Queen Sonja of Norway

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox royalty Template:Norwegian royal family

Sonja (born Sonja Haraldsen; 4 July 1937) is Queen of Norway as the wife of King Harald V.<ref name="ReferenceA">Template:Cite web</ref>

Sonja and the then Crown Prince Harald had dated for nine years prior to their marriage in 1968. They had kept their relationship a secret due to the controversy of Sonja's status as a commoner. Harald had told his father, King Olav V, that he would remain unmarried if his father did not grant consent to marry Sonja.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Upon their marriage, Sonja became crown princess and later the queen of Norway upon her husband's accession to the throne in 1991, becoming Norway's first queen consort in 52 years. The couple has two children together: Princess Märtha Louise and Crown Prince Haakon.

As queen, Sonja holds patronage of up to fifteen organisations.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Sonja has also served as Vice President of the Norwegian Red Cross from 1987 to 1990. In 2005, she became the first queen to visit Antarctica. In 2017, she was awarded the Trysil-Knut Prize, making her the first woman to receive the award. She is also known for her interest in music, art and culture, having founded the Queen Sonja International Music Competition and the Queen Sonja Print Award. She is also a graphic artist and ceramicist, with many of her works being featured in exhibitions across Norway and other countries.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

Early life

Sonja Haraldsen was born on 4 July 1937 in Oslo, the daughter of clothing merchant Karl August Haraldsen and Dagny Ulrichsen.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> She had three siblings, Haakon Haraldsen,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Gry Henriksen and Karl Herman Haraldsen, who died in a boating accident.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> She grew up at Tuengen Allé 1B in the district of Vinderen in Oslo and completed her lower secondary schooling in 1954. She received a diploma in dressmaking and tailoring at the Oslo Vocational School, and a diploma from École Professionnelle des Jeunes Filles (a finishing school) in Lausanne, Switzerland. There, she studied accounting, fashion design, and social science. She returned to Norway for further studies and received an undergraduate degree (French, English and Art History) from the University of Oslo.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

Marriage

Template:Main In June 1959 she first met Crown Prince Harald (the future King Harald V) at a party hosted by Johan H. Stenersen. Later in August the Crown Prince invited her to his graduation ball, where they were photographed together for the first time. They dated for nine years, although their relationship had been kept secret because she was a commoner.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> The Crown Prince made it clear to his father, King Olav V, that he would remain unmarried for life unless he could marry her.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> This would in effect have put an end to the rule of his family, and likely to the monarchy in Norway, as Harald was the sole heir to the throne. Faced with having to choose one of his relatives from the Danish royal family, the Dukes of Schleswig-Holstein or even the Grand Dukes of Oldenburg as his new heir in place of his son, Olav V consulted the government for advice; as a result, Sonja became engaged to Crown Prince Harald on 19 March 1968. The couple married on 29 August 1968, at Oslo Cathedral. She thus acquired the style of Royal Highness and the title of Crown Princess of Norway.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

Public life

File:Queen Sonja of Norway in 2015.jpg

Sonja in Stockholm for Prince Carl Philip's wedding, 2015

Following the death of King Olav V on 17 January 1991, Sonja became Norway's first queen consort in 52 years.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Queen Sonja accompanied King Harald V when he swore his oath to uphold the Constitution in the Storting on 21 January 1991. During Haakon VII of Norway's reign, his wife Queen Maud died in 1938 and his son Olav V was then crown prince when his wife Princess Märtha of Sweden died in 1954 before he became king three years later. It was also the first time in 69 years that a Norwegian queen had been present in the Storting. Since his accession, Queen Sonja has accompanied the King to the formal opening of the autumn session of the Storting and the reading of the Speech from the Throne.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

In accordance with their own wishes, the King and Queen were consecrated in Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim on 23 June 1991.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Following the consecration, the King and Queen conducted a 10-day tour of Southern Norway. In 1992, the entire royal family conducted a 22-day tour of Norway's four northernmost counties.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

The Queen accompanies the King on official state visits abroad. She acts as the hostess when foreign heads of state officially visit Norway.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

