Crown Princess Victoria read a prayer, in Swedish, at the funeral of her beloved godfather, King Harald.
The Prayer of Saint Francis is one that prays for peace, and is associated with Saint Francis of Assisi, who lived between 1182 and 1226, though not found in any of his writings or texts.
It reads, in part, “make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy…”
It ends: “For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.”
The heir to the Swedish throne was the only royal to participate in the funeral service itself; she joined the wider Swedish Royal Family—save Queen Silvia—in marching from the Royal Palace to Oslo Cathedral as part of the funeral procession.
King Harald was named a godfather to Crown Princess Victoria at her christening in 1977. She wouldn’t be officially made heir to the throne until 1980, when absolute primogeniture was made the law in Sweden and retroactively applied to make her the heir to the throne over her younger brother, Prince Carl Philip, who’d been born the year before.
Crown Princess Victoria also penned her own tribute to King Harald following his death on 28 August, writing: “King Harald was a much-loved Godfather – always welcoming and warm. He had a ready laugh and a twinkle in his eye… Some people leave an impression that time never erases. King Harald is one such person. With his warmth and presence, he had a rare ability to see people.
“Uncle Harald, you will forever remain in the hearts of all of us who loved you!”
