Norway’s Royals Wear Dark Clothes and Cancel Public Program Through October 9

Norway’s royal family will wear dark clothes and put its public program on hold until October 9 as the country mourns King Harald. King Haakon declared court mourning for one month after his father’s funeral, which is scheduled for September 9.

The royal household said official engagements would be canceled during the period, apart from constitutional duties such as meetings of the Council of State. Royal family members and court officials will wear dark clothing or uniforms with mourning bands. Royal properties that normally welcome visitors will also close to the public. The official program will resume gradually after October 9.

People can pay their final respects by passing King Harald’s coffin at the Palace Chapel in Oslo from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through September 8. The royal household told NTB that an average of 738 people passed the coffin each hour after the viewing opened on Tuesday. At roughly that pace, about 45,000 people could say farewell to the king.

The presidium of Norway’s parliament, the Storting, and parliamentary leaders visited the chapel on Wednesday morning before the official opening. King Harald died at 6:35 a.m. on Friday, aged 89, after being hospitalized at Rikshospitalet in Odense on August 17. During his hospitalization, he received treatment for hemolytic anemia and a bacterial infection in his blood. His condition had been reported to have worsened several times the previous week. Haakon became king and took his oath before the Storting on Tuesday.