King Harald V of Norway has died at the age of 89, following more than a week of hospitalisation at Oslo University Hospital where he was being treated for haemolytic anaemia, a rare blood disorder.
The Norwegian royal household confirmed on Thursday morning that the monarch’s condition had become “extremely serious.”
Queen Sonja and Crown Prince Haakon, the 53-year-old heir to the throne, abandoned all official duties to be at the King’s bedside.
Other members of the royal family also converged on the hospital as the situation deteriorated.
The Norwegian royal household confirmed on Thursday morning that the monarch’s condition had become “extremely serious.”
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Haemolytic anaemia, which reduces the body’s red blood cell count and causes symptoms including fatigue and breathing difficulties, had been treated with cortisone in recent weeks.
Crown Prince Haakon, who had already been acting as regent during his father’s medical leave, now stands as Norway’s next monarch.
Harald ascended the Norwegian throne in 1991 and had held the position of Europe’s oldest serving head of state.
Throughout his long reign, the monarch faced a succession of health challenges that compelled him to reduce his official engagements.
Crown Prince Haakon, who had already been acting as regent during his father’s medical leave, now stands as Norway’s next monarch.
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A pacemaker was fitted in 2024 after he fell ill while on holiday in Malaysia.
Despite these mounting difficulties, the King steadfastly refused to consider abdication. “I stick by what I’ve always said, that I swore an oath to the Storting (Norwegian Parliament) and it is for life,” he has previously stated.
His son Haakon, now 53, had taken on the role of regent as his father stepped back from duties during his latest period of ill health.
The cortisone treatment administered in recent weeks for his blood condition had ultimately proved insufficient to reverse the King’s declining health.
The year 2026 had already proved exceptionally difficult for Norway’s royal family before the King’s death. Crown Princess Mette-Marit underwent a lung transplant in June, having lived with a rare form of pulmonary fibrosis since her diagnosis in 2018.
The King’s hospitalisation also overlapped with a turbulent period for his daughter Martha Louise, whose husband Durek Verrett had recently undergone a successful kidney transplant at what is believed to be the same hospital. The American shaman had previously relied on dialysis multiple times weekly “just to stay alive.”
“It is difficult to put into words what such a gift means,” the couple said in a joint statement, describing themselves as “incredibly relieved and deeply grateful.”
Harald himself had endured several medical emergencies this year alone. In February, he was urgently admitted to hospital in Tenerife during a holiday with Queen Sonja, 89, suffering from infection and dehydration.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre scrapped a scheduled visit to Germany, where a meeting with Chancellor Friedrich Merz had been arranged for Thursday.
“The whole nation is with us as we send warm thoughts to the king and the rest of the royal family,” he said.
Mourners began placing floral tributes in Palace Square, directly outside the royal residence in Oslo, as news of the King’s condition spread.
Among those seen arriving at Oslo University Hospital on Thursday morning were Crown Princess Mette-Marit and her son Marius Borg Høiby.
Norwegian media also reported that the King’s sister, Princess Astrid, was present at the hospital.