Norway: Oath of Allegiance ceremony

In a short ceremony at the Storting (the Norwegian Parliament) today, King Haakon VIII took the Oath of Allegiance. The King was driven in an open car – the same he used at his wedding in 2001 – from the Palace to the Storting. Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Prince Sverre Magnus and Queen Sonja came before him in a separate car. Queen Mette-Marit had to cancel her presence because of complications following her lung transplant this spring and which had to be monitored.

The President of the Storting, Masud Gharahkhani, read the official announcement of the death of King Harald V, before the king took the Oath of Allegiance in accordance with the Constitution article 9 before the Storting and gave a short address. The President of the Storting then held a speech in remembrance of King Harald V and gave an address to King Haakon VIII. The ceremony was closed with the Royal Anthem. 

President of the Storting,

I promise and swear that I will govern the Kingdom of Norway in accordance with its Constitution and Laws; so help me God, the Almighty and Omniscient.

President of the Storting,

At the first meeting between the elected representatives of the people and me as King of Norway, I would like to express the hope that the good relationship which have been between the Storting and my father, King Harald, my grandfather, King Olav, and my great-grandfather, King Haakon, can be maintained and then developed in line with the tasks the country will face in the future.

The Queen and I wish to affirm that we place ourselves at the service of our country and people. In keeping with this tradition, I, too, as King of Norway, have adopted the motto ‘All for Norway’.

The President of the Storting's speech can be read (in Norwegian) here. See also NRK's article and broadcast.

After the ceremony in the Storting, just before 2 p.m., Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra took the Oath of Allegiance in writing at the Royal Palace. The signed document was then delivered to the President of the Storting by the Lord Chamberlain. The Crown Princess took the oath in accordance with the Constitution article 44 in order to be able to serve as Regent when her father the king is abroad or on sick leave.

In the next Council of State the king will inform his government that the oath has been signed by the Crown Princess. Her oath will then be notified to the first Storting in session (30 September) and be entered in the record of its proceedings. See articles at the official websites of the Royal House and of the Storting.

Updated on Wednesday 2 September 2026 at 07:43 (timing of the Crown Princess' oath taking corrected from prior to after the oath ceremony in the Storting.)

Norway: King Harald V (1937–2026)

Photo: © The Royal Court (screenshot of the official website of the royal house 28 August 2026).

King Harald of Norway died at Oslo University Hospital, dep. The National Hospital (Oslo universitetssykehus, avd. Rikshospitalet) on Friday 28 August 2026 at 6.35 a.m.

His death was announced on the official website of the royal house around two hours later:

It is with deep sorrow that we announce that His Majesty King Harald has passed away. King Harald died peacefully at Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet Friday 28 August at 6:35 AM.

King Harald was succeeded by his son Haakon.

A crowd had already gathered at the Palace Square when the death was announced, and the crowd – and the number of flowers and cards (teddybears, flags, football shirts etc increased.) – only got larger and larger throughout the day and weekend. The nation is mourning. A beloved man and king has left us. The grief is profound. The gratitude is even greater. 

A small section of the "ocean of flowers" at the Palace Square on Friday. The ocean only got bigger and bigger during the weekend. Photos: © 2026 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth.

For the record

This has never meant to be a personal blog. I write about events and topics that I care about and often I will give my own opinion or perspective. But work and other obligations make it some times hard to publish my articles soon after an event has taken place. But I always like to record some of the events and news that have taken place even if some time has passed. 

When the news of King Harald's death reached me I was at work. I was asked to write a small article on various aspects of the succession to the throne for my employer's website before I had to focus on other tasks. The Norwegian Law Gazette, of which I am the editor, never sits still – new regulations have to be published. After work I went up to the Place Square again (I was also there on Thursday). In the evening I  watched TV and on Saturday I was out of town for most of the day. So I will try to write a few lines today instead. I will write about some of the events, but it will be impossible to comment on all the aspects.

Lowered royal banner

I can see the Royal Palace from my office window. I was too occupied to see everything with my own eyes, but when the king's death was announced, Kongeflagget (the King's banner) flying from the roof of the palace was lowered to half staff. After the extraordinary Council of State had taken place the royal banner was raised, while another royal banner, with the so-called mourning flora, was flying on half staff from the palace balcony.

The King's banner (Kongeflagget) at 8:51 a.m. Photo: © 2026 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth.

The King's banner and the balcony at 3:50 p.m. Photo: © 2026 Dag Trygsland Hoelseth.

The Government of Norway has decided that the Norwegian flag will be flying on half staff from all state buildings from Friday 28 August until the day of the funeral. Once the funeral has taken place, the flags will be hoisted to full staff again. The Government has also declared a period of national mourning to last until the day of the funeral. 

Extraordinary Council of State

The new king presided over the extraordinary Council of State at 11.30 a.m. Friday. Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra was also present. In the Council of State the king declared that he would reign under the name Haakon VIII and that his personal motto (called "valgspråk" in Norwegian would be "Alt for Norge" ("All for Norway"), the same motto also used by his father, King Harald V, his grandfather, KIng Olav V, and his great-grandfather, King Haakon VII.

Statsministerens kontor

Hans Majestet meddelte følgende:

Statsminister og statsråder,

Det er min plikt å meddele Statsrådet at min kjære far, Hans Majestet Kong Harald V, døde i dag den 28. august 2026, kl. 06.35, og at jeg i tråd med Grunnlovens bestemmelser har tiltrådt regjeringen som Norges Konge.

Jeg vil ta navnet Haakon VIII og vil videreføre det samme valgspråket som min far, bestefar og oldefar valgte: «Alt for Norge».

