King Harald of Norway and Queen Sonja have shared 57 years of marriage, but their love story was once deemed a threat to the monarchy itself.
Their relationship, which began in 1959, was strictly forbidden due to Sonja’s status as a commoner, with King Olav fiercely opposing the match.
For nearly a decade, the couple kept their romance a secret, facing relentless pressure to separate. However, Harald was determined to marry the woman he loved.
The couple first met at a dinner party in 1959, where Harald, then Crown Prince, was instantly drawn to Sonja. However, his father, King Olav V, strongly opposed the match, believing the future queen should come from aristocracy, not a merchant’s family. Despite the pressure, Harald remained steadfast, refusing to marry anyone else.
For years, the couple kept their love hidden, but when rumours surfaced in the media, the palace was forced to address the issue. In 1965, Harald made an unprecedented move—he told his father that if he couldn’t marry Sonja, he would never marry at all.
This ultimatum placed the monarchy in a precarious position, as the crown prince’s refusal to wed could have disrupted the royal line of succession.
After years of resistance, King Olav finally relented in 1968, allowing the couple to wed. Their enduring love, once viewed as a crisis for the monarchy, ultimately became one of its greatest success stories.
Now, their dramatic journey is set to be revisited in Harald and Sonja, a new Amazon Prime series premiering on Valentine’s Day.
