Princess Märtha Of Sweden
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Princess Märtha of Sweden (Märtha Sofia Lovisa Dagmar Thyra; 28 March 1901 – 5 April 1954) was Crown Princess of
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
as the spouse of the future King
Olav V Olav V (, ; born Prince Alexander of Denmark; 2 July 1903 – 17 January 1991) was King of Norway from 1957 until his death in 1991. Olav was born at Sandringham House in England, the only child of Prince Carl of Denmark and Princess Maud o ...
from 1929 until her death in 1954. As Olav only became king in 1957, Märtha never became Queen of Norway. Her son,
Harald V Harald V (, ; born 21 February 1937) has been King of Norway since 1991. A member of the House of Glücksburg, Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Märtha of Sweden. He was second in the line of succ ...
, is the current king of Norway. Princess Märtha was also an elder sister of Queen Astrid of Belgium and a maternal aunt of Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg and Kings Baudouin and
Albert II of Belgium Albert II (born 6 June 1934) is a member of the Belgian royal family who reigned as King of the Belgians from 9 August 1993 until his abdication on 21 July 2013. Albert II is the son of King Leopold III and the last living child of Queen As ...
. In 1940, Crown Princess Märtha and her family were immersed in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
as Germany invaded Norway. After escaping to her home country of Sweden, and then being evacuated to America by President
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
, she effectively advocated for Norway and did fundraising until the end of the war. In 1942,
King Haakon VII of Norway Haakon VII (; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was King of Norway from 18 November 1905 until his death in 1957. The future Haakon VII was born in Copenhagen as Prince Carl of Denmark. He was the second son of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess ...
, Märtha's father-in-law, invested her as a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav.


Early life

Märtha was born at her parents' home of
Arvfurstens Palats Arvfurstens palats (Palace of the Hereditary Prince) is a palace located at Gustav Adolfs torg, Stockholm, Gustav Adolfs Torg in central Stockholm. Designed by Erik Palmstedt, the palace was originally the private residence of Princess Princess So ...
in
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
on 28 March 1901, the second child of Prince Carl of Sweden, Duke of Västergötland, and his wife
Princess Ingeborg of Denmark Princess Ingeborg of Denmark (Ingeborg Charlotte Caroline Frederikke Louise; 2 August 1878 – 12 March 1958), was a Princess of Sweden by marriage to Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland. Princess Ingeborg was a daughter of Frederick VIII of ...
. Her father was the younger brother of King Gustav V of Sweden, making her a first cousin twice removed of the present King of Sweden, and her mother was the younger sister of King
Christian X of Denmark Christian X (; 26 September 1870 – 20 April 1947) was King of Denmark from 1912 until his death in 1947, and the only King of Iceland as Kristján X, holding the title as a result of the personal union between Denmark and independent Icel ...
and of King
Haakon VII of Norway Haakon VII (; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was King of Norway from 18 November 1905 until his death in 1957. The future Haakon VII was born in Copenhagen as Prince Carl of Denmark. He was the second son of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess ...
. Märtha had an elder sister, Princess Margaretha of Denmark, a younger sister, Queen Astrid of the Belgians, and a younger brother, Prince Carl Bernadotte. Märtha grew up to be much more confident and outgoing and so the daughter most admired by her mother. As a child, Märtha was taught at home by private tutors and completed in-depth courses in childcare and
first aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with a medical emergency, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery until medical services arrive. First aid is gener ...
. She and her sisters were occasionally seen shopping unaccompanied on the streets of Stockholm.


