The Norwegian Royal Court. Annual Report 2013

The Norwegian Royal Court published its annual report for 2013 on Thursday 10 April 2014. The report gives an overview of the activities of the Royal Family and Royal Court and also includes the accounts for the Civil List and a survey of the orders and medals awarded by the King during 2013. The press release last week stated among others:

"During 2013, His Majesty The King attended 314 official events in Norway and abroad, while Her Majesty The Queen attended 98 official events, His Royal Highness The Crown Prince attended 200 official events and Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess attended 72 official events. The Royal Family visited 47 municipalities in 16 counties and Svalbard in Norway, and paid several visits abroad. The King and Queen carried out their annual county visit in Sør-Trøndelag county in June, while the Crown Prince and Crown Princess visited Vest-Agder county in September.

The King and Queen conducted a State Visit to Turkey in November, while the Crown Prince and Crown Princess travelled to the USA for an official visit in May.

In 2013 the Royal Court completed its modernisation and rationalisation process, and all Court employees have now been consolidated into a joint overall organisational unit.

A report on the use of the funds allocated to the Royal Court (the Civil List) and the staff of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess by the Storting is submitted annually.

The allowances provided to the King and Queen and to the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, respectively, are meant to cover the management, operation, maintenance and development of the private properties, as well as official attire and private expenses.

The accounts for the Civil List showed a deficit of NOK 6 701 468. This deficit will be covered by previous appropriations.

The accounts for the staff of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess showed a deficit of NOK 37 251. This deficit will be covered by appropriations from previous years.

The accounts for “Åpent Slott” (cultural outreach activities) showed a surplus of NOK 373 266. This surplus will be transferred to equity capital."

Not surprisingly the press and the social media focused on the deficit of NOK 6 701 468, but many left out the fact that the deficit was to be covered by previous appropriations. It is not as if the royal family and court are on their uppers. The activities and the costs seem to be well planned. The Norwegian tabloid VG wrote in its coverage of the annual report that the celebrations of the crown prince couple's 40th birthdays last year cost as much 2,4 million NOK. In addition security cost as much as 2,7 millions, taken from the police force budget. Crown Prince Haakon's 40th anniversary was marked by a music festival in the garden at the Skaugum estate, where numerous royal guests were entertained. Obviously a party on such a large scale has to cost something. The court's information director, Marianne Hagen, confirmed the numbers, but "had  no further comments". Maybe not the best reply, but then again what should she have said? Simply that this is what a party like this costs? Many people would then say how the money could have helped the sick and elderly. It is hardly possible to win an argument about the cost of royal celebrations. But it should be stressed that the expenses were covered by the civil list, not by any extraordinary grants. And concerning security costs, even a president would need security if he was to hold a private party.

The annual report reveals that 22 persons received the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav in 2013, compared to 27 in 2012 and 30 in 2011. Among those 22 were Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, President Abdullah Gül of Turkey (both Grand Cross) and the composer and musician Henning Sommerro (Commander).

61 persons received the Order of Merit (all classes combined), among them Barry White, the US Ambassador who left Norway in September 2013, and has not yet been replaced. President Barack Obama has nominated George Tsunis to the post as Ambassador to Norway, but he has not yet been confirmed by the Senate. As you might recall, he did not do too well at his confirmation hearing, and Senator John McCain has said he would fight the appointment when it is finally voted over in the Senate.

But back to the annual report again! The Medal of St. Olav was awarded to only one person, in 2013, Johan Beck, who has served as a verger at the Norwegan Seamen's Church in Stockholm since 1974! In addition there were 162 recipients of the King's Medal of Merit, among them Tove Fleischer from my home town Sandefjord. Fleischer has for many years been in charge of the local society for the protection of animals and has done a fabulous job, so it was well deserved. The King's Commemorative Medal was awarded to 9 persons in 2013. The medal is conferred for "particularly meritorious service to His Majesty the King", and among the 9 persons were one of the King's drivers, Bjørn Einar Lindstrøm.