H.M. Kongen takket regjeringens medlemmer og det norske folk for støtte og medfølelse til Kongefamilien i denne tiden.

Statsministeren meddelte følgende:

Deres Majestet, Deres kongelige høyhet,

På vegne av regjeringen og det norske folk vil jeg uttrykke vår medfølelse ved Hans Majestet Kong Haralds død. Kong Harald var et menneske vi alle ble glad i. Vi vet at Kong Haralds bortgang er et stort tap for vår nye konge og hele kongefamilien.

Vi vil takke Kong Harald for livslang innsats for Norge og det norske folk. En hel nasjon er i sorg og står igjen i dyp takknemlighet.

Vi er trygge på at kongehusets tradisjoner vil føres videre under Deres Majestets ledelse, til det beste for folket og landet vårt.

In English:

Office of the Prime Minister

His Majesty made the following announcement:

Prime Minister and Ministers,

It is my duty to inform the Council of State that my dear father, His Majesty King Harald V, passed away today, 28 August 2026, at 06:35, and that, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, I have acceded to the throne as King of Norway.

I shall take the name Haakon VIII and will continue to use the same motto chosen by my father, grandfather, and great-grandfather: "All for Norway."

H.M. The King thanked the members of the Government and the Norwegian people for their support and sympathy shown to the Royal Family during this time.

The Prime Minister made the following announcement:

Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness,

On behalf of the Government and the Norwegian people, I wish to express our condolences upon the death of His Majesty King Harald. King Harald was a person we all loved. We know that King Harald’s passing is a great loss for our new King and the entire Royal Family.

We wish to thank King Harald for his lifelong service to Norway and the Norwegian people. An entire nation is in mourning and remains filled with deep gratitude.

We are confident that the traditions of the Royal House will be carried forward under Your Majesty’s leadership, for the good of the people and our country.

In connection with the Council of State photos of the new King and Crown Prince were taken with the members of the government, and afterwards they signed the condolence protocol. A government conference took place at 10 at the Prime Minister's office prior to the Council of State.

Salute and church bells ringing

At noon there was a mourning salute (21 shots with 30 seconds between) from the nine salute stations in Norway, including from Akershus Fortress, and the church bells were ringing for an hour, to mark the death of King Harald.

Members of the royal house and titles

When the death of King Harald was announced all the subpages of the royal website were taken down for some time to get the most relevant pages updated. When all the pages were up agai, we learnt among others the titles of the members of the royal house.

Det norske kongehuset består av Deres Majesteter Kong Haakon og Dronning Mette-Marit, Hennes Kongelige Høyhet Kronprinsesse Ingrid Alexandra og Dronning Sonja.

In English: 

The Norwegian Royal House consists of Their Majesties King Haakon and Queen Mette-Marit, Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, and Queen Sonja.

There were in other words no surprises other than that Queen Sonja has "lost" her style Majesty. I didn't expect that, and most other in the know where equally surprised. The reference to Queen Sonja without the style was also repeated in later press statements, so there is no doubt that this was not just a mistake. Although we haven't had a Queen Dowager for quite some time, it has not uncommon to have two queens (or more) in a monarchy, just look at the United Kingdom (Queen Elizabeth and Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother) and Belgium to take two examples. There all are or were Majesties. A Queen is always styled Majesty. Even though it is a conscious decision which should not be taken as a personal rebuff, I simply cannot understand the reasoning behind it. Considering all the work and effort Queen Sonja has done for Norway I find such a "downgrading" totally unacceptable.

Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra

The title of Crown Prince or Crown Princess is not automatic when a new monarch has succeeded to the throne, as too many seem to believe. Article 34 of the Constitution of Norway said, before the changes in 1990 when female succession (full primogeniture) was introduced:

The nearest heir to the Throne, if he is the son of the reigning King, shall bear the title of Crown Prince. The other persons entitled to succeed to the Throne shall be called Princes, and the daughters of the Royal House, Princesses.

From 29 May 1990 Article 34 says (English edition at Lovdata.no):

The King shall make provisions concerning titles for those who are entitled to succeed to the Crown.

In other words, the king has to make a formal decision on the title of the nearest heir to the throne. Everyone expected that Ingrid Alexandra would become Crown Princess, and so she did. Because of the need for for verifiability/traceability I would have preferred that the decision came in form of a press statement instead of at an undated general subpage on the members of the royal house. For other members of the royal family (Prince Sverre Magnus, Princess Märtha Louise and Princess Astrid Mrs. Ferner) there are no changes.

Speeches

The President of the Storting, the Chief Justice of the Supremie Court and the Prime Minister of the Storting all held speeches after the king's death:

• The President of the Storting, Masud Gharahkhani
• The Chief  Justice of the Supreme Court, Toril Øie (I couldn't find a televised version at the moment, so the links go to NRK Radio)
• The Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre

Crown Prince Haakon held a memorial speech on Saturday 29 August at 7 p.m. It was a very personal speech which made a good impression. I hope that a translation of the speech will be available in English when the English pages of the official website are up and running again.

Condolences

The royal house has naturally received many messages of condolences from royal and presidential heads of state and other dignitaries. The website Gert's Royals has made a collection of condolence messages from foreign monarchs, so please go to his supbage to read them.

The public is invited to sign the condolence protocol either digitally at the official website of the Norwegian royal house or at the Norwegian embassies (please check out their websites). In Norway most churches and/or city halls will have condolence protocols available. For people living in Oslo see information from the Municipality of Oslo here. 

Coffin

The coffin (the bire) of King Harald was taken by car from Rikshospitalet (The National Hospital) to the Royal Palace on Friday night, 28 August. 