Crown Princess

During the
1928 Summer Olympics The 1928 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the IX Olympiad (), was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for ...
in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
, Princess Märtha of Sweden became engaged to her first and second cousin, Prince Olav, only son and
heir apparent An heir apparent is a person who is first in the order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. A person who is first in the current order of succession but could be displaced by the birth of a more e ...
of her uncle the King of Norway and grandson of her grandfather King
Frederik VIII of Denmark Frederik VIII (; 3 June 1843 – 14 May 1912) was King of Denmark from 29 January 1906 until his death in 1912. As the eldest son of King Christian IX, nicknamed the '' Father-in-law of Europe'', Frederick was related to royalty throughout E ...
's younger sister. News of the engagement was very well received: it was taken as a sign that there was no longer any tension following the
dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden The dissolution of the union (; ; Høgnorsk, Landsmål: ''unionsuppløysingi''; ) between the kingdoms of Norway and Sweden under the House of Bernadotte, was set in motion by a resolution of the Storting on 7 June 1905. Following some months of ...
. An excellent match in terms of strengthening royal ties, it was also clearly a match based on love. Initially, her younger sister, Astrid, was expected to marry Olav being younger than Olav by two years, while Märtha was two years older. Astrid was also considered more beautiful, but she instead married the future King Leopold III of Belgium. Following a year-long engagement, she married Crown Prince Olav in
Oslo Cathedral Oslo Cathedral () — formerly Our Savior's Church () — is the main church for the Church of Norway Diocese of Oslo, as well as the parish church for downtown Oslo. The present building dates from 1694 to 1697. The Norwegian royal family and th ...
on 21 March 1929. Märtha's was the first
royal wedding ''Royal Wedding'' is a 1951 American musical comedy film directed by Stanley Donen, and starring Fred Astaire and Jane Powell, with music by Burton Lane and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner. Set in 1947 London at the time of the wedding of Princess ...
in Norway in 340 years. The marriage is widely believed to have been a success due in large part to their genuine mutual love. They had three children: Ragnhild (1930–2012); Astrid (b. 1932); and the much awaited heir, Harald (b. 1937). Crown Princess Märtha soon became a popular and respected member of the
royal family A royal family is the immediate family of monarchs and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term papal family describes the family of a pope, while th ...
, later undertaking a range of official engagements and also gave many speeches, unusual for royal females in that era. Crown Prince Olav and Crown Princess Märtha resided at the country estate of Skaugum, which was a wedding gift from Baron Fritz Wedel Jarlsberg. When the main house at Skaugum was destroyed by fire in 1930, the Crown Princess took active part in its rebuilding. Tragedy struck Crown Princess Märtha in 1935 when her sister, the Queen of the Belgians, was killed in a car crash; the two siblings had been very close. Later King Olav said that it took his wife more than ten years to come to terms with her sister's death, and he did not think that she ever really got over it. She – together with her elder sister Margaretha – became a great support for her sister's children in Belgium. In 1939, shortly before the outbreak of
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, the Crown Prince and Princess visited the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The couple befriended
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
and his wife,
Eleanor Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It was the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages">Provençal dialect ...
. During this visit, the royal couple conducted an extensive tour of the
Upper Midwest The Upper Midwest is a northern subregion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. Although the exact boundaries are not uniformly agreed upon, the region is usually defined to include the states of Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wi ...
, where many Norwegian immigrants were settled. Also during their US tour, Crown Princess Märtha was initiated, together with her
lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting (alternatively written lady in waiting) or court lady is a female personal assistant at a Royal court, court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking nobility, noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was o ...
Ragni Østgaard, into the
Delta Zeta Delta Zeta (, also known as DZ) is an international college Fraternities and sororities in North America, sorority founded on October 24, 1902, at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Delta Zeta has 163 collegiate chapters in the United States and C ...
sorority In North America, fraternities and sororities ( and ) are social clubs at colleges and universities. They are sometimes collectively referred to as Greek life or Greek-letter organizations, as well as collegiate fraternities or collegiate sorori ...
being pinned at the
University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...
by Delta Zeta national president Myrtle Graeter Malott. In 1938 upon the death of her mother-in-law, Queen Maud, Crown Princess Märtha became the royal Norwegian court's senior lady.


