King Haakon VIII Takes Constitutional Oath in Historic Ceremony with Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra

On September 1, 2026, King Haakon VIII of Norway made his formal entry into the monarchy by taking the constitutional oath before the Storting, the nation's supreme legislative body. The solemn ceremony took place just four days after the death of his father, King Harald V, whose coffin was present in the parliamentary chamber draped in the royal standard. The King, dressed in full military uniform adorned with the decorations of the Order of St. Olav and the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit, read his oath while seated upon a golden throne, swearing to govern the Kingdom of Norway 'in accordance with its constitution and laws.' This traditional Norwegian practice replaces a coronation ceremony as the monarch's formal accession to the throne. The ceremony was marked by an unprecedented historic moment: Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, the King's 22-year-old daughter, stood beside her father throughout the proceedings, visibly representing the future of the monarchy. In her mother Queen Mette-Marit's absence—due to complications following her lung transplant in June—the Crown Princess assumed the ceremonial role of first lady, dressed in a long black mourning dress, a veiled headpiece, and bearing the St. Olav sash and star along with medals of significance to the Norwegian royal house. Later that afternoon, Ingrid Alexandra signed her own constitutional oath at the Royal Palace, a requirement that enables her to fulfill vital constitutional duties in her father's absence, including acting as regent and leading meetings of the Council of State. The accession marks a transformative moment for the Norwegian monarchy. Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, now 22, is poised to become Norway's first female monarch in over 600 years. Her ascension to the throne is a direct result of Norway's 1990 change to succession laws, which introduced absolute primogeniture—granting the eldest child, regardless of gender, the right to inherit. As the first heir of age at the moment of her father's accession, Ingrid Alexandra brings a contemporary face to one of Europe's most low-key but stable monarchies, signifying both continuity and a progressive shift in royal tradition. The Storting's galleries and diplomatic boxes were filled with lawmakers, diplomatic representatives, and press, with roughly 1,000 personnel from Norway's military and emergency services forming the security perimeter. Sweden notably sent police support to help mark the transition. The solemnity of the occasion was palpable, with attendees observing formal mourning dress and some lawmakers standing due to lack of seating—a testament to the magnitude of this moment for Norwegian society and the wider European royal community.