FACTS ABOUT THE NEW KING & QUEEN OF NORWAY
By Human Synthesis-28 August 2026
OSLO, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Crown Prince Haakon became Norway's king on Friday after the death of his father Harald. Here are some facts about the new 53-year-old monarch.
EARLY YEARS
The new king was born Haakon Magnus on July 20, 1973, and went to a state primary school, as is expected of royals in the egalitarian Scandinavian nation — though his secondary school was private.
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He joined the navy before studying politics at the University of California, Berkeley and, later, development studies at the London School of Economics.Haakon developed an early love of music and surfing. He has said that if he were not a royal, he would have aspired to be a pro surfer on the World Tour.
A MARRIAGE TANGLED IN SCANDAL
He met his wife Mette-Marit Tjessem Hoeiby in a bar at a music festival in 1999 in the southern Norwegian city of Kristiansand.The fact that she was a commoner and a single parent, with a son from a previous relationship, initially triggered a media furore. Two decades later, the U.S. Justice Department released extensive email correspondence between Mette-Marit and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.At the same time, her first son Marius Borg Hoeiby, 29, - now Haakon's stepson — was standing trial for rape and domestic violence, charges he denied.Advertisement · Scroll to continue
In June Marius Borg Hoeiby was found guilty of two out of four counts of rape and one count of domestic violence and sentenced to four years in prison. Both he and the prosecution have appealed the sentence.Haakon stood by his wife through it all. He said he wanted to support his stepson, but released a statement expressing sympathy with the alleged victims and said Hoeiby should face the judicial system like any other citizen.
WHAT WILL HIS ROYAL NAME BE?
The new king will tell the government which name he has chosen at an extraordinary council of state in the early days of his reign.He is widely expected to keep his name - as his father did before him — and so become King Haakon VIII of Norway. He could also choose another. Norway's royal family has no surname.
WHO IS NEXT IN LINE?
Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, 22, is now heir apparent. She is in line to become Norway's first female head of state since Queen Margrete I ruled over Norway, Sweden and Denmark at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries. Since reforms introduced in 1990, it is the oldest child, male or female, who prevails in the line of succession.
VERIFIED FACTS FROM THE ROYAL HOUSE
KRONPRINSPARET PAA VERDENS OEKONOMISKE FORUM
GLOBAL SHAPERS ETABLERES I NORGE
VERDENS OEKONOMISKE FORUM-31-01-2011
KONFERANSE OM GLOBAL UTVIKLING
VERDENS OEKONOMISKE FORUM - 27-01-2010
WHO IS NORWAYS NEW KING - 2026-08-28