World War II

Crown Princess Märtha contributed greatly towards Norway mobilizing for self-defence by making a public announcement on 26 January 1940 when she encouraged Norwegian women to participate in the mobilization work. During the flight from the German invasion in 9–10 April 1940, the Norwegian government decided that the Crown Princess and her children were to flee across the border to her native Sweden while her husband and father-in-law remained. Upon their arrival at the Swedish border, they were first denied entry because they could not provide passports; she then instructed her driver to run through the border gate, thus gaining entry into her native Sweden. In Sweden she stayed at first at a tourist hotel in Sälen, before travelling on to Stockholm where her parents and relatives lived. Her presence in Sweden became problematic where some considered her presence to put Sweden's neutrality in jeopardy. President Roosevelt then offered her a personal invitation to the United States. Her uncle, King Gustav V of Sweden, telegraphed her father-in-law King Haakon and advised against the trip, but Märtha insisted on accepting the invitation. Roosevelt sent the US Army transport to the then Finnish port city of Petsamo to pick her up. In the U.S., she and her children initially stayed at the
White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...
. Crown Prince Olav, however, accompanied his father to the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
with the Norwegian government-in-exile. Thus the Norwegian royal couple, like many other couples during that time, were separated for much of the war. In August 1941, Crown Princess Märtha traveled with President Roosevelt aboard the presidential yacht, , and sailed to
Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...
and the
Atlantic Charter The Atlantic Charter was a statement issued on 14 August 1941 that set out American and British goals for the world after the end of World War II, months before the US officially entered the war. The joint statement, later dubbed the Atlantic C ...
meetings with
Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
. The friendship that the Crown Prince and Crown Princess had cultivated with the Roosevelts was further developed during the war years. In 1942, the US presented the exiled Norwegian forces with the gift of the submarine chaser . This ship was launched by Crown Princess Märtha, when she gave a speech in support of Norwegian liberation. Her work to assist the
American Red Cross The American National Red Cross is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Humanitarianism, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. Clara Barton founded ...
and on behalf of Norwegian interests greatly impressed Roosevelt and influenced his " Look to Norway" speech in 1942. Novelist and essayist
Gore Vidal Eugene Luther Gore Vidal ( ; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his acerbic epigrammatic wit. His novels and essays interrogated the Social norm, social and sexual ...
later asserted that Crown Princess Märtha was Roosevelt's "last love". Roosevelt's son James stated that "There was no question that Martha was an important figure in Father's life during the war ... there is a real possibility that a true romantic relationship developed between the president and the princess."
Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British author of popular children's literature and short stories, a poet, screenwriter and a wartime Flying ace, fighter ace. His books have sold more than 300 million copies ...
, later a well-known author and then a young RAF fighter pilot assigned to Washington, seems to have agreed:
"Dahl was inclined to think that all the smoke indicated a real fire ... ahl wrote'The President has it in his mind that he would like to sleep with her.'"
Princess Märtha spent much of World War II in the United States, where she worked tirelessly to keep up support for Norway among the American public and government.
Trygve Lie Trygve Halvdan Lie ( , ; 16 July 1896 – 30 December 1968) was a Norwegians, Norwegian politician, labour leader, government official and author. He served as Norwegian foreign minister during the critical years of the Nygaardsvold's Cabinet, N ...
wrote about her war-work: : "During those years of struggle, she was undeniably Norway's Ambassador Number 1, because of her charm, humanity, wisdom and tact. As Secretary of Foreign Affairs I had to turn to her many times, and the results she achieved and the advice she offered, were always of value." In 1942, during her father-in-law's birthday celebrations in London, Märtha was invested by him as a Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav, stating that her appointment to the
order Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood ...
was "not because you are a Crown Princess, but because you have earned it."


Post-war period

When she returned to Norway following the war in 1945, Princess Märtha received a hero's welcome and was referred to as "Mother of the Nation". She wholly embraced her role as Crown Princess of Norway and made tremendous efforts towards ensuring the stability and well-being of all Norwegians. As King Haakon's health declined, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess assumed a growing number of official engagements. The Crown Princess became involved in many official tasks, and even made the annual New Year's Eve speeches in 1946 and 1950. After the war, Crown Princess Märtha suffered from poor health.


