King Harald and Queen Sonja Current Events, Part 3: January 2021 -


If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Queen Sonja attended the presentation of the Anders Jahre Cultural Awards 2020 and 2021 at the University Hall of Oslo today, September 9:


** tt.se gallery **
 
King Harald received the new Ambassador of Denmark yesterday:


** Pic **
 
Can anybody say please, whats of document is this? Thank you!
 
It's the most important document for the sami people, dating back from 1751 and was signed by the then I think kingdom of Denmark-Norway and Sweden.

It contains the rights of the sami and the most important one of those rights, still valid until today, is that they can move with their reindeers over borders.

It was transferred from the national archiv in Oslo to the sami archiv in Kautokeino. Kautokeino is a very important city for the sami, a bit like their capital.
 
King Harald and Queen Sonja attended the funeral service of former Politician Kåre Willoch at Ullern Church today, December 21:


** nrk.no article with video: Kåre Willoch blir bisett **


** aftenposten article: Kåre Willoch bisettes i Ullern kirke **


The Royal House's article about the state funeral for former prime minister Kåre Willoch:

https://www.kongehuset.no/nyhet.html?tid=200370&sek=26939

He was prime minister from 1981 to 1986 and was a member of Parliament for the Conservatives from 1957 to 1989, then county governor of Oslo and Akershus until 1998. He remained an active speaker and commentator until his death at the age of 93.

An obituary from News in English, in which the Crown Prince is quoted:

https://www.newsinenglish.no/2021/12/07/willoch-hailed-for-changing-norway/


Willoch, who grew up in an affluent family on Oslo’s west side, spent his early teenage years in exile in Uppsala, Sweden during World War II. His family wasn’t reunited in Oslo until well after the liberation celebrations had subsided, but then he was able to finish high school, enter university and study social economics. He started out working for the Norwegian Shipowners’ Association and then a national industrial federation before being elected as a Conservative member of the Oslo City Council and, in 1957, as the youngest Member of Parliament at an age of 29.

[...]

“There is no doubt that he was the most central, imposing and impressive Conservative politician after the war,” Einar Lie, a professor in modern politics and economic history at the University of Oslo, told state broadcaster NRK. Lie is writing a biography of Willoch, in which he’s likely to get credit for the Conservative Party (Høyre)’s strong growth in the late 1970s and 1980s.

It all led to victory in the 1981 national election that left Norway with a pure Conservative government after decades of Labour Party domination and a few coalition governments that didn’t last long. [...]

That in turn set off an unprecedented period of reforms, championed by Willoch, that modernized and opened up a country that was strictly regulated both socially and economically. State- or local governments still had monopoly control over many industries, stores had to close for the day in late afternoon, everything was closed on Sundays, and restaurants were few and very expensive. Housing was also strictly regulated, and there was little room for innovation or entrepreneurs. Oslo had a reputation as one of the most boring and expensive capitals in Europe, even as oil wealth finally began to trickled down into society.

Willoch’s government ushered in sweeping changes like allowing stores to stay open later into the evening and Saturday afternoons, some even on Sundays. NRK began to lose its dominance as the sole broadcaster that offered only limited programming and signed off around or shortly after midnight by playing the national anthem. A few commercial stations started popping up and liberalization paved the way for cable TV and presentation of international networks like CNN. New, less formal restaurants also began opening, along with bars where guests no longer had to also buy food in order to get a drink. Menus also began to feature more exotic food, although sushi bars and Thai food weren’t widely introduced until the 1990s.

Under Willoch’s leadership the proverbial toothpaste was nonetheless pressed out of the tube and there was no way back from his formidable and popular deregulation of Norwegian society. Young Norwegians latched on to what had already become the “Yuppie” (Young Urban Professional) trend elsewhere, also with far more highly educated women entering the workforce. No one needed to worry anymore about running out to the grocery store before it closed at 4pm. Norwegians simply gained much more personal freedom. [...] Professor Lie is among those noting that so much of what Norwegians take for granted today was rooted in Willoch's reforms that shaped today's Norway.

[...]

Also among those paying tribute to Willoch was Crown Prince Haakon, who said he grew up watching Willoch and [Labour's Gro Harlem] Brundtland arguing and debating issues on TV. “He was an important politician but also a statesman,” Crown Prince Haakon, currently on an official trip to the US, told NRK. He added that it was “exciting to follow his engagement also after he left politics.” Willoch was “an important voice in society,” said the crown prince who, by law, needs to remain non-partisan. “We will miss him.”
 
According to Trond Isaksen the King will broadcast a message today....
 
:previous:

The speech was related to the current Corona situation, see here:


** kongehuset instagram post ** kongehuset: Julehilsen fra Kongen **


King Harald sends a greeting to everyone in connection with this year's Christmas holiday.

Then there was no ordinary Christmas this year either. Many go into the holidays with disappointment, longing and worry for the future.

I send you all a warm hope that the Christmas holidays must, after all, be characterized by warmth and care for each other.

It's time again to remember all that each of us can do:

Make a phone call to someone you know will appreciate it.
Send a greeting to someone who needs it.
Take a walk with someone you care about.

We all have the opportunity to make life a little brighter for the people around us.

My family and I wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas!

 
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:previous:

What an unpretentious but memorable message of hope as well as call to action, as expected from His Majesty. :flowers:
 
He's such a sweet man. (And a pretty good king.)

I wonder if he writes all these himself?
 
Agreed.
I wonder if he writes all these himself?

From a very well informed Norwegian royal watcher:

Some information about The King's speeches:

The New Year's Eve Address, The Stortings-dinner speech, speeches during royal jubilees and events of tragedies (such as the 2011 attacks): Written by HM himself with some input from his Private Secretary since 1994, the 62-year-old theologian, Knut Brakstad.
And as I've written in other threads, The King has received a lot of media-praise over the years for many of these speeches, some of which have even been described as ''inspirational.''

Speeches during outward/inward state/official visits: Written by the court (with some input from The King) in close cooperation with the Foreign Ministry.

Speeches during county visits and other visits around the country: Written by the court with input from The King (or The Queen, when she is the one giving them).
 
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