Harald V of Norway dies at 89 after more than three decades of reign

King Harald V of Norway has died this Friday at the age of 89 in the National Hospital of Oslo, where he had been admitted since last August 17. The monarch suffered from hemolytic anemia and his condition worsened in recent days after developing a bacterial infection in the blood.

Harald V ascended to the throne on January 17, 1991, after the death of his father, Olav V, and has remained for more than three decades at the head of the Norwegian monarchy. His son, Crown Prince Haakon, automatically succeeds him as king after his death as Haakon VIII.

Born in 1937, Harald lived in exile as a child during the Nazi occupation of Norway. As monarch, he became a reference figure in the country's most difficult moments, especially after the Oslo and Utøya attacks in 2011, which left 77 dead. His defense of an open and tolerant society also marked his reign.

In 2016, during a speech at the Royal Palace, Harald vindicated a plural Norway in a message that became internationally known: “Norway is you. Norway is us”. The king then defended coexistence among citizens of different origins, religions, and sexual orientations.

His marriage to Sonja Haraldsen also symbolized the evolution of the institution. The couple married in 1968 after Harald had to face the Crown's reluctance due to his future wife's non-aristocratic origin. Together they had two children, Haakon and Märtha Louise.

Harald's last years were marked by various health problems, which progressively reduced his public activity. Despite this, the monarch always rejected the possibility of abdicating and maintained that his commitment to the Crown was a lifelong responsibility.

Harald's death also comes at a particularly delicate moment for the Norwegian royal family, which in recent years has been affected by controversies involving his daughter Märtha Louise and, especially, the Crown Prince's family. Mette-Marit's relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and the legal process against her son, Marius Borg Høiby, have subjected the institution to strong public scrutiny.

Now it will be Haakon who must bear the weight of the Crown. The Crown Prince, 53 years old, becomes the new monarch at a complex time for the institution, after more than three decades in which Harald managed to maintain a high personal rating among Norwegians. His successor thus faces the challenge of preserving that support and transferring it to a new generation of the royal family.

With his death, a new era begins for the Norwegian monarchy, which loses a king who for 35 years tried to combine the tradition of the Crown with an increasingly modern and diverse society.