King Harald is dead. Norway bids farewell to its monarch

King Harald had been at Rikshospitalet since 17 August, where he was being treated for haemolytic anaemia. As recently as Thursday, the Norwegian Royal House reported that his condition remained unchanged and was still very serious. On Friday morning, news of the monarch's death was announced. King Harald died at 6:35 a.m.

On Friday morning, Queen Sonja returned to Rikshospitalet. The day before, she had spent around ten hours at the hospital, and on Friday Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus were also there. Other members of the royal family also came to the hospital. Crown Prince Haakon was not seen leaving Rikshospitalet on Thursday, so it was assumed that he had stayed there overnight.<br /><br />King Harald suffered from haemolytic anaemia, a condition in which red blood cells are destroyed faster than the body can produce new ones. Geriatrician Leiv Otto Watne explained that people of advanced age have less resistance to acute infections and are more likely to struggle with several chronic illnesses at the same time. Anaemia additionally forces the heart to work harder. According to the specialist, the combination of various illnesses, infections and medication side effects can significantly complicate the treatment of elderly patients.

Flowers, candles and personal messages for the monarch had been appearing outside the Royal Palace in Oslo since Thursday. On Friday morning, more people came to the square in front of the palace while the king's health condition remained very serious. Maria and Sofie Aschjem told NRK that there was a calm atmosphere at the site. They also noted the respect shown by those gathered outside the residence.<br /><br />Sverre Coch also came to the square, stopping there on his way to work. As he told NRK, the sight of the flowers and messages left behind stirred strong emotions in him. Royal family expert Ole-Jørgen Schulsrud-Hansen pointed out that the scale of support demonstrates the king's importance to many residents of the country. Tove Taalesen, meanwhile, reported that late in the evening, young and old people, Norwegians and foreigners, stood side by side in front of the palace.

Harald became heir to the Norwegian throne on 21 September 1957, when his father, Olav V, ascended the throne. Earlier, he completed military service, studied at Balliol College, Oxford, and competed in the Olympic Games three times as a sailor. Following the death of Olav V on 17 January 1991, he ascended the throne at the age of 53 and continued the motto “Alt for Norge”, meaning “Everything for Norway”.