Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway
Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway (born
Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby in
Kristiansand,
Norway, on
19 August,
1973), is the wife of
Crown Prince Haakon. She is widely regarded as a responsible and charismatic representative of the Norwegian people and its royal family.
However, her romance with the
heir apparent to the Norwegian throne was initially controversial owing to a comparatively bohemian phase in her life during which she had a child out of wedlock as a result of a short relationship with Morten Borg, who was convicted for buying cocaine.
Crown Princess Mette-Marit is the daughter of journalist
Sven O. Høiby and his ex-wife Marit Tjessem. The crown princess has a sister and two elder brothers, and grew up in
Kristiansand, in the southern part of Norway. She spent many weekends and holidays in the nearby valley of
Setesdal and at the seaside, where she learned to sail. During her youth she was active in the local youth club
Slettheia, where she was also an activity leader. As a teenager she played volleyball, qualifying as referee and coach.
After starting at Oddernes upper secondary school in Kristiansand, Mette-Marit spent six months at
Wangaratta High School in
Australia, as an exchange student. Later, she attended
Kristiansand Katedralskole, where she passed her final examinations in
1994. After another break from her studies, Mette-Marit attended Bjørknes Private School and then took the examen philosophicum (the preliminary university examination) at Agder University College.
By her own admission, Mette-Marit experienced an unconventional phase before she met Crown Prince Haakon Magnus. As a part-time student, she took longer than usual to complete her high school education before going on to take preparatory university courses at Agder. She then worked for a year at a café in
Oslo.
In the late 1990's, Mette-Marit frequently attended the
Quart Festival, Norway's largest rock festival, in her hometown of
Kristiansand. As a result, she met
Crown Prince Haakon, since he used to attend the festival as well. They were introduced by mutual friends.
Although King Harald had earlier broken with custom by marrying the commoner
Sonja Haraldsen, the relationship between the crown prince and Mette-Marit sparked controversy. Many felt that Mette-Marit's past, her status as an unwed mother, and the couple's choice to live together before being married, would damage the dignity and the image of the royal family. Although few expressed personal criticism of Mette-Marit, her introduction into the monarchy led to a debate about the standards for royalty in Norway. The controversy quickly dissipated once the couple were engaged and then married.
Her first official appearance as the intended bride of the Crown Prince was at the
Nobel Peace Prize ceremony at
Oslo City Hall on
10 December 2000, following the announcement of the couple's engagement on
1 December.
The couple married on
25 August 2001 at the Oslo Cathedral, Oslo and now live at Skaugum estate, outside Oslo. Upon her marriage she acquired the title
HRH Crown Princess Mette-Marit [
1].
Before her marriage to Crown Prince Haakon, on
13 January 1997, Mette-Marit gave birth to a son,
Marius Borg Høiby, whose father is
Morten Borg, who had been convicted of buying cocaine in 1991. Marius has since been accepted as a member of the royal family, and the relationship between Morten Borg and the royal family is, by all accounts, amicable.
On
21 January 2004, Mette-Marit gave birth to a daughter,
Princess Ingrid Alexandra, who became second in line to the
Norwegian throne after her father, Crown Prince Haakon.
Mette-Marit gave birth to her third child,
Prince Sverre Magnus, on
3 December 2005. He is third in the line to the
Norwegian throne after his sister, Princess Ingrid Alexandra.
Crown Princess Mette-Marit is interested in art and culture, especially literature and music. She also has a strong social commitment and carries out charity work as part of her official duties as Crown Princess. In October 2005 she accompanied Crown Prince Haakon,
King Harald and
Queen Sonja to the
United Kingdom on a royal tour to mark the centenary of Norway's independence.
During 2002 and 2003 she undertook development studies at the
School of Oriental and African Studies at the
University of London. She was also accepted as an intern at
NORAD, the Norwegian government's development organization. At present Mette-Marit is attending lectures at the faculties of arts and social sciences at the University of Oslo.
*
Official biography*
Palace reacts to lies about Marius *
German magazines have been reprimanded by the national press committee
