthday Badge Medal of King Carl XVI Gustaf

Foreign

*: Grand Cross of the

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon ( is, Hin íslenska fálkaorða) is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. N ...

*: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic ( it, Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana) is the senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking ...

*: Grand Cross 1st Class of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

*: Dame Grand Cross of the

Order of Civil Merit The Order of Civil Merit ( es, Orden del Mérito Civil) was established by King Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1926. The order recognizes "the civic virtue of officers in the service of the Nation, as well as extraordinary service by Spanish and fore ...

(16 November 2021) * : Grand Cross of the

Order of the White Rose The Order of the White Rose of Finland ( fi, Suomen Valkoisen Ruusun ritarikunta; sv, Finlands Vita Ros’ orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. T ...

(17 May 2022) * : Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (11 October 2022)

References

External links

*
Royal Court of Sweden - Princess Sofia
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sofia, Sweden, Princess of 1984 births Living people People from Danderyd Municipality People from Älvdalen Municipality Swedish female models Yoga teachers Swedish people of Danish descent Swedish princesses Swedish duchesses Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Falcon Order of Civil Merit members Princesses by marriage Royalty and nobility models Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Netherlands)