King Haakon, Queen Mette_Marit, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Queen Sonja, Prince Sverre Magnus and Princess Märtha Louise followed the coffin in cars behind the hearse. The transport can be viewed at NRK TV.

Memorial service

Churches all over the country held a memorial service on Sunday. Members of the Storting and Government attended the service in Oslo domkirke (Oslo Cathedral), while King Haakon, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, Prince Sverre Magnus and Queen Sonja attended the service in Asker kirke (Asker Church) close to the Skaugum estate. See photos from the latter service at Kirken.no.

Viewing of the bier

After being transported from the National Hospital to the Royal Palace, the bier of King Harald was placed in The Red Salon. King Haakon and Crown Princess Alexandra received Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on Sunday 30 August for the viewing of King Harald's bier. The Presiding Bishop of the Church of Norway, Olav Fykse Tveit, was also present at the viewing.

Filing past the coffin

The bier (coffin) will be carried from The Red Salon to the Palace Chapel on Monday 31 August 2026. The public will be able to file past the coffin from Tuesday 1 September 2026 at 2.pm. until Tuesday 8 September 2026 at 6 p.m. 

King Haakon VII to take the oath

King Haakon VIII will take the Oath of Allegiance to the Constitution in the Storting on Tuesday 1 September at 1 p.m. The oath is worded, cf. the Constitution article 9:

I promise and swear that I will govern the Kingdom of Norway in accordance with its Constitution and Laws; so help me God, the Almighty and Omniscient.

See more details at the Storting's website.

Funeral service

The funeral service will take place in Oslo domkirke (Oslo Cathedral) on Wednesday 9 September 2026 at 1 p.m. The funeral service will be officiated by the Presiding Bishop of the Church of Norway, Olav Fykse Tveit. The Bishop of Oslo, Sunniva Gylver, Cathedral Cantor Marcus André Berg, the Oslo Cathedral Choir, and others will also participate.

The cathedral has 930 seats, but the number of foreign royals and other dignitaries as well as representatives of the official Norway will be so high that I doubt that any from the public will be able to attend.  We can expect that representatives of all the European royal and princely houses will be in attendance. So far the king and queen of Denmark and the king and queen of the Belgians have confirmed their presence. I will give more details about the people attending the funeral service when we get closer to the actual date.

Line of succession

The updated line of succession to the throne of Norway:

1. HRH Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra (b. 2004)
2. Prince Sverre Magnus (b. 2005)
3. Princess Märtha Louise (b. 1971)
4. Maud Angelica Behn (b. 2003)
5. Leah Isadora Behn (b. 2005)
6. Emma Tallulah Behn (b. 2008)

Norway: King Harald on sick leave for two more weeks

The Norwegian Royal Court announced on Thursday 4 April 2024 that King Harald, who was scheduled to return to his duties next week after having been on sick leave since late February, will be on sick leave for two more weeks. This blog article might be a bit outdated as it has already gone 3 days since the announcement, but I have been on vacation in Tanzania the last two weeks, and as I have written about the king's health developments previously, I thought I should include the latest announcement as well, at least for the record:

His Majesty The King on sick leave for two more weeks

His Majesty The King is undergoing rehabilitation following his hospitalisation earlier this winter and still needs more time before returning to his constitutional duties. Therefore, His Majesty will be on sick leave for two more weeks until Monday 22 April.

During this period, His Royal Highness The Crown Prince will act as regent.

His Majesty's official engagements will largely be taken care of by members of the Royal Family:

• His Royal Highness The Crown Prince Regent, Her Majesty The Queen and Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess host a reception at the Royal Palace for recipients of the King’s Medal of Merit on 9 April.
• Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess attends the presentation of Nasjonalforeningen for folkehelsen's research awards 2024 on 15 April.
• Her Majesty The Queen visits 'Drive' in Melhus, as well as Skaun municipality on 16 April.

Crown Prince Haakon's planned official visit to the West Coast of the US will proceed as scheduled from 15 to 19 April. The Norwegian Government will, in accordance with the Constitution of the Kingdom of Norway, conduct the administration of the realm during this week.

04.04.2024

The Constitution of Norway Article 41 says that "If the King is absent from the realm unless commanding in the field, or if he is so ill that he cannot attend to the Government, the person next entitled to succeed to the throne shall, provided that he has attained the age stipulated for the King's majority, conduct the Government as the temporary executor of the Royal Powers. If this is not the case, the Council of State will conduct the administration of the realm."

The king and the crown prince take their constitutional responsibilites very seriously, so it is not often that the government (the Council of State) act as regent, at least they usually make sure that one of them is home to preside over the Council of State on Fridays. The Crown Prince is scheduled to visit San Francisco and Seattle from 15 to 18 April. I don't know the details of the visit yet, so it is too early to say if the crown prince will manage to return to Norway early enough on Friday 19 April to preside over the Council of State. If not, the Council of State will take place at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday 18 April instead.*

Earlier articles on the King's hospitalisation in Malaysia and at the National Hospital, Norway:

• 27.02.2024: Norway: King Harald hospitalized in Malaysia
• 28.02.2024: Norway: Update on King Harald's health situation
• 29.02.2024: Norway: A new update on King Harald's health situation
• 02.03.2024: Norway: Update on King Harald's health situation – temporary pacemaker implanted
• 03.03.2024: Norway: King Harald on his way home
• 04.03.2024: Norway: King Harald is back in Norway
• 06.03.2024: Norway: Update on King Harald's health situation (6 March 2024)
• 12.03.2024: Norway: Update on King Harald's health situation – permanent pacemaker implanted
• 14.03.2024: Norway: King Harald discharged from the National Hospital

* Correction: I was almost correct. The Royal Court has now updated the list of official engagements, and it shows that the Council of State will indeed take place at the Prime Minister's Office, but not on Thursday 18 April 2024 as I expected, but on Friday 19 April 2024 at 11 a.m.

