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NORWAY AND THE UK

Norway’s King Harald and Queen Sonja attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II

King Harald and Queen Sonja of Norway were among the royals and government leaders from across the world to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II in London on Monday. 

Published: 19 September 2022 13:59 CEST
Norway's King Harald at the state funeral of Queen ElizabethII.
The coffin of Queen Elizabeth II is seen near the altar during the State Funeral held at Westminster Abbey, London on September 19, 2022. Norway's King Harald can be seen in the second row. Photo by Gareth Fuller / POOL / AFP

King Harald and Queen Sonja were placed in the second row of mourners, opposite the British Royal Family, during the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Monday. 

Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II and Crown Prince Frederik, and King Gustav and Queen Silvia of Sweden were also sat close to the coffin. 

Queen Elizabeth’s coffin was carried from Westminster Hall to Westminster Abbey at 10:45am local time.

Guests from around 200 countries and over 20 royals were in attendance for the funeral service. Some 500 presidents, prime ministers, foreign royal families and dignitaries were among the 2,000 stong congregation in Westminster Abbey. 

Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, told the congregation that the grief felt by so many across Britain and the wider world reflected the late monarch’s “abundant life and loving service.”

“Her late majesty famously declared on a 21st birthday broadcast that her whole life would be dedicated to serving the nation and Commonwealth,” he said.

“Rarely has such a promise been so well kept. Few leaders receive the outpouring of love that we have seen.”

After the funeral, the Queen’s coffin was carried from Westminster Abbey to Wellington Arch along a route flanked by soldiers, police officers and the public. A canon salute fired from Hyde Park and Big Ben struck each minute.

King Harald was 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.

On Sunday, King Harald and Queen Sonja were at the lying in state of Queen Elizabeth at Westminster Hall. 

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.

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

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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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