The Long Reign of a Symbolic King In the wake of King Harald V's passing, Norwegians are mourning not only their monarch but also the end of an era that has defined Norway's identity for decades.
While other European royal families have struggled with controversies and scandals, the Norwegian monarchy has maintained its integrity thanks in large part to Harald's commitment to modernizing the institution.
For 33 years, King Harald V reigned over a country transformed by the oil and gas driven economic boom of the 1990s.