Updated last time on Monday 8 April 2024 at 3 p.m. (corrected added).

Norway: Princess Märtha Louise to relinquish her official duties

The Norwegian Royal Court today announced that Princess Märtha Louise, eldest child and only daughter of King Harald V and Queen Sonja and currently no. 4 in the line of succession to the Norwegian throne, has decided to relinquish her official duties:

Princess Märtha Louise to relinquish her official duties

Princess Märtha Louise wishes to differentiate more clearly between her own activities and her relationship to the Royal House of Norway. The Princess has therefore decided, in consultation with His Majesty The King and other close family members, that she will not carry out official duties for the Royal House at the present time.   

The Princess is patron of various organisations, and today she informed them that she is relinquishing her patronage role, which has provided the framework for her official duties. The Princess is taking this step to create a clearer dividing line between her business activities and her role as a member of the Royal Family. The organisations previously under her patronage will be offered the patronage of other members of the Royal Family. 

The Princess and her fiancé, Durek Verrett, are seeking to distinguish more clearly between their activities and the Royal House of Norway. This means, among other things, that they will not employ the title of Princess or refer to members of the Royal House in their social media channels, in media productions or in connection with other commercial activities (with the exception of @PrincessMarthaLouise on Instagram).

His Majesty The King has decided that the Princess is to keep her title. The King and Queen wish to thank Princess Märtha Louise for the important work she has carried out in her official capacity for several decades. She has performed her duties with warmth, care and deep commitment.

When Durek Verrett and Princess Märtha Louise are married, Mr Verrett will become a part of the Royal Family ­– as did Erling Lorentzen, Johan Martin Ferner and Ari Behn. But in accordance with tradition he will not have a title or represent the Royal House of Norway. Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett will attend family-related gatherings, such as birthday celebrations, as well as certain major sporting events that the Royal Family traditionally attends together.

The court then followed up with more information:

The roles of Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett moving forward

The Princess is withdrawing from her official duties for the Royal House of Norway.

The Princess is relinquishing the role as royal patron that has set the framework of her official duties for the Royal House, and will not be representing the Royal House at the present time. The organisations previously under her patronage will be offered the patronage of other members of the Royal Family.

The King and Queen wish to thank Princess Märtha Louise for the important work she has carried out in her official capacity for several decades. She has performed her duties with warmth, care and deep commitment.

In accordance with The King’s wishes, the Princess will keep her title. The Princess will continue to serve as chair of the board of Princess Märtha Louise’s Fund.

When Durek Verrett and Princess Märtha Louise are married, Mr Verrett will become a part of the Royal Family ­– as did Erling Lorentzen, Johan Martin Ferner and Ari Behn. But in accordance with tradition he will not have a title or represent the Royal House of Norway.

Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett will attend important family-related gatherings, such as birthday celebrations, as well as certain major sporting events that the Royal Family traditionally attends together.

Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett are seeking to distinguish more clearly between their activities and their association with the Royal House.

In 2019, the Princess decided in consultation with her family not to use the title of Princess in connection with her business activity. This principle will now apply to her fiancé Durek Verrett as well.

Accordingly, they will not indicate an association with the Royal House of Norway in their social media channels (with the exception of @PrincessMarthaLouise on Instagram), in media productions or in connection with other commercial activities. In practice this means that the Princess and Durek Verrett will avoid mention of this association in activities such as social media tagging, the use of the Princess title or the use of pictures of, or references to, other members of the Royal House in channels where commercial activity also takes place. This includes interviews primarily intended to draw attention to commercial activity. 

This is intended to draw a dividing line that more clearly separates commercial activity from the Royal House of Norway. The objective is both to prevent misunderstandings regarding the Royal House and to allow the Princess and Durek Verrett greater freedom in their business activities and other parts of their lives.

As an extension of this clarification of roles, the Royal House of Norway wishes to add the following:

We are very pleased by the engagement of the Princess to Derek Verrett, and we want Mr Verrett to feel welcome in our family.

The situation we as a family have found ourselves in recently, however, has raised problems that are complex and that involve many different views we are trying to accommodate.

For us it is crucial to maintain our relationship of trust with the Norwegian people while at the same time safeguarding the well-being of our family to the best of our ability. The constraints on what we may say or do while representing the Royal House have been questioned and challenged. That is why we have seen a need to further clarify roles and the use of the Princess title.

We are also committed to the ideal of all people living together in harmony despite their differences. We deplore the racist attitudes that Durek Verrett has had to contend with, especially on social media. We consider it a strength that the Royal House reflects Norway’s ethnic diversity.

For those who have never experienced such discrimination, it can be hard to imagine how racism – whether direct or indirect, conscious or unconscious – is perceived by those it strikes. Unfortunately there are many people in Norway today who are subjected to discrimination and racism. We must work together as a society to put an end to intolerance.

Across the generations in Norway we have sought to create a society rooted in knowledge, scientific research and freedom of expression ­ – as well as continuous expansion of the Norwegian “we” as society has grown more diverse. We wish to continue the efforts to promote a society based on tolerance, where people do not make hasty judgements about others but sincerely seek to find common ground.   

We wish to achieve a generous, welcoming society where there is room, and respect, for one and all – not just those who are our friends and family but the wider society we are building together.

Regarding health and science

The members of the Royal House of Norway have great confidence in the Norwegian health service and the Norwegian health authorities. A structure based on established medical knowledge and scientific research, carried out by skilled health personnel across the entire health service, has resulted in one of the world’s best health-care systems for the benefit of everyone in Norway. 

Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett have stressed on several occasions that they have confidence in, and avail themselves of, the conventional medical establishment and the Norwegian health service.

In response to questions about her views on alternative medicine and science-based conventional medicine, Princess Märtha Louise has stated the following:

Throughout my life I have been deeply interested in health and research. I believe keenly in expanding our knowledge of the foundations of health. My own training as a physiotherapist has made me aware of the importance of research-based knowledge in advances in the health-related professions, and in particular to the vulnerable individuals who rely on them. 

I am grateful that we in Norway have a high-quality health-care system. I am impressed by all the knowledgeable people who work in hospitals, doctors’ offices and educational institutions across Norway. I personally have received help from them many times – as have most people in the country.  

I also believe, however, that there are components of a good life and sound physical and mental health that may not be so easy to sum up in a research report. Many preventative measures are of course well documented – such as a healthy diet, proper exercise and a sensible balance between work and leisure. In other areas of life — such as spirituality, intimacy with other people and animals, yoga and meditation — the medicinal effects are perhaps less well understood or documented. In recent years, for example, there have been research findings that conclude that meditation contributes to stress reduction.  

I think for many people alternative methods can be an important supplement to help from the conventional medical establishment. A warm hand, an acupuncture needle, a crystal, natural remedies, yoga, meditation or therapeutic conversation can, I believe, help to make life better for many individuals. Not instead of, but in addition to, the treatment provided by the health-care system. As a natural consequence, some people have chosen to follow this approach to treatment as a business practice.

There have been successful collaborations between conventional and alternative forms of medicine – for example, the use of acupuncture in maternity wards in Norwegian hospitals and horses as a supplemental element in therapy at Gaustad Hospital. It is in this area of cooperation and bridge-building that I wish to continue my efforts. I go to the physician while at the same time I use acupuncture and work with energies. I go to yoga and I meditate – as I find that many people do.

All of these have been constants in my life. I try to be true to myself, and to live a life with due regard to both objectivity and personal experience.

I am aware that many people follow what I do and say very closely. My title entails a certain responsibility. It is therefore important to me, including in my business activity, to distinguish between myself as a private person on the one hand and as a member of the Royal Family on the other. Sometimes I stumble, and am grateful to receive supportive advice along the way.

I consider it important to be honest with myself and with the people around me on these matters. I know where I stand, and hope my personal views will be treated as mine alone, without others having to answer for them. By the same token, I hope my views will not be used or interpreted as support for the opinions of others.

Princess Märtha Louise's role has been debated for quite some time, especially since the announcement of her engagement to the self-proclaimed Shaman Derek Verrett and after Verrett too often has referred to his fiancee's royal status in connection with his quackery activities. The princess herself has for many years been criticised for her business and involvement with alternative treatments and for having started a school aimed at helping people «to get in touch with their angels». It has been claimed that the princess has taken advantage of her role as a princess in her business. In  2019 she agreed to stop using her title in connection with her commercial ventures and those with Verrett. She has not always managed to stay on line and her activities seem in recent times to have become even «more alternative».

Will this be enough? She didn't represent the royal house that often anyway, so the most important change, maybe somewhat superficial, is to create a larger distance between her role as princess and her business, as described in the press announcement. She as well as her fiancé are already stepping on a thin line here and don't have that much latitude. Are they only delaying the problems, or will they manage to stay in line? The main challenge is of course Mr. Verrett with his obviously limited understanding of how the monarchy works. I fear that their activities will continue to draw negative attention and continue to undermine the institution.

An alternative solution in order to to create a larger distance to the royal house would be that the king welcomed Mr. Verrett into his family, but, given his constitutional role, decided not to give consent to the marriage, which would mean that the princess would lose her succession rights, and that he would ask her to give up her title. It is of course all about protecting the institution from more attacks. The «alternative activities» have created too much negative attention and has too often overshadowed the activities of the other members of the royal family. The royal house has become less popular because of this, given recent polls. As I wrote in connection with the engagement announcement, most people will probably wish the couple all the best for their future together. The Norwegian Constitution Article 36 says that «A Prince or Princess entitled to succeed to the Crown of Norway may not marry without the consent of the King.» This might seem a bit antiquated in this time and age, but obviously the restriction is made to stop marriages that could put the integrity of the royal house in danger. The princess should be allowed to marry whoever she wants, but not necessarily without consequences. As I have written before, there is no doubt that the king (and queen), given their own experiences prior to their engagement and marriage in 1968, support their children's choices and want to make sure that they don't have to go through a similar situation like they did. But some people have wondered if the king despite this should have put down his foot and maybe much earlier. I like the idea of a liberal, inclusive and generous king, but fear that today's decision will not work out as well as intended. We just have to wait and see.

There are other aspects of today's announcement which are worth discussing. I have no doubt that Mr. Verrett has received racist abuse, especially in social media, and this is of course unacceptable. Racism should not be tolerated in any form. And maybe some people unconsciously would have been more forthcoming and accepting towards Verrett if it had not been for the color of his skin. But I am still convinced that most of the criticism has little to do with color, but with Mr. Verrett's shaman and quackery activities.

Another interesting aspect is Princess Märtha Louise's comment that «she will not carry out official duties for the Royal House at the present time». Does this mean that we could expect «a royal comeback» some time in the future? It is difficult to see that possibilty now, but the Norwegian royal family is small, and there could be scenarios where the princess has to step in and help out (and she has been great at it, let there be no doubt, being a princess representing the royal house. It is her private business affairs and «alternative activities» that have caused all the trouble. Earning her salary as a physioterapist or whatever would not have been a problem). But a comeback as «a working royal» would most likely also mean that she would have to give up her commercial activities, at least for a while. Such a scenario would probably not be possible without keeping her title, and that this is – besides being born a princess and identity issues that come along – a good reason for today's chosen arrangement.    

