Departures of note

Harald V was King of Norway from 1991 until his death in 2026. Born in 1937 at Skaugum, he was the only son of King Olav V and Princess Märtha of Sweden, and spent part of his childhood in exile in Sweden and the United States during the Second World War. He became crown prince in 1957 and studied at the University of Oslo, the Norwegian Military Academy, and Balliol College, Oxford.

A keen sailor, Harald represented Norway in yachting at the 1964, 1968, and 1972 Olympic Games and later won world championship medals. His 1968 marriage to the commoner Sonja Haraldsen was initially controversial but became a symbol of a modernizing monarchy. He ascended the throne in 1991 and was consecrated in Nidaros Cathedral.

During his reign Harald worked to make the royal household more open and accessible, and his leadership during national crises such as the 2011 Utøya massacre and the COVID-19 pandemic earned broad acclaim. He was the oldest reigning monarch in Europe and the longest-lived king in Norwegian history, refusing to abdicate despite recurring health problems.