Princess Sofia, Duchess of Värmland

Princess Sofia, Duchess of Värmland (born Sofia Kristina Hellqvist, 6 December 1984), is a member of the Swedish royal family. Before marrying Prince Carl Philip in 2015 and becoming a princess of Sweden, Sofia was a glamour model and reality television contestant. They have four children, Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel, Prince Julian and Princess Ines, who are fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth in the line of succession to the Swedish throne, respectively.

Early life and education Sofia Kristina Hellqvist was born on 6 December 1984 at Danderyd Hospital in Danderyd, to a Swedish mother, Marie Britt Rotman (born 1957), a marketing manager in the plastics industry, She was baptised on 26 May 1985 in Tibble Church. She moved to Älvdalen at the age of six. She has two sisters, Lina Hellqvist (a humanitarian project coordinator, born 1982) and Sara Hellqvist (a criminologist, where she made it to the final. She had a much publicised feud with co-star Olinda Castielle

In 2005, she moved to New York to study accounting, specialising in business development while working as a certified yoga instructor. While working in New York, she met American financier Jeffrey Epstein on a few occasions around 2005, before he was convicted of soliciting prostitution, including with a minor, in 2008. Leaked emails by Dagens Nyheter showed correspondence between Epstein and Swedish financier Barbro Ehnbom, a mentor figure who introduced Hellqvist to him.

After relocating back to Sweden, Hellqvist studied global ethics, child and youth science, children's communication and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in theory, and in Swedish practice at Stockholm University. She also worked part-time as a waitress and glamour model. In April 2011, the couple moved in together in Djurgården of Stockholm, and in December, Hellqvist made an appearance at the Nobel Banquet with her future husband. In May 2015, it was announced that she would receive the title of princess. The couple married at Slottskyrkan in Stockholm on 13 June 2015. thumb Sofia and Carl Philip on their wedding dayOn 19 April 2016, Sofia gave birth to their first child, Prince Alexander Erik Hubertus Bertil, Duke of Södermanland. Their second child, Prince Gabriel Carl Walther, Duke of Dalarna, was born on 31 August 2017. Their third child, Prince Julian Herbert Folke, Duke of Halland, was born on 26 March 2021. Their fourth child, a daughter, Princess Ines Marie Lilian Silvia, Duchess of Västerbotten, was born on 7 February 2025. All four children were born 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; 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.

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.

Honours

National

Foreign Grand Cross of the Order of Bernardo O'Higgins (10 May 2016) Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose (17 May 2022) Grand Officer of the Order of the Legion of Honour (30 January 2024) Grand Cross of the Order of the Falcon (17 January 2018) Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (2 November 2018) Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (11 October 2022) Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Civil Merit (16 November 2021)