King Haakon VIII and Märtha Louise: The royal siblings who grew up as heirs to a family ahead of its time

In the 1960s, when monarchies were governed by strict traditions, Harald of Norway changed the course of Scandinavian royal history when he married Sonja Haraldsen. Their wedding was a turning point for the House of Glücksburg and for European royalty as a whole. She was, after all, one of the first commoners to join a royal family, just like Fabiola of Belgium or Grace Kelly in Monaco. From that first “I do,” the Norwegian Royal Family has consistently stayed one step ahead of other monarchies.

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Just as the King and Queen were unafraid to break with tradition, they also allowed their children to make their own choices without pressure from the Crown or public opinion. Both Haakon of Norway, now King Haakon VIII since August 28, and Princess Märtha Louise have always had their parents’ support in their love lives, even though their marriages sparked intense debate at the time because of their partners’ controversial profiles.

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Haakon of Norway and the scandal of the first single mother at court

Haakon of Norway, the second child of King Harald and Queen Sonja, followed in his father’s footsteps and wanted to marry someone from outside royal circles. His relationship also marked a turning point because the woman he chose to share his life with was a single mother, something unprecedented in modern Norwegian royal history (Princess Astrid of Norway, the King’s sister, had married Johan Martin Ferner, who was divorced but had no children). The then‑prince fell in love at a rock festival with Mette‑Marit Tjessem, who had dropped out of school at a young age to work in a café and had appeared on a reality show.

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What truly caused a stir in Norwegian society was that she had a son named Marius from a previous relationship with Morten Borg, a man who had had run‑ins with the police. It was, without question, a stain on the impeccable résumé expected of a future royal bride. The romance was initially rejected by many, who believed she did not fit the profile of a future queen consort, but once again, love prevailed and the couple married on August 25, 2001 in Oslo Cathedral. Four years after that wedding—attended by representatives from numerous royal houses, their daughter Ingrid Alexandra was born, and two years later she became a big sister with the arrival of Sverre Magnus.

Mette‑Marit’s son, Marius Borg, is fully integrated into the royal fold despite not being a member of the Royal Family. That has been clear during the events surrounding the farewell to Harald V: he went to the hospital to say goodbye, took part in the funeral procession that carried the coffin to the chapel at the Royal Palace and it has been confirmed that he will also attend the state funeral, where heads of state and world leaders will gather, including King Felipe and Queen Letizia with Queen Sofía of Spain; the entire Swedish Royal Family; Frederik and Mary of Denmark with Prince Christian, Queen Margrethe II and Princess Benedikte; Willem‑Alexander and Máxima of the Netherlands with Princess Amalia and Princess Beatrix; King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians; Albert of Monaco; the Grand Dukes of Luxembourg; as well as Akishino and Kiko of Japan, among others.

With Marius’s controversial presence at Harald V’s final farewell, the new monarch is making it clear that as king he will remain as free‑spirited as he was as crown prince. These decisions are especially sensitive because Marius is currently under house arrest, awaiting the outcome of an appeal after being sentenced to four years in prison. Before his case exploded into one of the monarchy’s biggest reputational crises, he studied Finance in California and Design in Milan, then went on to work as a journalist, real estate consultant, and motorcycle mechanic.

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Märtha Louise of Norway: two highly controversial relationships

Märtha Louise’s love story also did not go unnoticed in Norway—quite the opposite. Her marriage caused a major stir. In May 2002, the eldest daughter of the King and Queen married Ari Behn, a writer long surrounded by controversy, in Nidaros Cathedral. He was born into a non‑traditional family and described his parents as “old‑school hippies.”

They separated and, while his mother married her best friend, his father went on to marry that friend’s ex‑wife. He openly said he liked to play the role of provocateur, and those emotions are reflected in his writing and his artwork. Even though Harald of Norway said in his wedding speech that the only thing that mattered to him was that the artist made his daughter happy, he did try to shield the Royal Family from trouble by ensuring that Ari Behn did not represent the Crown at official engagements.

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Ari Behn’s behavior shocked this modern monarchy. Ten years after their wedding, the couple moved with their three daughters, Maud Angelica, Leah Isadora, and Emma Tallulah, to London, but from afar the writer continued to make headlines for his out‑of‑control antics: he posed for compromising photos with a blogger and staged a performance dressed as a drag queen. Their separation was announced on August 5, 2016, but his depression did not lift.

Although he found love again and led a more low‑key life after leaving the Norwegian Royal Family, on December 25, 2019, he took his own life. His death plunged his daughters, his ex‑wife, and also his former in‑laws into deep sorrow, and they expressed their grief publicly.

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Haakon of Norway’s sister once again surprised the world with her new love. This time it was Durek Verrett, a shaman who has worked, among others, with actress Gwyneth Paltrow and describes himself as a “spiritual hacker and human rights activist.”

Their relationship has been impossible to ignore and has sparked wave after wave of criticism, to which Märtha Louise responded firmly: “It is not up to you to choose for me or to judge me. I do not choose a man to satisfy any of you or the rules or expectations you have in your heads for me.” Even so, the media pressure forced her to step back from the Royal Family and to stop using her titles for commercial purposes.

In spite of everything, love has also triumphed in her story. In August 2024, she married Verrett in a wedding for which ¡HOLA! shared every detail in a world exclusive. The shaman has not taken part in any of the farewell ceremonies for King Harald because he is recovering from his second kidney transplant, which he underwent at Rikshospitalet, the same hospital in Oslo where his father‑in‑law passed away.