ALL FOR NORWAY: King Haakon VIII ascends the Throne

 

Following the death of his father, King Harald V, at 6:35'am on Friday, 28 August 2026; Haakon, Crown Prince and Regent, succeeded the Norwegian throne immediately. The new King assumed the regnal name of Haakon VIII and retained the royal motto 'Alt for Norge' (everything for Norway) used by the previous three generations of Kings from his Royal House. The new King swore his oath of Allegiance to the Norwegian Constitution before The Parliament (Storting) in a solemn enthronement session on Tuesday, 1 September 2026. He was accompanied by his daughter, Ingrid Alexandra, who signed her oath as Norway's first Crown Princess in her own right later that day. Her mother, Queen Mette-Marit, King Haakon's wife of 25 years, had to pull out last moment from the ceremony, due to complications of her health, following a recent, life-saving lung transplant in June. Haakon VIII honoured his recently deceased father in his inaugural address to the nation on August 29, praising his lifelong service to Norway and desire to keep the family united, while outlining his own regnal goals and congratulating his widowed mother, Queen Sonja, on what would have been her & Harald V's 58th wedding anniversary, on that day.

Norway entered a new era as news of King Harald's death broke in the morning of Friday, August 28. The Royal Flag on top of Oslo's Palace was lowered to half-mast, only to be raised after the new Monarch, King Haakon, arrived. Accompanied by his firstborn child, now Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, 22, the 53-year-old Sovereign hosted his cabinet at The Palace for an extraordinary Council of State, to formally inform them of his accession to the throne. Dressed in his formal uniform, and deprived of sleep (after spending the previous night by his father's deathbed), His Majesty greeted and received condolences from each of his ministers, and announced that his regnal name will be Haakon VIII, and his motto will remain the same, used since the reign of his great-grandfather, Haakon VII (r. 1905-1957): Alt for Norge. The first official portrait of the new King was released shortly afterwards; while a Royal Standard Flag, lowered at half-mast with a black ribbon attached, was hung horizontally, from The Palace's balcony.

King Haakon VIII addressed the nation for the first time on Saturday, August 29, in a pre-recorded speech, broadcasted on Norwegian state TV at 19:00. The King commemorated his late father as a "good listener" who "represented Norway and Norwegians with pride and joy", "met everyone with respect and generosity", and "had an extra room in his heart" for children and young people. He thanked him for being a warm and caring father, a loved patriarch who brought everyone together with a natural authority, and in particular remarked the strength he was getting in his life's work by his beloved wife, Queen Sonja, whose would have been 58th wedding anniversary he mentioned with a breaking voice. After refering how much The Norwegian society has changed to the positive through the lifetime and reign of Harald V, The King also mentioned his and (new) Queen Mette-Marit's goal "to be present and listen", and their joint goal with Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra in 'trying to understand' different people's life situations. In unpredictable times, The King redefined his dynastic motto "Everything for Norway" as fighting for everyone's right to free lives, contributing positively to the world as a nation, and willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for Norway's freedom and Independence when its peace is at stake; before finishing his speech with an old prayer: "May God preserve our country". A portrait of the late King Harald V was on the desk, while previous Kings, Olav V & Haakon VII were also mentioned.

The Constitutional Oath of HM King Haakon VIII was set for Tuesday, 1 September 2026, four days after his accession to the throne. He is the tenth tenth Norwegian Monarch to take this oath, since Norway signed its Constitution, on 17 May 1814. Only three Kings before him, Oscar II, Haakon VII & Harald V swore their oath at The Parliament Chamber, which Haakon VIII repeated in a special session of The Storting (Norwegian Parliament) at 1:00pm. The ceremony of swearing The King's allegiance to The Constitution is considered a backbone of Independent Norway; ensuring that The Monarch will respect the Constitution, his obligations and limits according to it, and separation of powers. Especially after Coronations of The King of Norway was abolished in 1908, Constitutional Oath became the leading Enthronement event, alongside Benediction from The Church of Norway (usually held at Nidaros Cathedral, several months after accession). The King was accompanied by HRH The Crown Princess, Queen Sonja & Prince Sverre Magnus (his younger child). The Queen was also due to attend, but had to pull out last moment, due to complications of her health (following a recent lung transplant).

