King Harald V of Norway has died at the age of 89, the palace has confirmed.
In a statement, the Norwegian royal household said: "It is with deep sorrow that we announce that His Majesty King Harald passed away today. King Harald passed away peacefully at Rikshospitalet on Friday, August 28, at 06:35.
"He leaves behind his wife, Queen Sonja, 89, and children, Crown Prince Haakon, 53 and Princess Martha Louise, 54."
Harald V reigned for 35 years, from 17 January 1991 until 28 August 2026.
Crown Prince Haakon has now succeeded his father as King of Norway, while his daughter, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, is now heir to the throne. Crown Princess Mette-Marit will be Queen Consort.
King Harald V's health in recent years
The monarch was admitted to hospital a number of times in the final years of his life. He struggled with his health throughout 2026 and was admitted to hospital in February for dehydration and an infection while on holiday in Tenerife with his wife, Queen Sonja.
In the days before hie death, Harald was admitted to hospital with haemolytic anaemia, which is when the red blood cells are destroyed faster than the body can replace them with new blood. A statement from the Palace issued around the time said: "His Majesty the King's health condition is extremely serious."
© Rune Hellestad - Corbis/Getty ImagesIn February 2024, he was hospitalised with an infection while on a private holiday in Malaysia. Upon his return to Norway, the palace said the king had been fitted with a "temporary" pacemaker due to "a low heart rate".
In May 2023, he was treated for an infection at Rikshospitalet, Oslo's main hospital. In January 2022, King Harald underwent a leg operation before contracting Covid-19 in March 2022. And later that summer, he made a further trip to hospital where he was treated for a fever.
Back in 2003, the monarch underwent surgery for bladder cancer and in 2005, Harald had an operation for a heart valve problem.
King Harald V's early life
Harald V, born on 21 February 1937, was the third and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Martha of Sweden. He also had two older sisters, Princess Ragnhild and Princess Astrid.
The then Prince's early years were spent at the Skaugum estate in Asker, southwest of Oslo. But when World War II broke out in 1939, the Norwegian royal family went into exile in Sweden, and then later moved to the US until 1945 when peace was declared.
© Gamma-Keystone via Getty ImagesUpon returning to Norway, Harald attended Smestad public school in Oslo. He later studied at the University of Oslo and completed military training at the Norwegian Military Academy.
He attended Balliol College at Oxford from 1960 to 1962, studying social science, history and economics. It was there that he found his passion for rowing, and he represented his country in sailing at the 1964, 1968 and 1972 Olympics.
Harald became Crown Prince at the age of 20, following his grandfather King Haakon VII's death in 1957.
King Harald V's marriage to Queen Sonja
Harald married long-term girlfriend Sonja Haraldsen on 29 August 1968, with the royal bride wearing a high-neck silk wedding dress by Molstad. Instead of a tiara, Sonja used flowers in her hair to secure her veil.
© Getty ImagesThe couple had known each other for nine years before their marriage, but there were objections to their courtship as Sonja was a commoner.
Eventually, King Olav V gave his consent as Harald told his father that if he could not marry Sonja, he would not marry at all. As Harald was the only person in the line of succession to the throne at the time, it would have ended the reign of his family.
Who are King Harald V and Queen Sonja's children and grandchildren?
Harald and Sonja shared two children, Princess Märtha Louise, born on 22 September 1971, and Crown Prince Haakon, born on 20 July 1973.
Although Princess Märtha Louise is two years older than her brother, she did not feature in the order of succession at the time of her birth, because constitutional law at the time dictated that only males could inherit the Norwegian throne. The law changed in 1990 but only applied to those born that year or later.
© GettyFemales born between 1971 and 1990 were given succession rights, but their brothers would still be before them in the line of succession.
Princess Märtha Louise shares three daughters with her late husband, Ari Behn (who died by suicide in 2019) – Maud, Leah and Emma.
She began dating self-described shaman, Durek Verrett, in 2019, and the pair tied the knot in the Gerainger Fjord in Norway in 2024, which was exclusively covered by HELLO! at the time.
Crown Prince Haakon married Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby on 25 August 2001, celebrating their silver wedding anniversary in August 2026.
The couple welcomed their first child, Princess Ingrid Alexandra, on 21 January 2004, and their son, Prince Sverre Magnus, on 3 December 2005.
The crown princess also has a son, Marius Borg Høiby, born in 1997, from a previous relationship. Marius holds no title and is not part of Norway's royal family's line of succession. In 2026, he was found guilty of rape following a high-profile trial at Oslo District Court.