Death

Following a lengthy period of ill-health, Märtha died at The National Hospital in
Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
on 5 April 1954 and was buried at Akershus Castle. Her death is often attributed to
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
or
hepatitis Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver parenchyma, liver tissue. Some people or animals with hepatitis have no symptoms, whereas others develop yellow discoloration of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), Anorexia (symptom), poor appetite ...
. Her death came while her elder daughter Princess Ragnhild was expecting her first child and just over three years before her husband ascended the throne as
King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
.


Legacy

A 970,000 km² area in
Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...
is named
Princess Martha Coast Princess Martha Coast () is the portion of the coast of Queen Maud Land lying between 05° E and the terminus of Stancomb-Wills Glacier, at 20° W. The entire coastline is bounded by ice shelves with ice cliffs high. Princess Martha Coast was ...
in her honor. A statue of the
princess Princess is a title used by a female member of a regnant monarch's family or by a female ruler of a principality. The male equivalent is a prince (from Latin '' princeps'', meaning principal citizen). Most often, the term has been used for ...
, created by Kirsten Kokkin was erected outside the Norwegian embassy in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
in 2005. In 2007, a replica of the statue was erected in the courtyard of the Royal Palace in Oslo. A third replica was erected outside The Norwegian Seamen`s Church in Stockholm, Sweden, unveiled by her daughter, Princess Astrid in 2008. This church, ''Kronprinsesse Märthas kirke'' is named after her. Crown Princess Märtha’s Memorial Fund is a charitable trust administered by the Norwegian Crown. The Crown Princess's youngest daughter, Princess Astrid, serves as chairperson. Initially established as ''Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Märtha’s Fund'' on 1 April 1929, the fund "is to provide financial support to social and humanitarian initiatives carried out by non-governmental organizations." In 2005, the Fund had assets of approximately 28 million
Norwegian krone The krone (, currency sign, abbreviation: kr (also NKr for distinction); ISO 4217, code: NOK), plural ''kroner'', is the currency of the Kingdom of Norway (including List of possessions of Norway, overseas territories and dependencies). It was t ...
(NOK), and issued grants totaling about 1.5 million NOK for roughly 300 recipients. Her son
King Harald V Harald V (, ; born 21 February 1937) has been King of Norway since 1991. A member of the House of Glücksburg, Harald was the third child and only son of King Olav V of Norway and Princess Märtha of Sweden. He was second in the line of succ ...
named his daughter Princess Märtha Louise after her grandmother. The popular Swedish layer Princess cake was named for Märtha and her two sisters when they were children. The ship ''MS «Kronprinsesse Märtha»'', launched in 1929, was named after her. This ship which helped to save hundreds of passengers from the sinking German cruise ship ''
Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...
'' in 1934 has, since 2000, been used as a hotel ship in Stockholm. Märtha is depicted in the historical
docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television show, television and feature film, film, which features Drama (film and television), dramatized Historical reenactment, re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of docu ...
television
miniseries In the United States, a miniseries or mini-series is a television show or series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. Many miniseries can also be referred to, and shown, as a television film. " Limited series" is ...
'' Atlantic Crossing,'' a co-production of Cinenord and the state broadcaster,
NRK The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...
.


Ancestry


References


Citations


Bibliography

* *


External links


Website of the Royal House of Norway: Crown Princess Märtha
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Martha Of Sweden, Princess 1901 births 1954 deaths House of Bernadotte Norwegian princesses Martha 1901 Swedish people of French descent Swedish emigrants to Norway Naturalised citizens of Norway Women in World War II Burials at the Royal Mausoleum (Norway) Crown princesses of Norway Deaths from cancer in Norway Mothers of Norwegian monarchs Royalty from Stockholm