His Majesty, dressed in his naval uniform and wearing all of his insignia from Norway, greeted & saluted the Palace guards before being driven off The Royal Palace in an open-top limousine. Following was a limousine with The King's children and mother. Queen Sonja (who is no longer styled "Her Majesty" by The Royal House) and her grandson, took their seats in the chamber's front line, while the King and Crown Princess Ingrid stood next to The Thrones opposite to the Speaker's seat. During the short & poignant ceremony, screened on real time from Eidsvolls (outside the Parliament) The Speaker of Storting, Masud Gharakhani, read out the official death announcement of King Harald V & succession of the throne.Then he bowed & handed the new King his own Oath of Allegiance to The Constitution, which His Majesty red aloud: "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".

Following his oficial oath, The King briefly addressed The President of  Storting, expressing the hope that the good relationship his three predecessors had with the Parliament is retained, also placing himself & The Queen in disposal to carry out their constitutional role and public service, as the dynastic motto (Alt for Norge) goes. The Storting's Speaker bowed again, as he took back the written texts from The King's hands, and from his seat delivered an address in remembrance of King Harald V - for whom a minute of silence was observed - and then formally endorsing the new King Haakon VIII & Queen Mette-Marit. On his Conclusion the chamber joined in silence-breaking exclamation of 'God Save The King' (Gud Bevare Konge!) and in singing The Royal Anthem (Kongesangen). The newly sworn in King bowed to the Chamber, and left it accompanied by his daughter, who later the same day signed her own constitutional oath as heiress apparent at The Royal Palace. Ingrid Alexandra, who studied at The University of Sydney since last year, and currently continues as an exchange at the University of Oslo, is the first female heir to The Norwegian throne in modern history (succession law changed in 1990).

Haakon VIII, the fourth King of Sovereign Norway from The House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg Glücksburg since 1905; was born on 20 July 1973, and remained before his older sister, Princess Martha Louise in the succession line, when absolute primogeniture was adopted (1990) not retrospectively. The only son of then-Crown Prince Harald & Crown Princess Sonja, Prince Haakon Magnus received a public education in Oslo, and served in The Royal Norwegian Navy, graduating (1995) from The Naval Academy. Following the death of his grandfather, King Olav V, on 17 January 1991, Haakon became Crown Prince at age 17. Unlike his father & grandfather, he choose University of California, instead of Oxford; receiving a BA in political science (1999). He further attended The University of Oslo, Foreign Ministry's civil service courses, and obtained a MA in London School of Economics in development & international trade. Haakon married Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby, a single mother of one, on 25 August 2001, after an eight-month controversial engagement. They had two children: Ingrid Alexandra (*2004) & Sverre Magnus (*2005). King Haakon is a fan of sports (like windsurfing), music festivals & nature.

Having served as Regent on multiple occasions in the 2000s and 2020s, the then Crown Prince Haakon knew the heavy weight of preserving The Crown's good image & popularity. The past few months have been demanding for the Norwegian Royal Family, since the then Crown Princess, diagnosed with life threatening pulmonary fibriosis in 2018, was revealed to have had a close relationship to the late US sex offender & child abuser Jeffrey Epstein, after first charges against him had been verdicted. Mette-Marit admitted her lack of judgment and apologised to The King & Queen for the damage this could bring to The Monarchy. Moreover, her extramarrital son, Marius Borg Høiby was found guilty of 34 out of 40 criminal charges against him, including rape, assault & drug possession, and sentensed to four years in prison in June, only days before his mother underwent a successful lung transplant (with recuperation period expected to last for about a year). Thus, Norwegian Monarchy's popularity had dropped to ~60% earlier this year (from over 70% before), with about half of the population not supporting Mette-Marit as (future) Queen. After succeeding the throne, Haakon has big shoes to fill, together with his family.

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