Photo: Jørgen Gomnæs, The Royal Court
Queen of Norway from 1991 to 2026
Queen Sonja
Born 4 July 1937
Sonja Haraldsen from the Vinderen district of Oslo became Norway's queen in 1991, the first in 53 years. From the wedding in 1968 until King Harald died in 2026 she was the country's first lady for 58 years.
• Growing up at Vinderen
Sonja Haraldsen was born in Oslo on 4 July 1937. She grew up in Tuengen allé in the Vinderen district with her parents Dagny and Karl August Haraldsen. Her father was a merchant.
Sonja Haraldsen, 1937. Photo: Sturlason, The Royal Collections
Sonja Haraldsen, 1941. Photo: Sturlason, The Royal Collections
• Dressmaker and graduate
She started at the Roll og Ihlen school in 1944, continued at Slemdal school and took her lower secondary examination at Ris school in 1954.
Sonja Haraldsen, 1953. Photo: G. Sjøwall, The Royal Collections
She then trained in dressmaking and tailoring at the Oslo vocational school, before travelling to Switzerland and taking her examination at l'École Professionnelle de jeunes Filles in Lausanne in 1957. The teaching there also covered social studies, accounting and fashion drawing.
Sonja Haraldsen in a dress she made herself, Tuengen allé, 1955. Photo: Private
In 1961 she took her university entrance examination as an external candidate at Bjørknes, and at the University of Oslo she read English, French and art history, graduating in 1971. She is also a qualified ski instructor.
• The nine years
Sonja Haraldsen met the then Crown Prince Harald in 1959. Nine years would pass before they were allowed to marry. In March 1968 came the announcement that King Olav had given his permission for the Crown Prince to marry a commoner.
Sonja Haraldsen outside Tuengen allé. Photo: The Royal Collections
The engagement set off a debate about the future of the monarchy in Norway, but the opposition was far smaller than many had feared. Crown Princess Sonja was accepted by the people from the very start.
With a camera at the Olympic Games in Mexico in 1968. Photo: Rolf Arne Odiin / NTB
The wedding took place in Oslo Cathedral on 29 August 1968.
The Crown Prince and Princess drive from Oslo Cathedral to the Palace in an open car after the wedding in 1968. Photo: Vidar Knai / NTB
• Norway's first queen in 53 years
After the wedding Crown Princess Sonja succeeded Princess Astrid as Norway's first lady. When King Olav V died on 17 January 1991, Harald and Sonja became Norway's new King and Queen, and she became the country's first queen in 53 years.
Crown Princess Sonja, 1969. Photo: Erik Thorberg / NTB
On 21 January she accompanied King Harald as he swore his oath to the Constitution in the Storting. For the first time in 69 years a queen was present in the chamber.
At their own wish the King and Queen were consecrated in Nidaros Cathedral on 23 June the same year. King Harald was insistent that the Queen should also be part of the ceremony.
The consecration in Nidaros Cathedral on 23 June 1991. Photo: Knut Falch / NTB
• The family
King Harald and Queen Sonja had two children, Princess Märtha Louise in 1971 and Prince Haakon in 1973, and six grandchildren.
The King and Queen surrounded by the family at their golden wedding in 2018. Photo: Heiko Junge / NTB
• Art, music and society
Queen Sonja has collected art since she was young, and has worked with printmaking and ceramics herself, exhibiting both in Norway and abroad. On her eightieth birthday the Queen Sonja Art Stable opened at the Palace, eight months after King Harald surprised her with the Palace stables as a birthday present.
In 2011 she established an artist's stipend together with Kjell Nupen, Ørnulf Opdahl and Ole Larsen. From 2014 it became international under the name Queen Sonja Print Award, as far as is known the largest prize in printmaking. She is also behind the Queen Sonja Singing Competition, and in 2005 she initiated the Queen Sonja School Award.
The Queen was vice president of the Norwegian Red Cross from 1987 to 1990, and in 1982 she received the Nansen Medal from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
• The hiking queen
Her interest in nature and outdoor life is well known. There is hardly a place in the country she has not set foot in, several hiking trails have been named after her, and she is an honorary member of the Norwegian Trekking Association.
Ready for a walk to Grunnfarnes on Senja. Photo: Private, The Royal Court
On a walk over Matmora and Delpen in Lofoten. Photo: Private, The Royal Court
She has also been honoured with a bronze statue that carries the name the Hiking Queen.
The statue of Queen Sonja, called the Hiking Queen. Photo: Liv Osmundsen, The Royal Court
• Queen for 35 years
Queen Sonja was Norway's queen until King Harald died on 28 August 2026, when King Haakon VIII and Queen Mette-Marit took over. By then she had been queen for 35 years and the country's first lady for 58 years, and she remains an active representative of the royal house.