Haakon was ahead of his older sister, Princess Märtha Louise, in the line of succession.

The constitution was changed in 1990 to give women the right to inherit the throne, so Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra is in line to be Norway’s first female head of state since the 15th Century.

Haakon has become the king at a turbulent time for Norway’s royal family.

The monarchy remains broadly popular among Norwegians and has been long praised for its modern outlook.

But in recent years it has been beset by scandal.

Only this year, Haakon’s wife Mette-Marit, now Queen of Norway, has apologised for several years of ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and her son has been convicted of rape in a high-profile trial. Marius Borg Høiby, who was born from an earlier relationship, is appealing against the conviction.

Born in 1973, King Haakon is the youngest child of the late king and Queen Sonja.

By Haakon’s own admission, he struggled at times to accept his royal status in his early years.

“Yes, I was a royal, but I did not want to talk about it… ​At school it made me anxious,” he wrote in his 2023 autobiography, recalling his days in a state primary school in the 1980s.

He became crown prince in 1991 at the tender age of 17, following the death of his grandfather King Olav V.