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Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway

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Mette-Marit
Crown Princess of Norway
The Crown Princess at the Wedding of Princess Madeleine of Sweden, June 2013
Born (1973-08-19) 19 August 1973 (age 51)
Kristiansand, Vest-Agder, Norway
Spouse
​
​
(m. 2001)​
IssueMarius Borg Høiby
Princess Ingrid Alexandra
Prince Sverre Magnus
FatherSven O. Høiby
MotherMarit Tjessem
ReligionChurch of Norway
Norwegian royal family
* Member of the Norwegian Royal House

Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway (born Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby on 19 August 1973) is the wife of Crown Prince Haakon, heir apparent to the throne of Norway.

A Norwegian commoner and single mother with a disadvantaged past, she was a controversial figure at the time of her engagement to Haakon in 2000. She became crown princess of Norway upon her marriage in 2001. In this role, she has championed humanitarian projects and arts, as well as taking part in official visits at home and abroad.

Background and education

Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby was born in Kristiansand in the southern part of Norway, the daughter of Sven O. Høiby, who worked as a journalist for a local paper, and Marit Tjessem. Her parents divorced, and her father would later marry Renate Barsgård.[1] She has a sister and two older brothers, including Per Hoiby, chief executive of the PR agency First House. Her stepbrother, Trond Berntsen – by her mother's 1994 marriage to Rolf Berntsen – died in the 2011 Norway attacks.[2] Mette-Marit grew up in Kristiansand, spending many weekends and holidays in the nearby valley of Setesdal and on the coast, where she learned to sail. During her youth, she was active in the local Slettheia youth club, where she was also an activity leader. As a teenager, she played volleyball, qualifying as a referee and coach.

After starting at Oddernes upper secondary school in Kristiansand, Mette-Marit spent six months at Wangaratta High School located in North East Victoria in Australia, as an exchange student with the exchange organisation, Youth For Understanding. Later, she attended Kristiansand katedralskole, where she passed her final examinations in 1994.

Norway House in Cockspur Street, London.

After a break from her studies, she spent several months working for the Norwegian-British Chamber of Commerce[3] at Norway House in Cockspur Street, London, where she stayed in the same flat the King and Queen of Norway lived in during their period of exile during World War Two. When her assignment in London ended, Mette-Marit returned to Norway to attend Bjørknes Private School and then took the examen philosophicum (the preliminary university examination) at Agder University College.[4]

By her own admission, Mette-Marit experienced a rebellious phase before she met Crown Prince Haakon Magnus.[5] As a part-time student, she took longer than usual to complete her high school education before going on to take preparatory university courses at Agder. She then worked on and off at the restaurant Cafè Engebret in Oslo.[6]

In the late 1990s, Mette-Marit attended the Quart Festival, Norway's largest music festival, in her hometown of Kristiansand. She met Crown Prince Haakon at a garden party during the Quart Festival season.[7] Years later, after becoming a single mother she met the prince again at another party related to the festival.[7]

Since becoming crown princess, Mette-Marit has taken several university level courses. In 2012, she obtained a master's degree in Executive Management.[8] In an analysis of Mette-Marit's ancestry, it was revealed that several of her ancestors (as well as some living relations) were farmers and she is distantly related (prior to the 15th century) to some Norwegian and Swedish nobility.[9]

Engagement and marriage

See also: Wedding of Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway, and Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby
Crown Princess Mette-Marit and Crown Prince Haakon

When the engagement between Crown Prince Haakon and Mette-Marit was announced, some Norwegians felt that the Crown Prince’s choice of partner was questionable because of her previous socialization in a milieu "where drugs were readily available".[10] At the time of their engagement, Mette-Marit was a single mother to a son named Marius Borg Høiby, born 13 January 1997. Her son caused a possible security risk in 2012 to the royal family due to posting photos of the family's whereabouts on the internet.[11] Mette-Marit is reported to be a social media user and it has been rumoured that the royal family may not follow the instruction to refrain from revealing personal information on social media.[11]

Her first official appearance as the intended bride of the Crown Prince was at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony at Oslo City Hall on 10 December 2000, following the announcement of the couple's engagement on 1 December. At the press conference, Haakon said that he and Mette-Marit had been together for about one year. Haakon gave Mette-Marit the same engagement ring that his grandfather King Olav V and his father King Harald V had given to their fiancées.[12]

The couple married on 25 August 2001 at the Oslo Cathedral. Upon her marriage, she acquired the title, Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess of Norway.[13] They now live at Skaugum estate, outside Oslo.

The couple has two children together: Princess Ingrid Alexandra, born 21 January 2004 and Prince Sverre Magnus, born 3 December 2005.

Public life and further education

In October 2005, Crown Princess Mette-Marit accompanied Crown Prince Haakon, King Harald and Queen Sonja on an official visit to the United Kingdom to mark the centenary of Norway's independence.

During 2002 and 2003, the Crown Princess undertook development studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, apparently without graduating. She was also accepted as an intern at NORAD, the Norwegian government's development organization. Mette-Marit is attending lectures at the faculties of arts and social sciences at the University of Oslo.[14]

The Crown Princess is a UNAIDS Special Representative and visited Geneva to learn more about the organization and Malawi because of this post. In 2007, the Crown Princess extended her commitment as a UNAIDS Special Representative for another two years.[15] The Crown Princess and her husband attended the International AIDS Conference in Toronto in August 2006 as part of this role, serving as Jury member to the UNAIDS family-led Red Ribbon Award.[16]

Along with UNAIDS, the Crown Princess is president of various other organisations. They are The Norwegian Scouting Association, the Amandus Film Festival, Kristiansand's International Children's Film Festival, Risor Festival of Chamber Music, FOKUS Forum for Women and Development Questions, Norwegian Design Council, Red Cross Norway, The Norwegian Council for Mental Health, the Full Rigged Ship Sorlandet, and the Oslo International Church Music Festival.

