Norway’s royal family gathered once again for a state funeral this week, laying Princess Astrid to rest just weeks after burying her brother, King Harald. But this ceremony carried a noticeably different tone from the last one — several prominent absences marked a stark contrast to the full royal turnout seen at Harald’s funeral.
A Family in Mourning, Twice Over
Princess Astrid died on September 11, just two days after attending her brother King Harald’s state funeral in Oslo. Astrid, the sister of the late King Harald V, died at the age of 94, two days after attending his funeral. Harald had died the previous month at 89, after more than 35 years as king, with his funeral marking Astrid’s final public engagement.
Harald’s funeral had drawn his widow, Queen Sonja, along with his son and successor King Haakon VIII and Queen Mette-Marit, plus other members of the Norwegian royal family, at Oslo Cathedral. The ceremony was preceded by a national minute of silence and drew royals from around the world, including the Prince of Wales representing the King.
Astrid’s own funeral procession, by contrast, was led by King Haakon and Queen Mette-Marit, Crown Princess Ingrid, and Queen Sonja — but with several notable royal family members missing entirely.
The Absences That Stood Out
Unlike Harald’s funeral, which saw the full royal family in attendance, Astrid’s service had several gaps. Prince Sverre, currently studying at Forward College in Lisbon, was absent, as was Princess Märtha Louise, who no longer holds official royal duties but retains her title.
The most closely watched absence, though, was Marius Borg Høiby, Queen Mette-Marit’s son. Høiby currently remains under electronic monitoring at Skaugum Palace, where his mother and King Haakon reside. He is Mette-Marit’s son from a previous relationship and is not in the line of succession; he was just four years old when his mother married the then-Crown Prince of Norway.
A Different Approach This Time
What makes Høiby’s absence notable is the contrast with how he handled Harald’s funeral just weeks earlier. For that funeral, Høiby had received permission to visit his stepfather in the hospital, as well as attend the bier ceremony and official state funeral at Oslo Cathedral. This time, he did not seek that same permission from the prosecutor’s office to attend Astrid’s service.
The Legal Case Behind the Scrutiny
Høiby’s attendance at royal events has drawn intense public attention since he was sentenced to four years in prison for two rapes, abuse in close relationships, and violence, a sentence handed down by a judge at Oslo District Court in June following a seven-week trial. Oslo District Court found him guilty of two counts of rape, including one incident in the basement of the Crown Prince’s home.
In a further development in his case, Høiby has since been granted a retrial by the Court of Appeal, a decision that came just days after his appearance at King Harald’s funeral. He remains under house arrest and electronic monitoring pending the outcome of further legal proceedings.
A Royal House Under Strain
Astrid’s death capped an extraordinarily difficult stretch for Norway’s monarchy — in the final months of Harald’s reign, the royal family had already faced scandal after reports revealed Queen Mette-Marit had frequent contact with US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Losing both King Harald and Princess Astrid within weeks of each other, alongside the ongoing fallout from Høiby’s case, has placed unusual strain on a royal house that has weighed heavily on public perception this year.