Photo: Linda Broström/The Royal Court of Sweden

Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar have taken part in an important part of Sweden’s National Day.

The family opened the Royal Palace (also commonly called Stockholm Palace) for the summer with admission free throughout National Day.

The Swedish flag was raised atop Stockholm Palace at 8 am before the Crown Princess Family exited the western gates at 10 am to welcome the people.

Crown Princess Victoria gave a short speech to those assembled and welcomed them to the Royal Palace.

She said: “A warm welcome to the Royal Palace!

“How nice that so many of you have come here, today on Sweden’s national day! The celebration here is a tradition that my family and I place great value on. The King and Queen are today visiting Strängnäs, where Gustav Vasa was elected king 500 years ago, on June 6, 1523. This year – 2023 – we, therefore, have an anniversary year that we pay attention to in various ways.

“So much of our Swedish history and our fantastic cultural heritage is gathered precisely in the royal castles. I am very happy that we can make it available – and that we can invite you here today.

“We hope that you all, both children and adults, will have a wonderful day. With these words, we now open the gates to the Royal Palace and extend a warm welcome to you all!”

Following tradition, Crown Princess Victoria and Princess Estelle were in Sweden’s national dress for the occasion, while Prince Daniel and Prince Oscar wore suits. The family joined the rest of the Royal Family in the evening for the carriage ride from the Royal Palace to Skansen Museum for further celebrations.

This year’s National Day is an important one for Sweden as it marks 500 years of Sweden being an independent country.