King Harald seemed to be in good spirits at the kickoff of the Belgian state visit, which began a month after he was hospitalized abroad
Credit: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB / AFP via Getty
NEED TO KNOW
- King Harald was seated in the official portraits taken to commemorate the Belgian state visit
- The King was hospitalized in February for infection and dehydration, but he resumed royal duties in March
- The King, who has reigned since 1991, has said he has no plans to abdicate from the throne
King Harald of Norway took a different position in the portraits for the Belgian state visit a month after his hospitalization for infection and dehydration.
On March 24, the King, 89, was pictured sitting in the official pictures taken to commemorate Belgian King Philippe and Queen Mathilde's state visit to Norway. He sat for both the welcome pictures and the gala dinner shots on Tuesday.
The King of Norway has faced several health issues in recent years, including a leg operation in 2022, bouts of COVID in 2022 and 2023 and pacemaker surgery in 2024. He has walked with crutches or a cane since 2021, according to Hello! magazine.
The state visit from Belgium's royal couple came four weeks after the Norwegian sovereign was hospitalized while vacationing in Spain shortly after his birthday.
Credit: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB / AFP via Getty
The King turned 89 on Feb. 21, and a few days later, on Feb. 24, the Royal House of Norway announced that he was hospitalized in Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, for infection and dehydration.
"His Majesty the King was admitted to the Hospital Universitario Hospiten Sur in Tenerife this evening. The King is being treated for infection and dehydration, and his condition is reportedly good," said a palace statement, translated into English.
"The King's personal physician will travel to Tenerife to assist the local health service. The Royal Couple is currently on a private stay in Tenerife for their winter holiday," it continued, referring to King and his wife, Queen Sonja.
Credit: Didier Lebrun / Photonews via Getty
In a second statement, the King's physician Bjørn Bendz said that the infection stemmed from a skin infection. Bendz said the sovereign was responding well to treatment but would remain hospitalized for further observation and care.
"When people of almost 90 years old are admitted with an infection, it is serious. It is important that we get a good overview and control of the King's health before he is discharged – even if his condition is stable now," Benz said, in part.
The Royal House then announced that King Harald was discharged from the hospital on Feb. 26. The palace said that he would continue his private stay in Tenerife and that Bendz would remain abroad to monitor any developments.
On March 7, a week and a half after he was admitted to the hospital, the court said that the King and Queen Sonja, 88, would leave Tenerife and that all was well.
Credit: Photonews via Getty
"The King's physician is returning at the same time. The King is in good health and is scheduled to resume work next week," said the palace announcement.
In typical protocol, Crown Prince Haakon acted as regent while his father was abroad, meaning that he was temporarily acting as Norway's head of state. Crown Prince Haakon, 52, is the heir to the Norwegian throne and destined to reign one day, but his father has said that he doesn't plan to give up the top job any time soon.
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King Harald made the comment during a royal outing with Haakon in January 2024, when the press asked him about abdicating like Queen Margrethe of Denmark recently had.
“No, I don't really have it. I stand by what I have said all along. I have taken an oath to the Storting, and it lasts for life,” King Harald said, referencing the pledge he made to the Norwegian Parliament when he acceded to the throne in 1991.
Harald has reigned for 35 years and became monarch at age 53 upon the death of his father, King Olav, in January 1991. He had been acting as Crown Prince Regent since his father fell ill in 1990, his royal bio outlines, and marked the 35th anniversary of his accession to the throne in January.
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