Norway's King Harald V Laid to Rest After State Funeral Attended by European Royals

Norway's King Harald V has been laid to rest after a state funeral rich in pomp and ceremony and attended by dozens of European royals and heads of state following his death at the age of 89.

Amid tight security, tens of thousands of people lined the streets to watch the funeral cortege move slowly towards Oslo's Lutheran Cathedral on Wednesday local time.

Its progress was punctuated by the sound of cannons being fired from the nearby Akershus Fortress.

Mourners, some of them wearing their regional costumes, fell silent as the coffin passed by.

Dignitaries processing on foot behind the coffin included Britain's Prince William, Japan's Crown Prince, the kings of Denmark, the Netherlands, Sweden and Spain, the presidents of Germany and Finland, France's prime minister, and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Representing the United States was Allison Hooker, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, the Norwegian government said.

Mr Zelenskyy, who had held talks on his country's war with Russia late on Tuesday with Norway's prime minister, was applauded by the crowds when he later left the cathedral following the funeral service.

'It's a very special day'

King Harald V was a popular monarch, widely praised by Norwegians for his inclusiveness.

He was dubbed "the grandfather of the nation".

"He was like the beloved grandfather of a family, who embraced all his children and grandchildren, regardless of their appearance or beliefs," student Arthur Fosheim said.

"He truly embodied that spirit of inclusion and a multicultural Norway."

Harald modernised the royal house but refused to follow in the footsteps of other aging monarchs who recently abdicated. His son immediately became king and last week took an oath of allegiance to Norway's constitution in parliament.

"We lost our king. It's a very special day. And I think it's a special thing to be a part of," Adrian Soendergaard, 21, said as he watched the procession pass by.

Arve Stallvik, 56, a businessman, agreed: "[Harald] was very popular. I think everyone liked him, so it was a moment for the history."

Hedda Michaelsen Mehlum, 23, said she thought the royal family remained very important for Norwegians.

"They do a great job representing Norway," she said.

Hundreds of thousands of Norwegians had already paid tribute to him by leaving flowers, candles and flags outside the Royal Palace during the 13-day period of national mourning.

Norway's new Queen

Queen Mette-Marit, 53, the commoner wife of Norway's new King Haakon VIII, travelled to the cathedral by car with Harald's widow, Queen Sonja, 89.

Mette-Marit is recovering from a lung transplant she underwent in June. Last week, she had to cancel plans to attend her husband's oath ceremony in parliament due to complications after her operation.

Her son, Marius Borg Hoiby, from a relationship before her marriage to Haakon, was at the funeral despite being under house arrest and wearing an ankle monitor after his conviction for rape and domestic violence. He is appealing the sentence.

Mr Hoiby was one of the pallbearers during the transfer of Harald's coffin to the royal chapel on August 31, drawing criticism in some quarters in Norway and abroad.

After the service, four F-35 fighter jets flew over the cathedral, with one of them breaking out to symbolically mark the king's passing.

A smaller procession, walking to the rhythm of Frederic Chopin's Funeral March, accompanied the coffin to the royal crypt at Akershus Fortress overlooking Oslo harbour.

There, Harald's coffin was placed in a sarcophagus, alongside those of his parents.

When King Haakon emerged from the crypt, the national mourning period formally ended and flags that had been flying at half-mast since Harald's death were fully raised again.

Church bells across Norway rang out for an hour.

Later, Haakon, Queen Mette-Marit and other members of the royal family appeared on the balcony of the royal palace and waved to the crowd, who clapped and cheered.

According to a Norstat poll for broadcaster NRK published on September 1, the first poll taken since Harald's death, public support in Norway for the monarchy remains strong despite its recent troubles, with 72 per cent saying they backed the institution.