In her annual speech for the New Year, Queen Margrethe II speaks intimately about the changes in Eastern Europe which changed the whole view of Europe. She wonders if the changes could truly represent new hope for freedom and for peace. She then analyses contemporary Denmark in that same light and discusses the concept of freedom as connected to the democratic process and respect for the individual. Before making a number of greetings and thankyous she also makes remarks about the nature of the year of 1989.—Peter Brandt Nielsen