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NORWAY AND THE UK

Norway’s King and Queen visit Queen Elizabeth II’s lying in state

King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway were among the royals and government leaders from across the world to visit Westminster Hall on Sunday for the lying in state of Queen Elizabeth II.

Published: 19 September 2022 12:09 CEST
King Harald in Westminster
King Harald V of Norway (R) pays his respects at the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, Lying in State inside Westminster Hall, at the Palace of Westminster in London on September 18, 2022. - Britain was gearing up Sunday for the momentous state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II as King Charles III prepared to host world leaders and as mourners queued for the final 24 hours left to view her coffin, lying in state in Westminster Hall at the Palace of Westminster. Photo by John Sibley / Pool/ AFP.

Images from news wire AFP showed the Norwegian royals at Westminster Hall on Sunday.

Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II and Crown Prince Frederik, Queen Sonja, King Gustav and Queen Silvia of Sweden also visited the Queen’s coffin.

Hundreds of royal representatives and government leaders arrived in London this weekend prior to the Queen’s state funeral, which takes place later on Monday.

Guests from around 200 countries will be represented, including 100 government leaders and over 20 royals. King Harald and Queen Sonja will also attend the funeral. 

Norway’s King Harald is a second cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, and the two countries’ royal families have remained close since the Norwegian Royal Family fled to London in exile during Germany’s occupation of the country during World War II.

READ MORE: Queen Elizabeth II’s close ties to Norway explained

Following the death of Queen Elizabeth on September 8th, King Harald sent his condolences to Elizabeth’s son King Charles III.

“Your Majesty King Charles III, my family and I are deeply saddened to receive the news that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has passed away. Our thoughts and prayers are with Your Majesty and the members of the Royal Family. For nearly a century, Her Majesty devoted her life to the service of the Commonwealth, following the British people through good days and bad, in times of happiness and sorrow. We send our deepest condolences to the British people on the loss of their beloved Queen,” the message began.

“On a personal note, I am mourning the loss of a dear relative and confidant friend. My family and I wish Your Majesty and your family all the strength and comfort you need in this time of grief,” King Harald’s message of condolence concluded.

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POLITICS

UK rejects possibility of Orkney Islands becoming Norwegian territory

The UK on Monday rejected a possible bid by Orkney to break away and join Norway, after the leader of the remote islands off Scotland's northeast coast complained of neglect by both London and Edinburgh.

Published: 4 July 2023 09:13 CEST
UK rejects possibility of Orkney Islands becoming Norwegian territory

The North Sea archipelago was controlled by the king of Norway until 1472 when it was handed over to Scotland with the Shetland Islands as part of the dowry for a dynastic marriage between his daughter and a Scottish king.

Now, according to the motion for a council debate taking place Tuesday on Orkney, it is time to explore “alternative models of governance” to give the islands greater economic opportunity.

“On the street in Orkney, people come up and say to me: ‘When are we going to pay back the dowry? When are we going back to Norway?'” council leader James Stockan told BBC radio.

“There is a huge affinity and a huge deep cultural relationship there,” he said, arguing that Orkney was being “failed dreadfully” by the Scottish and UK governments.

Other options would include becoming a self-governing “Crown dependency” such as Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man, Stockan said.

Crown dependencies are territories that come under the sovereignty of the British Crown but are not part of the United Kingdom.

However, the motion was given short shrift by the UK government in London. “First and foremost, there is no mechanism for the conferral of Crown
dependency or overseas territory status on any part of the UK,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s spokesman told reporters.

“But fundamentally, we are stronger as one United Kingdom, we have no plans to change that,” he added.

READ MORE: Why the Orkney Islands are more Norwegian than you think

Liam McArthur, the islands’ Liberal Democrat representative in the devolved Scottish parliament, also argued against the motion.

In the Orcadian newspaper, he warned the council against “the dangers from putting up barriers between or creating divisions within communities.”

 While it appears far-fetched, Orkney separatism poses a potential dilemma for the Scottish National Party — which controls the Edinburgh government and
itself wants to break free of London.

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