Eight years ago today, when she married Prince Carl Philip, she became royal. It is increasingly normal for commoners to have a career before marrying into the royal family of Europe.
Queen Maxima of the Netherlands was a banker on Wall Street. Queen Letizia of Spain is a broadcast correspondent for ABC and CNN.
However, none can match the colourful past of Princess Sörmland, Duchess of Sweden, who was shirtless during her time as a model. But even so, that couldn't stop her from becoming royal at a glamorous wedding with Prince Carl Philip eight years ago today.
Princess Sophia, 38, starred in a Love Island-style reality TV show before heading to New York to become a yoga teacher and study accounting. When she joined the Swedish royal family in 2015, as you might expect, there was some opposition. However, since then, she has also quickly become one of the most popular members of the Swedish royal family.
Sofia was born on December 6, 1984 in the wealthy Danderyd, north of Stockholm, to a Swedish mother who worked in marketing and a Danish-Swedish father who worked in a Swedish employment agency. She is the second oldest of three girls.
After completing her studies, she completed an art course at the Vancebro Education Center and earned money as a model while attending school in Stockholm. Known for her sharp blue eyes and dark brown hair, Sophia took part in her first modeling shoot at the age of 20. In the photo, she is topless and wearing a camouflage-printed bikini bottom and holding a live python in her hand to maintain modesty.
The nude photos appeared in Slitz, a Swedish men's magazine. The photos were so popular that Sophia was crowned Miss Slitz 2004 by readers. She continued to work as a model, including shooting some less pornographic photos for French fashion magazine La Redoute.
After her modeling career, Sophia got the chance to participate in the Swedish reality show Hotel Paradise, a mix of Love Island and Survivor. The show chronicles a group of singles staying in luxury hotels. Sophia ended up in the show's finals, where she was photographed kissing American star Jenna Jameson. However, after the performance, she decided to leave the entertainment industry and go to live in New York.
Sophia came to New York in 2005 to study accounting and business development at the New York Institute of English and Business. While attending school, she also studied yoga, where she became a qualified yoga instructor.
After returning to Sweden, she continued her studies at Stockholm University in Global Ethics, Child and Youth Studies, Theory and Practice of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. She also studied gender and international relations.
In July 2010, Buckingham Palace announced her romance with Prince Carl Philip.
It's not entirely clear how the two met, but Sophia is said to have met the prince at a nightclub in Stockholm. Nine months after their romance went public, the couple moved to Djurgarden in Stockholm, where they still live in Solbakken Villa.
However, after their romance was announced, Sophia faced a public backlash because of her past modeling career.
She spoke openly about her struggles from showbiz to royal life. In an interview with Swedish TV station TV4 in 2021, Princess Sophia said: "I have had a huge storm of hatred, and people have opinions about me as a person, about my relationship. I was surprised that this really affected me. I don't see why people need to express their displeasure with me so much. I don't regret anything. All of these experiences have made me who I am now. ”
The engagement of Sophia and Prince Karl was announced on June 27, 2014, and the two were married at the Royal Chapel on June 13, 2015. After their marriage, the newlywed royal couple established the Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sophia Foundation.
Princess Sophia spends most of her time working for the charity, which focuses on issues related to safer online for young people, as well as greater understanding and respect for those with dyslexia.
In 2016, the couple's first son, Prince Alexander, was born, in 2017, their second son, Prince Gabriel, and in 2019, their youngest son, Prince Julian, was born.
In 2019, King Carl XVI Gustav decided that the son of Princess Sofia, and the son of Princess Madeleine, sister of Prince Carl Philippe, will not receive the title of His Highness. Although they are still known as princes and princesses, they will not receive taxpayer funds.
Announcing the news, Princess Sophia and Prince Carl Philip said that this will allow their children to have more freedom when they grow up.
Asked by RCTV if she had considered quitting royal life like Harry and Meghan in the UK, she said: "No. I think I've found a fantastic balance, which is positive, and I've got through these stormy years. This is a huge advantage because we have the opportunity to stand together in both worlds. ”
During the pandemic, Princess Sofia attended a three-day medical course at Sofia University College Stockholm, where she is the Honorary President. She assists with medical work and helps fight a pandemic that has killed 22,645 people since 2020. Thus being praised and respected. Since then, she has become one of the most popular members of the Swedish royal family. #头条文章养成计划 #