75th Birthday of King Harald V.

[Swashbuckler]

Thanks Miss W  

           

[Lollie]

MW you’re welcome !
Swachbuckler, I hate the commemorative coin but I love the stamp. He looks so much like his mother…


Ready ? Here are some of my favourite photos of the birthday boy !  

1 and 2. Long awaited son...    21.02.1937.

3. Mor and son. (I wish I had this one in bigger size   )

4. My favourite EVER ! 3 or 4 years old. A cutie...    

5. At the beach in the USA. In Exile during the war. They lived in Washington.

6. On a boat with Olav and his sisters, Raghnild (Front) and Astrid (Back). I love to see the complicity between the father and the son.

7. Teenager with his father Olav and grandfather Haakon. Spitting image of Märtha here, IMO.

8 and 9. Proud Dad.      

10. Kong Harald V. The best one.

[norwegianne]

He has really grown in popularity since taking over the throne - most people were so used to his father that they couldn't imagine anyone else doing as good a job (and his father again had the same situation with his father... so we're a people of habit  :ice-cream: )

In the same poll - 91,8 % thinks Haakon and Mette-Marit are doing a good job. But Harald's popularity is so strong that 8/10 don't want him to abdicate in favor of them.

[ModernFairyTale]

Does Norway have a history of abdication? The only country I am too framiliar with abdication is the Netherlands. I thought the others tended to rule until they died.

[Ugly Betty]

Big congrats to you whimsicalwriter...wow, that took you no time at all!!   Keep on posting

Congrats, whimsicalwriter!!

[whimsicalwriter]

Big congrats to you whimsicalwriter...wow, that took you no time at all!!   Keep on posting

Congrats, whimsicalwriter!!

Thank you Ugly Betty 

[TLLK]

Congratulations WhimsicalWriter!

[whimsicalwriter]

Congratulations WhimsicalWriter!

Thank you TLLK 

[SydneyLux]

Does Norway have a history of abdication? The only country I am too framiliar with abdication is the Netherlands. I thought the others tended to rule until they died.

No, the recent Kings of Norway all reigned until they died.

It seems to run in the Nassau family, apart from the Netherlands Luxembourg also has a tradition of abdicating. The first one to do so was Grand Duchess Marie Adelaide who abdicated in favour of her sister Charlotte because she was more or less forced to do so as she was highly unpopular. So in 1919 Charlotte became Grand Duchess and reigned until 1964 when she abdicated in favour of her son Jean. Charlotte died in 1985, had she not abdicated she would have given QEII a serious run for her money - 66 years on the throne. In 2000 Grand Duke Jean abdicated in favour of his son, the current Grand Duke.

[Clara]

Happy Birthday 

OMG! What a cute picture!  

Thank you Miss W!!!  

There will be no party or a gala dinner, Harald said he isn´t interested in celebrating his birthday, he will spend his birthday on a travel.
I like it that he doesn´t makes a fuss, other monarchies celebrate everything 

I think Harald was way more attractive that his son, I must confess I don't understand all the fuss over Haakon  

It's not like the NRF hasn't spent days and many parties celebrating birthdays and anniversaries before   Not that I mind, I like to see royal gatherings and they are certainly not going to happen in Spain so...

[Holly Golightly]

Congrats Whimsy  , and thnks everyone for the lovely photos!

[norwegianne]

Does Norway have a history of abdication? The only country I am too framiliar with abdication is the Netherlands. I thought the others tended to rule until they died.

No, they've all officially reigned until they died. However, there has been a custom of the heir taking over as regent prior to that. King Haakon had a stroke in July 1955, where he also fell and broke his leg. Olav took over from that time and until his father died in September 1957

Olav had a stroke in May 1990, and Harald was regent from then until his death in January, 1991.

However, both of these passed 85 in age before they died - and were more or less clear in the head prior to that.

[DowntownTO]

Congratulations  Whimsy!

[Lollie]

Kronprins Haakon sier kjærligheten til folket er det viktigste for faren hans.

Crown Prince Haakon says the love of the people is the most important for his father.   

kongen [jobber] fra klokken 9.30 til 16.30 fire dager i uka. I tillegg kommer reiser og arrangementer hvor han representerer Norge. Han prøver å ha fri onsdagene. Han har ingen planer om å jobbe mindre framover.

The king works from 9.30 to 16.30 four days a week. In addition, he travels and has events where he represents Norway. He tries to have free wednesdays. He has no plan to work less.

"Jeg synes kongen er den samme personen i dag som han har vært hele tiden. Varm, menneskelig og humørfylt. Han er selvsagt blitt tryggere i og med at han nå har folkets hele og fulle tillit. [...] Kongen har en utrolig kontakt med vanlige folk. Han har blitt en svært folkelig konge", sier Wibecke Lie.

"I think the king is the same person today that he has been all along. Warm, human and humorous. He's obviously been more confident now that he has the people's full trust. [...] The king has an amazing contact with the ordinary people. He has become a very popular king", says Wibecke Lie.



Source : http://www.klartale.no/norge/kongelig-bursdag/

[ModernFairyTale]

Does Norway have a history of abdication? The only country I am too framiliar with abdication is the Netherlands. I thought the others tended to rule until they died.

No, they've all officially reigned until they died. However, there has been a custom of the heir taking over as regent prior to that. King Haakon had a stroke in July 1955, where he also fell and broke his leg. Olav took over from that time and until his father died in September 1957

Olav had a stroke in May 1990, and Harald was regent from then until his death in January, 1991.

However, both of these passed 85 in age before they died - and were more or less clear in the head prior to that.

Having a regent because you have suffered a major medical issue like a stroke seems pretty simple. I believe any time a monarch is medically incapacitated, or even just out of the country, their heir serves as regent for them. Even if they are just in for basic surgery.