Norway already has a new king - following his father's death, Haakon automatically ascended the throne

Crown Prince Haakon became king of Norway on Friday following the death of his father Harald, Reuters reports, citing some facts about the new 53-year-old monarch, writes UNN.

Norwegian broadcaster NRK also notes that "Norway already has a new king. Haakon automatically ascended the throne and became king from the moment of his father's death."

King Harald V of Norway has died28.08.26, 09:46 • 3044 views

Details

The new king was born Haakon Magnus on July 20, 1973, and attended a public primary school, as befits a royal family in an egalitarian Scandinavian country, although his secondary school was private.

He joined the navy before studying political science 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 said that if he were not a member of the royal family, he would aspire to become a professional surfer on the world tour.

He met his wife, Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby, at a bar during a music festival in 1999 in the southern Norwegian city of Kristiansand. The fact that she was not from a noble family and was a single mother who had a son from a previous relationship initially caused a media storm. Two decades later, the U.S. Department of Justice released a large volume of correspondence between Mette-Marit and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

At the same time, her first son, Marius Borg Høiby, 29, now Haakon's stepson, went on trial for rape and domestic violence, charges he denied.

In June, Marius Borg Høiby was found guilty on two of the four rape charges and one count of domestic violence and sentenced to four years in prison. Both he and the prosecution appealed the verdict.

Haakon supported his wife throughout all of this. He said he wanted to support his stepson, but issued a statement expressing sympathy for the alleged victims and saying that Høiby should face the justice system like any other citizen.

What will his royal name be

The new king will inform the government of the name he has chosen at an extraordinary Council of State at the beginning of his reign.

He is expected to retain his name, as his father did before him, and thus become King Haakon VIII of Norway. He may also choose another one. Norway's royal family has no surname.

Who is next in line to the throne

Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, 22, is now heir to the throne. She has every chance of becoming Norway's first female head of state since the reign of Queen Margaret I over Norway, Sweden, and Denmark at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries. Following reforms introduced in 1990, succession to the throne is determined by the oldest child, whether male or female.