On the eve of the funeral of King Harald of Norway, his widow has kept a lone vigil at his coffin.
With hours to go until the final farewell to Harald V gets under way, Queen Sonja was seen standing by herself beside her husband’s coffin as it lies in state at the chapel of Oslo’s Royal Palace.
The Norwegian queen looked on solemnly as the message n her wreath of white flowers was shown. It read, simply, ”thank you for a wonderful life”, a simple message summing up almost seventy years of love.
Sonja, 89, has made several tributes to her late husband since his death on August 28. She helped bring his coffin home on its final journey back to the Royal Palace in the hours after his death and two days later, she attended a church service in his memory at Asker.
Queen Sonja walked behind the coffin of her husband as it was carried through the rooms of the Royal Palace to the chapel where it lay in state.
It’s also been announced that, following the funeral of King Harald, his widow will make an appearance on the palace balcony.
Tens of thousands of Norwegians have come to lay flowers and candles in memory of Harald in front of the palace since his death. Now, after the funeral, his family will greet wellwishers from the balcony.
King Haakon VIII, only son of Harald V and Sonja, will lead them along with his wife, Queen Mette-Marit. Their children, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra and Prince Sverre Magnus, will join them along with Queen Sonja.
Harald and Snoja’s daughter, Princess Martha Louise, will also attend with her three daughters, Maud, Leah and Emma.
The funeral of King Harald will be attended by royalty from around the world. The Prince of Wales and Princess Anne are attending, with William representing King Charles and the Princess Royal there in a personal capacity as the godmther of the new king, Haakon VIII.
King Cal XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia will be there with Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Prince Carl Philip, Princess Sofia, Princess Madeleine and her husband, Chris O’Neill, as well as Princess Christina.
King Frederik and Queen Mary of Denmark will pay their respects alongside their eldest child, Crown Prince Christian. Queen Margrethe can’t attend now as she was taken to hospital after feeling unwell at the weekend.
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands will be there, along with heir to the throne, Catharina-Amalia, and former monarch, Princess Beatrix. The King and Queen of the Belgians, Philippe and Mathilde, will also attend.
Grand Duke Guillaume and Grand Duchess Stephanie of Luxembourg, along with former ruler Grand Duke Henri, are attending as as Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco.
King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain along with Queen Sofia will also join the mourners.
King Haakon will lead the funeral procession from the Royal Palace from 12 noon on September 9 with the service taking place at Oslo Cathedral at 1pm local time. King Harald’s coffin will then be carried to Akerhus fortress where he will be laid to rest in a private ceremony in the Royal Mausoleum.
Harald’s family then returns home for a balcony appearance and reception for guests.
