This Is How the Succession Unfolds After King Harald's Death
Photo: The Royal Court
Crown Prince Haakon became king the moment his father died. Here is what happens next: the Council of State, the regnal name, the oath to Parliament, the mourning period and the funeral.
The King is dead, long live the King. Norway is never without a monarch: at the very moment King Harald passed away on Friday morning, Crown Prince Haakon became the country's new king. Here is what happens in the days ahead.
Crown Prince Haakon became king the moment his father died. Photo: The Royal Court
• Council of State and the book of condolence
The government gathers for a government conference at the Prime Minister's office at 10 am, and an hour and a half later, at 11.30 am, an extraordinary Council of State is held at the Palace, where the government meets the new king. Afterwards the Prime Minister and the ministers sign the book of condolence for King Harald V.
• Church bells and salutes
At noon, church bells ring for an hour across the country. At the same time, 21-gun salutes are fired from Norway's nine saluting stations, at 30-second intervals. Flags at state institutions are flying at half-mast, and will remain so until after the funeral, when they are raised to full mast again.
• The regnal name
A new king chooses the name he will reign under, and the choice has now been announced: he takes the name Haakon VIII, after his great-grandfather who became Norway's first king after the dissolution of the union with Sweden in 1905. The royal motto is inherited, and remains Alt for Norge, everything for Norway.
• The oath to Parliament
The new king must swear an oath to the Constitution before Parliament. The wording is fixed: "I promise and swear to govern the Kingdom of Norway in accordance with its constitution and laws."
• The funeral
King Harald will be given an official funeral with a service, a procession and military honours. He will be laid to rest in the Royal Mausoleum at Akershus Castle in Oslo, where Norway's earlier monarchs rest.
• The new line of succession
Princess Ingrid Alexandra (22) is now crown princess and first in line to the throne, the first female heir in Norway's history. She is followed by Prince Sverre Magnus (20).
RoyMob will follow the accession and the period of mourning in the days to come.