King Harald V of Norway Passes Away at 89

King Harald V of Norway has died at the age of 89, concluding a reign that lasted 35 years. His son is set to take the throne as King Haakon VIII.

The Royal Palace in Oslo confirmed the news of the king’s passing on Friday.

“It is with deep grief that we announce that His Majesty King Harald has passed away,” the palace stated in an online announcement. “King Harald died peacefully at Oslo University Hospital Rikshospitalet on Friday, August 28, at 6:35 AM.”

This news comes after reports surfaced that the king had been hospitalized the previous week due to hemolytic anemia, a rare blood disorder.

The royal flag atop the palace was lowered to half-staff in homage to the late monarch, as noted by the BBC.

“A whole nation is in mourning and the people of Norway are left with a deep sense of gratitude for a long life in the service of Norway,” said Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre in a public statement. “For more than three decades as monarch, Harald V demonstrated an unwavering faith in the Norwegian people. He helped us to see the best in ourselves — and in one another.”

King Charles III of England expressed his condolences, stating, “It is with the most profound sadness that my wife and I have learned of the death of my dear cousin, King Harald V of Norway. For thirty-five years, King Harald served his people with unwavering dedication, guiding Norway through times of great change with warmth and humility. As Norway mourns the loss of such a towering figure, my whole family joins in remembering a much-loved kinsman and friend whose kindness, compassion, and deep sense of duty echoed across the sea and decades.”

Harald was the oldest reigning monarch in Europe, closely following in age to Queen Elizabeth II, who was 96 when she passed in 2022 after a 70-year reign. Unlike some of his contemporaries who chose to abdicate, Harald remained steadfast in his role, opting not to follow in the footsteps of others such as Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, who abdicated in recent years.

The role of Norwegian monarchs has become largely ceremonial, with the parliamentary system holding the majority of the power in governance. Historically, Norway didn’t have its own king for over five centuries, ruled instead by Denmark and later Sweden. Harald’s grandfather, Haakon VII, was the first Norwegian king after the country split from Sweden in 1905.

During World War II, when Harald was just a young boy, his mother took him and his sisters—Princesses Astrid and Ragnhild—to Sweden, and then to the United States, to escape Nazi occupation. The royal family, along with the Norwegian government, was in exile in Britain during this time. After the war ended in 1945, they returned to Norway.

Harald represented Norway in sailing events at three Olympic Games: Tokyo in 1964, Mexico City in 1968, and Munich in 1972. He had a long courtship, initially rejecting several offers from European nobility before marrying his high school sweetheart, Sonja Haraldsen, who was not of royal lineage. The couple had two children: a daughter, Märtha Louise, aged 54, and a son, Haakon, who is 53.

While Norway’s constitution was amended in 1990 to allow for a female heir to the throne, this change didn’t apply retroactively to Märtha Louise. Therefore, Haakon is now the immediate successor. His daughter, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, aged 22, marks the first female heir to the Norwegian throne since the late Queen Margrete I, who died in 1412.

The late king is also survived by his wife and five grandchildren.