In December 2008, she received the Annual Petter Dass award, which recognises a person that helps to unite people and God. Mette-Marit released the CD Sorgen og gleden with religious psalms: the Crown Princess wrote in the booklet "psalms are a link between me and God, between me and life".[17]

If her husband ascends the throne, Mette-Marit will become the third Norwegian queen consort to have been born as a commoner. The first was Désirée Clary, the consort of Charles III John. The second is her mother-in-law, the current Queen Sonja, the daughter of clothing merchant Karl August Haraldsen and Dagny Haraldsen née Ulrichsen.[18]

Titles, styles and honours

Titles

Styles of
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway
Reference styleHer Royal Highness
Spoken styleYour Royal Highness
Alternative styleMa'am

Since her marriage, Mette-Marit has been known as "Her Royal Highness The Crown Princess of Norway".

Honours

See also: List of honours of the Norwegian Royal Family by country

National honours

Foreign honours

References

  1. ^ Nygaard, Fridtjof (3 November 2005). "Sven O. married today". Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  2. ^ "Norway's royal family touched by tragedy: Crown Princess's step-brother was killed in island gun massacre". Daily Mail. London. 25 July 2011.
  3. ^ "NBCC Website". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  4. ^ "Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mette-Marit". Kongehuset.no. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  5. ^ Steven Erlanger (15 October 2011). "Again in Norway, Events Provide Test for a King's Mettle,". New York Times.
  6. ^ Fuglehaug, Wenche (8 September 2000). "Bare en samboer". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  7. ^ a b Birkeland, Monika B. (22 August 2006). "Ingen skandaler i Mette-Marit-dokumentar". fvn.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 11 December 2011.
  8. ^ "Mette-Marit gets her master's : Views and News from Norway". Newsinenglish.no. 2 August 2012. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  9. ^ "Mette-Marit har adelige aner - NRK Sørlandet - Lokale nyheter, TV og radio". Nrk.no. 8 December 2000. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  10. ^ "Latest news and profile of Crown Princess Mette-Marit". hellomagazine.com. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  11. ^ a b "Mette-Marit's son in security 'scandal'". Newsinenglish.no. 22 August 2012. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  12. ^ "Royal News: December 2000". Nettyroyal.nl. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  13. ^ "Press release". Archived from the original on 3 June 2006. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
  14. ^ "Latest news and profile of Crown Princess Mette-Marit". hellomagazine.com. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  15. ^ "About UNAIDS". Unaids.org. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  16. ^ "Feature stories - 2006". Unaids.org. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  17. ^ "Ceremonia Oficial De Bienvenida De Sus Altezas Reales Haakon Magnus Y Mette-marit (Official welcoming ceremony of Their Royal Highnesses Haakon and Mette-marit)". youtube.com. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  18. ^ "Her Majesty Queen Sonja". Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y "The Decorations of HRH The Crown Princess - The Royal House of Norway". Royalcourt.no. 20 December 2016. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  20. ^ a b "Photographic image" (JPG). Kongehuset.no. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
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  24. ^ "Tildeling av Kong Harald Vs jubileumsmedalje 1991-2016". Kongehuset.no. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
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  26. ^ "Reply to a parliamentary question about the Decoration of Honour" (PDF) (in German). p. 1811. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
  27. ^ "DOU 06/09/2007 - Pág. 7 - Seção 1 - Diário Oficial da União" (in Portuguese). Jusbrasil.com.br. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
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  29. ^ "VG Foto". Vg.no. 29 August 2006. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  30. ^ "Photographic image" (JPG). Gfx.dagbladet.no. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  31. ^ Estonian State Decorations, Kroonprintsess Mette Marit - website of the President of Estonia (Estonian)
  32. ^ "Noblesse & Royautés » Dîner en l'honneur du président de Finlande au palais royal d'Oslo". Noblesseetroyautes.com. 9 November 2012. Archived from the original on 17 March 2013. Retrieved 25 November 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ "Photograph". Noblesseetroyautes.com. Archived from the original on 17 March 2013. Retrieved 25 November 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  34. ^ "Photographic image" (JPG). S-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  35. ^ http://scanpix.no/spWebApp/preview/editorial/tbc527dc
  36. ^ "Le onorificenze della Repubblica Italiana". Quirinale.it. 20 September 2004. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  37. ^ "Photographic image" (JPG). Pipr.startsiden.no. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  38. ^ "State Visit from Japan - Page 3". The Royal Forums. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
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  40. ^ "Photographic image" (JPG). 1.vgc.no. Retrieved 1 March 2017.
  41. ^ "Lietuvos Respublikos Prezidentė". Lrp.lt. Archived from the original on 19 April 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  42. ^ Photo of a State visit of Lithuania to Norway, March 2011
  43. ^ "Photographic image" (JPG). C7.alamy.com. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
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  48. ^ Royal Decree 655/2006, BOE no. 126, 27 May 2006, p. 20011
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