In 2005, Queen Sonja became the first queen ever to visit Antarctica.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> The Queen was there to open the Norwegian Troll research station in the country's Antarctic dependency, Queen Maud Land. The Queen flew in on one of the Royal Norwegian Air Force's C-130H Hercules transport aircraft, landing at Troll Airfield.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

In 2017 Queen Sonja was awarded the Trysil-Knut Prize. She is the first woman to ever receive the award.<ref>Dronning Sonja får Trysil-Knut prisen Template:Webarchive Template:In lang [h-a.no], retrieved 17 May 2018</ref>

The Queen was appointed a Rear Admiral in the Royal Norwegian Navy and a Brigadier in the Norwegian Army. She has undergone a basic officer training course and has participated in exercises.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Article from the Norwegian defence on Royals in the military Template:Webarchive (Norwegian)</ref>

On 17 January 2021, Queen Sonja celebrated 30 years as Norway's queen consort.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Activities

In 1972 she was involved in establishing Princess Märtha Louise's Fund, which provides assistance to disabled children in Norway. She has taken active part in large-scale initiatives to raise funds for international refugees and spent time in the 1970s visiting Vietnamese boat refugees in Malaysia.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

From 1987 to 1990, Crown Princess Sonja served as Vice President of the Norwegian Red Cross. She was responsible for the organisation's international activities. She took part in a Red Cross delegation to Botswana and Zimbabwe in 1989.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

Queen Sonja's School Award was established in 2006 and is awarded to schools who have "demonstrated excellence in its efforts to promote inclusion and equality".<ref name="ReferenceA"/><ref>Article from the Norwegian Directorate of Education on Queen Sonja’s School Award Template:In lang Retrieved 6 November 2007</ref>

In 2021, Frank Rossavik said that now she is starting an [art] gallery, to sell works by artists that she has given her prestigious prizes to.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal interests

Sonja established the Queen Sonja International Music Competition in 1988. It was originally for pianists, but in 1995 the competition became only for singers. The jury consists of diverse authoritative figures in opera and the winners receive a cash amount and prestigious engagements at Norwegian music institutions.<ref name="kongehuset.no">Royal House web page on the Queen's areas of special interest Template:Webarchive Retrieved 6 November 2007</ref><ref>Queen Sonja International Music Competition web page Template:Webarchive Retrieved 2 September 2009</ref>

She is a longtime avid photographer and has a keen interest in art.<ref>Jan Thomas Holmlund (27 October 2011): Her er dronning Sonjas egne kunstverk Template:In lang Verdens Gang, retrieved 6 July 2013</ref> She is a printmaker, and held exhibitions with artists Kjell Nupen and Ørnulf Opdahl in 2011 and 2013.<ref>Lars Elton (6 July 2013): De tre musketêrer Template:In lang Verdens Gang, retrieved 6 July 2013</ref> The Queen Sonja Nordic Art Award was established in 2011 with Tiina Kivinen from Finland being the first recipient in 2012. The prize will be awarded every other year.<ref>H.M. Dronning Sonjas kunstnerstipend Template:In lang Kongehuset.no, retrieved 6 July 2013</ref>

In 2017, The Queen Sonja Art Stable was opened, a venue which will function as a scene for arts and culture. Together with King Harald, the queen has for decades attempted to establish a palace museum in Oslo.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The Queen is a keen hiker, and this was marked by a sculpture unveiled for her 80th birthday as a gift from the Norwegian Trekking Association.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Health

In January 2025, Sonja was admitted to Lillehammer Hospital for observation following atrial fibrillation while on a skiing trip.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She underwent surgery at the Oslo University Hospital on 16 January to receive a pacemaker implant.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In April 2025, she was hospitalised at the National Hospital due to shortness of breath.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In popular culture

In 2025 Amazon Prime Video released the period drama The Commoner, which tells the story of the fight of then Crown Prince Harald and Sonja Haraldsen for their right to marry. Queen Sonja of Norway is portrayed by Gina Bernhoft Gørvell.

Issue

Name	Birth	Marriage		Children
Name	Birth	Date	Spouse	Children
Princess Märtha Louise	Template:Dts	Template:Dts Divorced 2017	Ari Behn	Template:Plainlist
Princess Märtha Louise	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Durek Verrett	colspan="2" Template:N/A
Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway	Template:Dts	Template:Dts	Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby	Template:Plainlist