Norway: Princess Märtha Louise engaged to marry Durek Verrett

The Norwegian Royal Court announced today the engagement between Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett:

Congratulations on their engagement

Her Highness Princess Märtha Louise and Mr. Durek Verrett announced their engagement today. Their Majesties The King and Queen and Their Royal Highnesses The Crown Prince and Crown Princess congratulate.

Congratulations from The King and Queen

His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen extend their heartiest congratulations to Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett on the occasion of their engagement, and wish the couple all the best for their future together.

Congratulations from The Crown Prince and Crown Princess

Their Royal Highnesses The Crown Prince and Crown Princess and their family extend their warmest congratulations to Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett on the occasion of their engagement. They send their best wishes to the whole family for a happy future.

Princess Märtha Louise published the following statement on her Instagram account earlier today:

I am so happy to announce that I am engaged to Shaman Durek, the one who makes my heart skip, the one who sees me and acknowledges me from my highest potential, who makes me laugh and who I can be vulnerable with. Love transcends and makes us grow. And I am so happy to continue to grow with this beautiful man.

Thank you to all my friends and family who have stood steadfast by our side [...]

The so-called Shaman Durek has also written about the engagement on Instagram:

When you know you know. There is nothing better than having clarity as a man that the woman that stands in front of you is the one. I'm overjoyed with tears that I get to spend the rest of my life with the most pure hearted, angelic, wise, powerhouse woman who represents all levels of a goddess in my eyes. Together as a soulful spiritual couple, we will use our power to support the people to create a world based in love and acceptance. Changing the world through our love. Love expands beyond all barriers and conditions. Love is free and transparent. It invites growth and foundation. It shows human beings we are more than our fears, our hate or social conditioning. Princess Märtha Louise is the love of my life. She sees all aspects of me, and I see all of her. I am a guy who loves a girl who loves me back. I get to show and demonstrate to this divine woman how much I love her for the rest of my life. I am the happiest I ever been.

[...]

Thank you to my beloved family and friends. I love you!

The date of the wedding has yet to be set.

Consent?

The Norwegian Constitution Article 36 first sentence says that «A Prince or Princess entitled to succeed to the Crown of Norway may not marry without the consent of the King.»

Other than the congratulations referred to above we have so far not received any information whether the king has given his consent to the marriage or not. Details will follow in the near future. There is no doubt that the king (and queen), given their own experiences prior to their engagement and marriage in 1968, support their children's choices and that they don't want them to go through a similar situation. Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett have their parents' and their family's blessings, but if the support also extends to a constitutional consent remains to be seen.

The headlines and the controversies surrounding Durek Verrett and his role as a self-professed shaman has followed the couple ever since their relationship became public in 2019. Given that the princess, who is no. 4 in the line of succession to the Norwegian throne, has scaled down her activities as a member of the royal family and has no central role in the future of the monarchy, the question of consent might not be that important, although a decision to not seek the king's consent and thereby lose succession rights might be looked favourably on in some quarters. Princess Märtha Louise has stated that she some time in the future wants to move to the United States, but it seems this will wait until her 3 childen have left the nest. Although Durek Verrett will become a member of the royal family following the wedding, he will have no role besides escorting his wife at some events. Most people will probably wish the couple all the best for their future together. It remains to be seen how the engagement and marriage will affect the popularity of the royal family and the monarchy. As of now the monarchy stays strong and the possibility of a republican government some time in the future will certainly be down to other reasons.

The Storting not informed

The President of the Norwegian Storting, Masud Gharahkhani has said today that he has not been informed by the Royal Palace about the engagement before the news was known. «– Given her formal status this is not something we would expect», he has been quoted as saying, besides wishing the princess and her fiancé all the best and congratulating them on the engagement. Traditionally the Storting is formally notified by letter, which will then be entered in the record of its proceedings, but the king is not required to send such a letter. I am not sure what the Storting president means when mentioning the formal status of Princess Märtha Louise. Could it be that because she ceased to be a member of the royal house in 2002 when she gave up her style of royal highness, a formal notification to the Storting has not ben deemed necessary?

Princess Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett

Princess Märtha Louise, b. 1971, is the eldest child and only daughter of King Harald and Queen Sonja, née Haraldsen. She married Ari Behn (1972–2019) in 2002 and had three daughters by him before the marriage was dissolved in 2017.

Durek David Verrett, formerly Derek David Verrett (name change in 2014), was born in Sacramento, California on 17 November 1974 as the son of David Benjamin Verrett (1929–2017) and Sheila G. Farmer, b. 1943 (also called Veruschka Urquhart (Farmer was her mother's name, Urquhart her father's adoped name). Durek's ancestry has been discussed in the Norwegian Digital Archives' users' forum.from 2019 to 2021. The claim that Durek has Norwegian ancestry on his mother's side has been disputed.

Durek Verrett was previously married to the Czech woman Zaneta Marszalkova (b. around 1984). They were married in Los Angeles, California on 2 June 2005 and were divorced on 26 February 2009 (cf. the bi-weekly magazine Se og Hør No. 22, 2022, which refers to various court documents). Ms. Marszalkova has later remarried. Durek was some time later in a relationship with a man named Hank Greenberg. Durek has a sister, Angelina, born in 1973.

Updated on Wednesday 8 June 2022 at 09.40 (corrected "self-processed" to "self-professed" in the Consent? section.

