Harald V, the King Who Made the Crown Almost Human, Dies at 89
King Harald V last spoke at length to reporters on 28 May in Askvoll, a small town on Norway’s western coast. Queen Sonja had been due to accompany him but was in hospital, and Harald arrived alone. He toured local businesses, accepted flowers, listened to a choir and, when offered a brownie, observed that the great virtue of brownies was that they contained almost no calories. After the ceremonies he met the press. He said his wife was feeling better and was already on her way home; he acknowledged how hard she found her growing frailty and her inability to work as she once had. Asked about his own health, he replied with familiar irony: “The King is doing very well.” He was also asked about the future of the monarchy. Harald said it would remain in safe hands with his son Haakon and his granddaughter Ingrid Alexandra. And if Norway one day chose to dispense with the Crown? “Then I won’t be here,” he said with a smile. Three months later, he was gone.
