Norway’s royal family has been navigating more than just scandals. Beyond Marius Borg Høiby’s trial and Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s past exchanges with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein making headlines, senior members of the family have been facing health challenges.
From King Harald V’s hospitalizations overseas to the crown princess’ chronic condition, health issues have added another layer to an already difficult year for the monarchy.
King Harald V
The king of Norway has experienced multiple health setbacks in the past few years. Just recently, during a winter holiday in Tenerife, Spain with his wife Queen Sonja, the 89-year-old monarch was hospitalized. The king was admitted to Hospital Universitario Hospiten Sur on February 24, where he was treated for an infection and dehydration.
The day after his admission, the king’s physician, Bjørn Bendz, who traveled to Spain to assist, shared an update on the the royal’s condition, reporting that it was “good” and that His Majesty was “responding well to treatment”.
“The infection stems from a skin infection in one of his legs,” Bjørn shared, while also noting: “When people of almost 90 years old are admitted with an infection, it is serious. It is important that we get a good overview and control of the King’s health before he is discharged – even if his condition is stable now.”
After responding well to treatment and recovering quickly, Harald was discharged on February 26. The episode was not the first time the King had required medical care abroad.
In late February of 2024, the Norwegian monarch fell ill while holidaying in Malaysia, and was admitted to a hospital with an infection. There, he had a temporary pacemaker implanted due to a low heart rate. The king was medically transported back home to Norway, where he received a permanent pacemaker.
In the weeks leading up to his hospitalization in Malaysia, the king had gone on sick leave due to a respiratory infection. He had also been on sick leave on more than one occasion in 2023. In May of that year, the Royal House announced that the king had been diagnosed with an infection requiring treatment.
© MADS CLAUS RASMUSSEN/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty ImagesYears earlier, in October of 2020, the king had an operation to replace an artificial heart valve that he received in 2005, and in 2003, he underwent surgery for bladder cancer. His Majesty has been seen walking with crutches or a cane since 2021, and in 2023, fell while using his crutches during a visit to Denmark.
Harald ascended the throne in 1991. Four days after his father, King Olav V, died, Harald swore an oath to uphold the Constitution. Following the abdication of Denmark’s Queen Margrethe in 2024, Harald said, via VG, “I have taken an oath to the Storting and it lasts for life.”
Although he has no plans to abdicate, the king’s duties were reduced in 2024. That April, the Royal House announced that the monarch’s engagements would be scaled back. “The king will make adjustments to his programme in the future, out of consideration for his age,” said the Royal House. “This will entail a permanent reduction in the number and scope of activities in which the king participates. Practical arrangements will also be made in the implementation of his official activity.”
Crown Princess Mette-Marit
© Rune Hellestad – Corbis/Getty ImagesWhen the time comes, Harald will be succeeded by his son, Crown Prince Haakon, whose wife, Mette-Marit, has health challenges of her own. After undergoing extensive medical examination, the crown princess was diagnosed with chronic pulmonary fibrosis, a diagnosis that was made public in October 2018.
Her physician revealed at the time that the royal’s lung condition had been monitored for several years and that the progression of the disease had been slow over that period.
“For a number of years, I have had health challenges on a regular basis, and now we know more about what is involved,” Mette said in a statement. “The condition means that my working capacity will vary. The Crown Prince and I are choosing to make this public now partly because in future there will be a need to plan periods of time without an official programme to accommodate treatment and when the disease is more active.”
The Royal House noted in its announcement, that detecting the disease at an early stage improved Mette’s prognosis. “Even if such a diagnosis will limit my life at times, I am glad that the disease has been discovered so early,” the crown princess said. “My goal is still to work and participate in the official programme as much as possible.”
Mette has continued to work, but, in March of 2025, the Royal House said that the mom of three had daily symptoms and ailments that affected her ability to perform her duties, so she would require more rest, and changes to her official schedule could occur more frequently.
© Getty ImagesMonths later, in September, it was announced that Mette would be undergoing a month of pulmonary rehabilitation starting in October. The Royal House provided an update on Mette’s health in December, revealing that several tests performed that autumn had shown a “clear negative development in the crown princess’s health”. As a result, doctors at Rikshospitalet had “begun preparations with a view to assessing her for a lung transplant”.
“We are approaching the time when a lung transplant must be performed, and we are making the necessary preparations so that it will be possible when that time comes,” Are Martin Holm, head of department and professor at the Pulmonary Department at Rikshospitalet, said in a statement via the Royal House. “It has not yet been decided when the crown princess will be placed on the waiting list for a lung transplant.”
Amid her son Marius’ trial and the controversy surrounding her past friendship with Epstein, the royal is said to be in a “very demanding situation”. Following the U.S. Department of Justice’s release of Epstein files in January 2026, which included messages between the two, Mette expressed her “deepest regret” over her friendship with the paedophile. Meanwhile, the Royal House stated: “The crown princess wants to tell about what happened and explain herself in more detail. She cannot do that now. The crown princess is in a very demanding situation. She hopes for understanding that she needs time to gather herself.”
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