Norway: 26 MPs in favour of republic, 137 against

The members of the Storting, the Norwegian Parliament, voted today over a constitutional bill (Dokument 12:10 (2011-2012)) to change the form of government from monarchy to republic. The bill, which traditionally is put forward by the Socialistic Left Party* every fourth year or so, got 28 votes, which later were corrected to 26, as two MPs had voted in error.

This was the 12th (or was it the 13th?) time the Storting has voted over the question about the form of government. There was of course never any danger of a constittional majority for such a bill, but is is nevertheless a way for the republican minority to demonstrate their principles and to initiate a debate. Or to put it another way, the 137 MPs who voted against the bill demonstrated how strong the people's support of the monarchical form of government still is. Of course, if Norway had decided to start from scratch, a republic certainly would have been established. But that is exactly the point. A majority of the people don't want to throw away a thousand years of tradition and history. The majority of MPs mirrors the wish of the people.

If the bill had got a constitutional majority (2/3), the republic would not have been adopted right away, as the proposal said that the bill would come into force on 1 January the year after the people had voted in favour of the bill in a referendum The referendum should take place no later than 31 September 2017.

As explained at the website of the Storting, a «proposal to amend the text of the Constitution must be submitted to the Storting during one of the first three years of a four-year parliamentary term. Even if the right of initiative belongs to the government, such proposals are normally presented by individual members of Parliament. Such proposals cannot be considered by the Storting until one of the first three years of the next parliamentary term, a system that provides an opportunity for the electorate to have its say through the election of the new Parliament. The proposal is considered by the Storting in a sitting in which at least two-thirds of the members of the Storting must be present to constitute a quorum. Of these, at least two-thirds must vote in favour of the proposal in order for it to be adopted.»

Of the 26 MPs who voted in favour of the republican bill, 16 MPs represented the Labour Party, 6 the Socialist Left Party and 3 the Liberals. The remaining vote was made by a member of the Conservative Party. 137 MPs voted against the bill, while 6 MPs were not present in the Storting today.

In 2010 17 MPs voted in favour of the bill (Dokument nr. 12:3 (2007-2008)), while 125 were against. In March 2013 the Storting debated a proposal to start a process leading to the introduction of a republic, but the proposal only got 11 votes (against 83). An alternative proposal got 17 votes (against 75).

*Traditionally the republican bill has been put forward by members of the Socialist Left Party only, but this time also four members of the Labour Party were behind it.

Updated on Thursday 31 March 2016 at 22.05 (number of Labour MPs behind the proposal corrected).

Closest family and ancestry of the Eidsvoll Men

Norsk Slektshistorisk Forening's (The Norwegian Genealogical Society's) contribution to the celebration of the bicentenary of the Norwegian Constitution was launched at the National Archives in Oslo on Saturday 26 April 2014. The book is called "Eidsvollsmennene - Hvem var de?" ("The Eidsvoll Men - Who were they?"), and covers the closest family and ancestry of the 112 men who were elected to the Constituent Assembly at Eidsvoll and passed the Constitution of Norway in May 1814.

To be more exact, in the book you will find genealogical details on the Eidsvoll Men's spouses, children, siblings as well as their ancestry back to their great-grandparents, in addition to a short biography, their portrait (if found) and their seal. It has not been possible to find all the details on all the Eidsvoll Men, but for most of them. The book gives the current research status. Hopefully it will some time in the future be possible to find more information, and hopefully the book can be a useful starting point for future articles and research about various aspects of the Eidsvoll Men. Among the contributors to the genealogy are well-established historians and/or genealogists like Lars Løberg, Knut Bryn, Hans Cappelen, Elin Galtung Lihaug and Torkel Fagerli, to mention a few. The head editor is Anders Bjønnes, while the other members of the editorial commitee are Håvard Blom and Svein Becken. The same men were also main responsible for the book Segltegninger fra hyllingene i Norge 1591 og 1610 ("Drawings of Norwegian Seals from 1591 and 1610") which was published in 2010. Yours sincerely has contributed to the chapter about Arnoldus von Westen Sylow Koren (1764-1854) of Bergen, later Ullensvang.

In additon to the genealogy the reader can find a short introduction to the events in 1814 written by the historian Håkon Andreas Evju, an article about the use of seals in Norway (by Anders Bjønnes), another article about what the seals on the original Constitution of 17 May 1814 can show us (by Hans Cappelen) and a description of each seal (by Anders Bjønnes and Hans Cappelen together). The book is richly illustrated and also has a personal name and place name index. The book is meant to reach out to a wider audience of people interested in the genealogy of the Eidsvoll Men and the history of 1814. The book, which has 269 pages (including the list of illustrations and the presentations of the contributors to the book) in addition to the index (pages 276 to 320), would be too expensive to produce if also the notes (the research material) should be included. The research material will be made available through the Norwegian Genealogical Society.

The book (ISBN 978-82-998428-2-2) costs NOK 495,- + P & P and can be ordered from the Norwegian Genealogical Society by e-mail (kontor [at] genealogi.no) and soon also directly from the website (the online shop is just around the corner).

See also more information about the book (in Norwegian) here.

Genealogen no. 1, 2012

Genealogen (i,e, "The Genealogist"), the newsletter of Norsk Slektshistorisk Forening (NSF; The Norwegian Genealogical Society), was published earlier this week, and I received my copy today.

One of the most interesting contributions this time - and most relevant to this blog - is perhaps Ole Bjørn Darrud's article Olav den Hellige Haraldssons fødested. En kildedrøfting ("Olav the Holy Haraldsson's birth place. A discussion of sources") which can also be read at NSF's website (flipbook version). A presentation (in Norwegian) can be read here.