The annual report 2013 can be downloaded here. For earlier annual reports, go here. See also my earlier blog articles The Norwegian Royal Court. Annual report 2012 (published 17 April 2013), 2011 (published 11 April 2012) and 2010 (published 12 April 2011).

Nomination of new US Ambassador to Norway announced

We didn't have to wait long for the announcement of the nomination of Barry B. White's successor as US Ambassador to Norway. The day after I wrote that Ambassador White was to leave for the States within the month, the White House named George James Tsunis of New York to the post as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the USA to the Kingdom of Norway.

The American embassy in Oslo tells that the US Senate is to schedule a hearing of George Tsunis, before continuing the confirmation proceedings.

George Tsunis is the Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Chartwell Hotels, which owns, develops and manages Hilton, Marriott and Intercontinental hotels throughout the Northwest and Middle Atlantic states. He is also in charge of George Tsunis Real Estate, Inc., and used to be a partner in the law firm Rivkin Radler.

According to Newsday.com, Mr. Tsunis, 45 years old, of Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island, New York, is a businessman who left the Republican party to become a major democratic fundraiser in the 2012 election. Jon Cooper, a former Suffolk County (Long Island) legislator, has said he was impressed with Tsunis' knowledge and expertise of foreign policy issues, while John Jay LaValle, the Suffolk Republican Chairman, has commented that Tsunis "[...] played his cards properly and is a well-liked guy."

In my blog article 3 days ago, I expressed my hope for a Norwegian-American Ambassador, but got a Greek-American instead! Nothing wrong with that, of course. His business background and short career as a Democrat supporter means that the Norwegian-Americans will have to contribute more in future elections to be considered for the post in Oslo! At least Tsunis has a small connection to Norway through his work at Chartwell Hotels, which among others manages the Hilton Hotels. The founder of the original Hilton Hotels company was the Norwegian-American Conrad Hilton (1887-1979), whose father Augustus Halvorsen Hilton came from the farm Hilton Søndre (Southern Hilton) in Kløfta, Norway.

I only hope that Mr. Tsunis will make most of his stay in Norway and that he will travel as much around the country as Ambassador White has and will learn to know the country well.

US Ambassador to Norway goes home

King Harald of Norway will grant the US Ambassador to Norway, Barry B. White, a farewell audience on Monday 16 September 2013, the list of official engagements at the Royal Court's website reveals. Mr. White is to leave his post within a month, the US Embassy in Oslo has informed me via its Twitter account. No successor has yet been named. The normal procedure is that the Deputy Chief of Mission, will be in charge until the new ambassador is in place. The person who holds the position at the moment is Julie Furuta-Toy.

Ambassador White was confirmed by the US Senate on 22 September and sworn in on 21 October 2009, before being formally accredited Ambassador to Norway in November 2009. He has travelled a lot in Norway during his years here and seems to have been well received everywhere. I had a short chat with him at the election gala at the Grand Hotel in Oslo last year. Of course at that time he had no idea what the future had in store for him. It will be exciting to see who President Obama will nominate. I think it would be rather nice to have a Norwegian-American Ambassador, at least because it would give me an opportunity to trace his or her roots!

First US President to visit Norway?

Bill Clinton was the first sitting US president to visit Norway. He spent two days in November 1999 among others to take part in events commemorating the late Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. A part of the stay was also made a state visit. Clinton also visited Oslo under his student days back in the 1960s, and after leaving the presidency he has come to Norway 2-3 times (I had the opportunity to shake hands with him during his visit to Oslo in May 2007).

