Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
The King of Norway has officially opened his country’s parliament for a new year.
Pomp, pageantry and tradition were all on show as King Harald took on one of his most important constitutional duties.
The King of Norway, 87, was accompanied by Queen Sonja and their son, Crown Prince Haakon.
They arrived at the Norwegian Parliament by car after a procession through Oslo where the route had been decked with flags. Norwegian military formed a guard along the way.
After a formal welcome at the parliament building, the royal party made its way to the chamber where King Harald assumed the throne.
He went on to give his speech from the throne – although he delivers the words, they are written for him by the government and set out plans for the coming year.
King Harald stood for the speech. He has experienced mobility issues in recent months and although he needed assistance to walk up the stairs into parliament, he moved unaided for much of the official ceremony.
The tradition of parliament being opened comes after a difficult few months for the Norwegian royal family. King Harald’s only daughter, Princess Martha Louise, caused controversy in August when she and her husband, Durek Verrett, decided to sell coverage of their wedding to Hello magazine.
Meanwhile, Crown Prince Haakon’s stepson, Marius Borg Hoiby, was arrested in late summer over allegations he assaulted a girlfriend. Further claims about his behaviour have since been made and just days before the parliament event, his mother, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, and Crown Prince Haakon, dodged questions from reporters in what became an awkward scrum at the end of a public engagement.
Following the summer problems, a poll found that an overwhelming majority of Norwegians don’t think King Harald should abdicate. He remains one of the most popular monarchs in Europe and will celebrate the 34th anniversary of his reign in January 2025.