King Harald V of Norway passed away this Friday in Oslo at the age of 89. He suffered from hemolytic anemia and had been admitted to the hospital in August to treat a fluid buildup caused by the cortisone he was taking to control it. The monarch had been on the throne since 1991 along with his wife, Queen Sonja, and had always said he would only abdicate if his health did not allow him to continue. He considered his duty to be until death, just like the British sovereign, Elizabeth II, who died at 96 in 2022. Harald had been in and out of medical centers since 2020 but returned to his post as soon as he was discharged. He was always the most valued member of the Royal House in the annual polls published by the official news agency (NTB), and also by the public television network (NRK). He will be succeeded on the throne by his son Haakon, 53 years old, with the title Haakon VIII. He is married to Princess Mette-Marit, of the same age, who underwent a lung transplant last June.
At this time, the Swedish monarchy – led by Carl XVI – is the only one in Europe where the generational change of its holder has not occurred. There, the heir is Princess Victoria, 49 years old.
The late Harald was the son of King Olav V and Princess Märtha of Sweden, and together with Queen Sonja (89) they also had a daughter, Princess Märtha Louise (52 years old). They were grandparents to 5 grandchildren. The monarch had several health problems in recent times. At the beginning of February 2024, he recovered from a respiratory infection. He had fallen ill during a vacation in Malaysia and had to have a pacemaker installed. In 2022, he was hospitalized with COVID. In 2021, he underwent knee surgery and walked with the help of crutches. In 2020, doctors replaced a heart valve that had been implanted in 2005. They also removed a bladder tumor. During those absences, he was replaced by Prince Haakon, with whom he had a good relationship. Over these years in which he gained prominence, the son declared that they divided the work with his father “as if we were a team.”
Harald V was born in 1937 in Asker, near Oslo, and at that time was the first Norwegian prince to be born in his country since Olav IV, in 1370. As he was the grandson of Maud of Wales, daughter of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom – married to Haakon VII – he was also in the line of succession to the British throne. The king had two older sisters, Princesses Ragnhild – who died in 2012 – and Astrid, who is 94 years old. Both were out of the line of succession due to their morganatic marriages. After secondary education, Harald entered the Military Academy and held the rank of general of the Army and Air Force, and admiral of the Navy.
During World War II, after the German invasion of his country in 1940, his father and grandfather settled in London along with the government in exile. Harald traveled with his mother and sisters to the United States and returned to Europe after the war ended. In 1957 Haakon VII died and Olav V was proclaimed sovereign, with Harald moving to the forefront as heir. A good athlete, he participated in sailing at the Olympic Games and also in the European and World Championships in the same discipline. With his crew, they won gold, silver, and bronze medals in the 1980s.
In 1959, Queens Ingrid of Denmark and Frederica of Greece organized a ball for royal families. Among the guests were Frederica’s three children: the current Queen Sofia of Spain and her siblings, Constantine and Irene. In 1996, Queen Sofia acknowledged that there was an attempt to match them there, “but the forced result was null,” she told journalist Pilar Urbano. The effort was mainly in vain because the heir to the Norwegian crown was already in love with Sonja Haraldsen, a young commoner who was not liked by his royal parents. Daughter of a textile businessman, she met Harald in 1959 at a party when they were both 22 years old. They were engaged for almost a decade, mostly in secret, and at 23, Harald was sent to the British university of Oxford to study Economics and Politics (between 1960 and 1962). The couple did not get permission to marry until 1968, when the prince, the only male child, threatened to renounce his dynastic rights or remain single and without offspring. Facing the prospect of a constitutional crisis, they married on August 28 of that year.
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Alongside Haakon, his wife Mette-Marit should act as queen consort, but it is unclear if she can undertake such a role due to her lung transplant. On the other hand, the scandal unleashed by her relationship with the American pedophile Jeffrey Epstein has damaged her reputation. Also notable is the criminal record of her first son, Marius Borg Høiby, born before her royal marriage, who was sentenced in June to four years in prison for two counts of rape. Given this situation, Princes Ingrid Alexandra (22) and Sverre Magnus (20), the two children of Haakon and Mette-Marit, have gained prominence despite still studying. It remains to be seen what tasks they will be assigned from now on in a Royal House with few members, as Princess Märtha Louise does not carry them out.
The situation of Haakon’s sister is unique, especially since her wedding, held in 2024, to the American Durek Verret, who presents himself as a shaman, businessman, and writer. The princess was divorced from her first husband, Ari Behn, who took his own life in 2019 at 47 years old, and has been the subject of criticism for her current romantic relationship. After several clashes in the royal environment, and to avoid confusion and also the obtaining of income at the expense of the princely title, she has to remove it from the commercial activities she carries out with Verret.
Norway usually leads the list of full democracies prepared every year by The Economist Intelligence Unit, the analysis and research division of the group that publishes the famous magazine. Popular support for the monarchy is considerable in a country with a republican movement around 15%, according to polls. But the scandals of Princess Mette-Marit with Epstein and the conviction of her son Marius have taken their toll. In February this year, a poll published by the public broadcaster NRK indicated that 60% of the population supported the monarchy, the lowest level recorded to date, according to the same media. At the same time, King Harald received a score of 9.2 – out of 10 – and Queen Sonja an 8.6. Prince Haakon reached 7.9 and his wife only 3.7. The discontent was not only attributed to Mette-Marit’s link with Epstein but also to how the royal family had managed it. In 2016, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of King Harald’s accession to the throne, support was 84%, according to another survey revealed then.
Originating its monarchy in antiquity, according to Norway, Harald I (between 872 and 933) is considered the first of its kings. Nicknamed the Fair-Haired (or beautiful) he unified a set of kingdoms that rivaled each other. Since then, experts count more than 60 sovereigns. The country’s history as a modern and independent nation, however, is more recent. After having been united with Denmark and Sweden, Norwegians chose their own sovereign in 1905: Haakon VII, great-grandfather of the future King Haakon VIII.