But who was the first US President to visit Norway whether it was before, in or after office? I wonder if it was John Quincy Adams, who served as President of the United States from 1825 to 1829. I am currently reading Paul C. Nagel’s biography John Quincy Adams. A Public Life. A Private Life, which was first time published in 1997. The paperback edition from 1999 says on page 190 about his voyage to Russia where he was to serve as minister plenipotentiary:

«This remarkable letter [to his sons back home] was finished just as the Horace reached Norway on September 18, 1809. The war between England and France had made the Scandinavian region jittery whenever a strange ship appeared. The British bombardment of Copenhagen had pushed Denmark into an alliance with France, so that Adams experienced what seemed like incessant inquiries and inspections by Danish officials.»

But the book doesn’t explicitly say that Adams ever set foot on land. However, the answer seems to be found in his diary no. 28 (and no. 23), where he among others tells about his stay in Kristiansand where the Adams family during a storm lodged "at the Isaacson's" (to this family belongs among others former Norwegian Prime Minister Kåre Willoch as well as the artist Olaf Isaachsen). I am not sure if one can find out more about the stay than what can be read in the said diary. I hope to explore the question further one day.

Updated 9 June 2010 at 20:10: Link 1 and link 2.

Barry B. White formally accredited U.S. Ambassador to Norway

Barry B. White was last week formally accredited U.S. Ambassador to Norway when he presented his credentials to Norway’s Head of State, King Harald V.

You can read more about Mr. White's first day as US Ambassador at the Embassy's website. More photos can be found at the Embassy's photo album on Facebook.

The Royal Court has so far not published any photos from the event.

References

• US Embassy, Oslo
• Views and News from Norway 5 November 2009

Updated Thursday 12 November 2009 at 09:15. last time Thursday 7 October 2010.

Norway's Royal Family: Official engagements in November

The calendar at the Norwegian Royal Family's official website reveals that the royals are rather busy these days. Among the usual stuff like presiding over the Council of State on Fridays and granting the Foreign Secretary an audience, there are some newsworthy engagements for the king as well.

On Thursday 5 November HM The King will grant the new Ambassador of USA, His Excellency Mr Barry B. White, a formal audience at 11:15. Mr. White, who was confirmed by the US Senate on 22 September and sworn in on 21 October 2009, replaces Benson K. Whitney, who came to Oslo in 2006 and left in June this year. James T. Heg, the Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d'Affaires ad interim, has held the fort in the meantime.

Later on Thursday the King will also grant the new Ambassador of Afghanistan, Her Excellency Ms Manizha Bakhtary, a formal audience.

The Norwegian football season 2009 will be finished this weekend with the cup finals for both men and women. Usually the king is present at the men's cup final at Ullevaal Stadium, but King Harald makes an exception this year and will go to Telenor Arena at Fornebu in Bærum on Saturday to attend the women's cup final between Røa and Team Strømmen. Surely it is much more comfortable for the king to be indoors. The first snow arrived in the Oslo area today... But the main reason for the switch is obviously that the king will travel to Stavanger on Sunday 8 November to attend the consecration of the new Bishop of Stavanger, Erling Pettersen.

This means that it is the Crown Prince and Crown Princess who will attend the cup final for men between Aalesund and Molde at Ullevaal Stadium on Sunday. Later on the same day Crown Prince Mette-Marit will visit the Bollywood Festival arranged by X-Ray Youth Centre and World Music Festival, Cosmopolite Torshov.

Next week Crown Prince Haakon will travel to India to attend the World Economic Forums India Summit in New Delhi. And if that was not enough, the Crown Prince will thereafter go directly to Botswana in the role as Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Development Programme.

Even Princess Märtha Louise will have official engagements. On 18 November she will grant audiences to representatives of the Norwegian Association of the Blind and Partially Sighted, the Norwegian Association of Muscular Disorders, the Norwegian Epilepsy Association, the Norwegian Rheumatism Association and Special Olympics Norway, all organisations under her patronage.

References

• Mr. Barry B. White confirmed as new Ambassador of USA
• Biography
• The Norwegian Royal House
• Organisations under the patronage of Princess Märtha Louise