Haakon VII
(
Norwegian pronunciation:
[?hoːk?n]
, born
Prince Carl of Denmark
; 3 August 1872 ? 21 September 1957) was the
King of Norway
from 1905 until his death in 1957.
Originally born a Danish prince, he was the son of the future King
Frederick VIII of Denmark
and
Louise of Sweden
. Prince Carl was educated at the
Royal Danish Naval Academy
and served in the
Royal Danish Navy
. After the
1905 dissolution
of the
union between Sweden and Norway
, Prince Carl had an opportunity to take the Norwegian crown. Following the
November plebiscite
, Haakon accepted the opportunity and was proclaimed king on 18 November 1905. He took the
Old Norse
name
Haakon
, becoming the first independent Norwegian monarch to use that name since 1380.
As king, Haakon gained much sympathy from the Norwegian people. Although the
Constitution of Norway
vests the King with considerable executive powers, in practice Haakon confined himself to a representative and ceremonial role while rarely interfering in politics, a practice continued by his son and grandson.
Norway was
invaded by Nazi Germany
in April 1940. Haakon rejected German demands to legitimise the
Quisling regime
's puppet government, vowing to abdicate rather than do so. He refused to abdicate after going into exile in Great Britain. As such, he played a pivotal role in uniting the Norwegian nation
in its resistance
to the invasion and the subsequent five-year-long
occupation
during the
Second World War
. He returned to Norway in June 1945 after the defeat of Germany.
He became the
King of Norway
when his grandfather,
Christian IX
was still the
King of Denmark
, and that before his father and elder brother became kings of Denmark. During his reign he saw his father
Frederick VIII
, his elder brother
Christian X
, and his nephew
Frederick IX
ascend the throne of Denmark, in 1906, 1912 (also of
Iceland
from 1918 to 1944), and 1947 respectively. Haakon died on 21 September 1957 at the age of 85 after a long 52-year reign. He was succeeded by his only son, Olav, who ascended to the throne as
Olav V
.
Haakon has a reputation as one Norway's greatest kings. Despite living in
exile
for five years, he refused to
abdicate
the throne. He played a pivotal role in uniting the Norwegian nation in its resistance to the invasion and the subsequent five-year-long occupation. He also managed to hold his young and fragile country together in unstable political conditions.
Haakon VII reigned during
two world wars
. His refusal to submit when a German-pressured Storting body asked him to abdicate inspired the Norwegians to resist the German occupation during
World War II
. Haakon VII returned from exile in
England
to Norway in June 1945.
Haakon VII died on September 21,
1957
in the
Royal Palace in Oslo.