Royal baby alert: Sweden's Princess Madeleine expecting a child
Gear up the royal baby watch, Sweden's Princess Madeleine announces she is expecting a baby, just three months after her June wedding to American banker Christopher O'Neill.
Sweden's Princess Madeleine and her husband Christopher O'Neill are expecting their first child. Here, Princess Madeleine of Sweden and Christopher O'Neill leave in an open carriage after their wedding ceremony at the royal chapel in Stockholm, June 8, 2013.
AP Photo/Soren Andersson
Another royal baby is on the way, according to Sweden’s Royal Palace, which announced today that Princess Madeleine and her husband, New York banker Christopher O'Neill, are expecting their first child in March.
Madeleine, the younger sister of Crown Princess Victoria, is third in line to the Swedish throne.
She and Mr. O'Neill were married in Stockholm in June, following an eight-month engagement.
O'Neill was born in London and holds dual American and British citizenship, according to a CV released by the royal palace. He studied at a boarding school in St. Gallen, Switzerland, and holds a bachelor's degree in international relations from Boston University and a master's degree from Columbia Business School in New York.
O'Neill now works as a partner and head of research at Noster Capital, a hedge fund with offices in London and New York. His interests include Alpine skiing, tennis, golf, music, literature and Chelsea Football Club in London, the palace said.
Public support for the ceremonial monarchy has weakened somewhat in recent years but remains fairly broad in otherwise egalitarian Sweden.
The wedding in 2010 of Madeleine's eldest sibling, Crown Princess Victoria, to Daniel Westling and the birth of their daughter, Princess Estelle, have helped to counteract negative publicity around King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia.
Sweden has a constitutional monarchy in which the royals primarily serve as figureheads. King Carl XVI Gustaf is the country's head of state, but his powers are limited to representative and ceremonial duties.
A book released in 2010 alleged the king had had an affair and visited strip clubs. When the book came out, he said: "I have talked with my family and the queen. We turn the page and look forward."
Madeleine has relatively few public duties. She works at a the World Childhood Foundation, a children's charity founded by her mother, Queen Silvia.
The palace said Tuesday that the pregnancy would not affect Madeleine's schedule this fall, or her work for the charity.
Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.