The Royal mottos or ''valgspråk/valspråk'' of the

Norwegian monarchs The list of Norwegian monarchs ( no, kongerekken or ''kongerekka'') begins in 872: the traditional dating of the Battle of Hafrsfjord, after which victorious King Harald Fairhair Unification of Norway, merged several Petty kingdoms of Norway, pe ...

are an old tradition, permanent since the reign of Christian II of Denmark and Norway. The latest three kings have adopted the same motto as their personal motto, ''Alt for Norge'', that has a particularly high standing as it became one of the main symbols of the Norwegian struggle during the

German occupation of Norway The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

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{, class="wikitable" , align="center" ! Regent , , Reign , , Royal motto (in

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

) , ,

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

translation , - ,

Christian II Christian II (1 July 1481 – 25 January 1559) was a Scandinavian monarch under the Kalmar Union who reigned as King of Denmark and Norway, from 1513 until 1523, and Sweden from 1520 until 1521. From 1513 to 1523, he was concurrently Duke ...

, , 1513 – 1523 , , Så var det beskikket , , Thus it was ordained , - ,

Frederick I Frederick I may refer to: * Frederick of Utrecht or Frederick I (815/16–834/38), Bishop of Utrecht. * Frederick I, Duke of Upper Lorraine (942–978) * Frederick I, Duke of Swabia (1050–1105) * Frederick I, Count of Zoller ...

, , 1523 – 1533 , , Mitt håp er Gud alene , , My hope is God alone , - ,

Christian III Christian III (12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559) reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established ...

, , 1537 – 1559 , , Skje Herrens vilje , , The Lord's will be done , - , Frederick II , , 1559 – 1588 , , Intet uten Gud , , Nothing without God , - ,

Christian IV Christian IV (12 April 1577 – 28 February 1648) was King of Denmark and Norway and Duke of Holstein and Schleswig from 1588 until his death in 1648. His reign of 59 years, 330 days is the longest of Danish monarchs and Scandinavian monar ...

, , 1588 – 1648 , , Fromhet styrker rikene , , Piety strengthens the realms , - , Frederick III , , 1648 – 1670 , , Herren vil være mitt forsyn , , The Lord will be my guide , - ,

Christian V Christian V (15 April 1646 25 August 1699) was king of Denmark and Norway from 1670 until his death in 1699. Well-regarded by the common people, he was the first king anointed at Frederiksborg Castle chapel as absolute monarch since the decree ...

, , 1670 – 1699 , , Med fromhet og rettferdighet , , With piety and justice , - , Frederick IV , , 1699 – 1730 , , Herren er min hjelper , , The Lord is my aid , - ,

Christian VI Christian VI (30 November 1699 – 6 August 1746) was King of Denmark and Norway from 1730 to 1746. The eldest surviving son of Frederick IV and Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, he is considered one of Denmark-Norway's more anonymous kings, bu ...

, , 1730 – 1746 , , For Gud og folket , , For God and the people , - ,

Frederick V Frederick V or Friedrich V may refer to: *Frederick V, Duke of Swabia (1164–1170) *Frederick V, Count of Zollern (d.1289) *Frederick V, Burgrave of Nuremberg (c. 1333–1398), German noble *Frederick V of Austria (1415–1493), or Frederick III, ...

, , 1746 – 1766 , , Ved forsigtighet og bestandighet , , By caution and consistency , - ,

Christian VII Christian VII (29 January 1749 – 13 March 1808) was a monarch of the House of Oldenburg who was King of Denmark–Norway and Duke of Schleswig and Holstein from 1766 until his death in 1808. For his motto he chose: "''Gloria ex amore patriae''" ...

, , 1766 – 1808 , , Fedrelandets kjerlighet min berømmelse , , The love of the fatherland my reward , - , Frederick VI , , 1808 – 1814 , , Gud og den rettferdige sak , , God and the just cause , - ,

Christian Frederik Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814. Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Frederic ...

, , align="center", 1814 , , Gud og fedrelandet , , God and the fatherland , - , Karl II , , 1814 – 1818 , , Folkets vel min høyeste lov , , The welfare of the people my highest law ¹ , - , Karl III , , 1818 – 1844 , , Folkets kjærlighet min belønning , , The love of the people my reward , - , Oscar I , , 1844 – 1859 , , Rett og sannhet , , Right and truth , - , Karl IV , , 1859 – 1872 , , Land skal med lov bygges , , A country should be built on law , - ,

Oscar II Oscar II (Oscar Fredrik; 21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907) was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death in 1907 and King of Norway from 1872 to 1905. Oscar was the son of King Oscar I and Queen Josephine. He inherited the Swedish and Norweg ...

, , 1872 – 1905 , , Broderfolkenes vel , , The good of the brother peoples , - ,

Haakon VII Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick VI ...

, , 1905 – 1957 , , Alt for Norge , , All for Norway ² , - ,

Olav V Olav V (; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was the King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was the only child of King Haakon VII of Norway and Maud of Wales. He became heir apparent to the Norw ...

, , 1957 – 1991 , , Alt for Norge , , All for Norway , - ,

Harald V Harald V ( no, Harald den femte, ; born 21 February 1937) is King of Norway. He acceded to the throne on 17 January 1991. Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Märtha of Sweden. He was second in the lin ...

, , 1991 – , , Alt for Norge , , All for Norway

's ''De Legibus'', Book III, Part III, Sub. VIII. (2) The present royal motto is not easily translated into English: the literal meaning is "All for Norway" but this conveys a sense of "Everything for Norway" as opposed "Everybody for Norway" (since "alt" is in neuter gender, and would rarely refer to people). As such, it conveys a meaning of "Give all for Norway", which is interpreted as the readiness (of the sovereign, but maybe also his subjects) to give up or sacrifice everything for Norway. Norwegian monarchy

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

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See also