In his article Darrud discusses the methods and sources used by Thorstein Vale, who last year in his booklet Dokumentarisk lokalisering av lav den Helliges fødested, i lendeheimen på Digrenes i det Gamle Grenland presented the theory that King Olav the Holy (Olav II Haraldsson, r. 1015-1028) was born at Nordigard Lindheim in today's Sauherad in the county of Telemark. Darrud has written a short presentation of his article (in Norwegian) at Arkivverket's users' forum (23 April 2012).

Genealogen also contains information about NSF's book project about "the Eidsvoll men", i.e. the 112 delegates to the Constituent Assembly who convened at Eidsvoll in 1814 to draw up the Constitution of Norway. The project aims among others to include the ancestry (back to their great-grandparents) of all the Eidsvoll men as well as genealogical information about their immediate family (wife, children, siblings).

Hoelseth.com - some progress

I have written about my work to move all the contents from my old Geocities website to my current domain Hoelseth.com on several occasions, for instance here. Obviously the work is taking more time than I expected when the new website was launched in the fall of 2009, but that is the way it is. My family and my work have to come first. In addition I spend a lot of time on this blog as well as on several genealogical projects, committee work for the Norwegian Genealogical Society and other hobbies.

I am happy, however, to tell that I have made some progress on my website lately. All the documents and other subpages which could be found at my Geocities page have now been moved to my Constitution of Norway website Grunnloven.net. In addition several new documents have been added, including the Act of Union of 1815 as well as the Norwegian version of the Act of Succession, which Norway had in common with Sweden from 1814 to 1905. As I have written at my website, my aim with Grunnloven.net is to give a survey of consolidated (updated) and historical versions of the Norwegian Constitution and of all the modifications or amendments to the Constitution passed in the period between 1814 and today. It is a huge project, so the readers have to accept that it will take some time to finish it. Hopefully I will manage to get all the modifications/amendments added before the 200th anniversary of the Norwegian Constitution in 2014. I will not make any promises, though!

Most of the texts will be in Norwegian, but I am planning to add more consolidated versions in English - and some also in French - in the future. I have plenty of documents waiting to be scanned and coded, it is just a question of when I get the time. Obviously it takes more time to work on the oldest documents. Until 1906 Norsk Lovtidend (the Norwegian Legal Gazette), one of the most important sources, was published in Gothic, so I hope there will be more progress when the union dissolution year is done. As you can see, I haven't done everything in the cronological order, as some periods have been more interesting than others, but I am pretty sure that the 1860s will be included in my next update.

My next project, besides adding more documents to my Constitution page, will be to get all the royal resolutions and other documents concerning the Norwegian Royal Family back to my Documents page. My survey of new or updated pages will usually not include all the old subpages, but please check out http://www.hoelseth.com/res/ and http://www.hoelseth.com/doc/ from time to time, as those indexes will show the status at any time. You can among others view the resolution of 7 March 1888 by which Prince Oscar (Bernadotte) is released from his Relation as a subject to Norway. Or what about King Christian Frederik's abdication declaration from 10 October 1814 or the Storting declaration of 4 November 1814 acknowledging his decision?

The indexes concerning other past and present monarchies will also return in due time. Some pages are already in place: Sweden, Denmark, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg. I guess most people google in order to find the information they are looking for instead of using such links pages as a starting point. But many of my index pages will include links to constitutional documents etc. stored at Hoelseth.com, so when people first have stumbled over information at my website, they might find the index pages useful to see other documents I have provided.

King Christian Frederik of Norway's diary

1814 was an eventful year for Norway, to say the least. Following the Napoleonic Wars, King Frederik VI of Denmark-Norway was by the Peace Treaty of Kiel of 14 January 1814 forced to cede Norway to Sweden.

Norway refused to accept the terms of the treaty, stating that now as Denmark had given up Norway for good, the sovereignty had reverted to the Norwegian people. Prince Christian Frederik of Denmark, heir to the Danish throne and Stattholder (Viceregent) of Norway since 1813, initially wished to be made King of Norway on basis of his rights to the throne, but was persuaded by leading Norwegian men to instead be elected as king following the adoption of a constitution. Prince Christian Frederik thus convened a constituent assembly which met at Eidsvoll on 10 April 1814.

Prince Christian Frederik of Denmark was elected King of Norway on 17 May 1814 after approving the new Constitution. But Crown Prince Regent Carl Johan of Sweden refused to accept Norway's independence and following a short war, King Christian Frederik agreed to cede and leave the country by the Treaty of Moss of 14 August. He formally abdicated on 10 October, a decision that was confirmed by the Storting (the Norwegian Parliament) on 4 November. On the same day the assembly passed the changes to the Constitution made necessary because of the personal union with Sweden and King Carl XIII was elected King of Norway.

The former king Christian Frederik, who in 1839 became King of Denmark as Christian VIII, had left Norway already on 28 October 1814.

King Christian Frederik wrote a diary during his stay in Norway which was published in 1914 as an appendix to Riksforsamlingens forhandlinger (Proceedings of the Constituent Assembly) and titled Kong Christian Frederiks dagbok fra hans opphold i Norge i 1814 ("King Christian Frederik's diary from his stay in Norway in 1814"). The lawyer and historian Arnet Olafsen (1865-1947) had been allowed to make a copy of the diary notes kept in the Archives of the Royal House in the Danish National Archives. An exception was made to those parts of the diary that had "a personal and intimate character". Most of the diary notes were written in French, which were translated into Norwegian by Jens Raade.

Lars Ove Wangensteen has at his website Wangensteen.net today published the diary in form of a flipbook. The diary can also be found at the Eidsvoll 1814 website.