Marius Borg Høiby Appears in King Harald’s Funeral Procession Despite Rape Conviction

King Harald V’s death has ushered Norway into a historic royal transition, with King Haakon now taking the throne and Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra stepping into an even more prominent role as heir.

But one image from the mourning period has already become a controversy of its own. As members of the royal family accompanied King Harald’s coffin through the palace on August 31, Marius Borg Høiby was among those taking part. Høiby, the son of Queen Mette-Marit, was convicted earlier this year of two counts of rape and one count of domestic violence and sentenced to four years in prison. He is appealing the verdict and was reportedly under house arrest when he joined the procession.

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His presence immediately sparked questions about judgement, privilege and the message the royal family was sending by allowing him to take such a visible place in one of the most solemn moments of the new King’s reign.

There may be private family reasons for including Høiby in mourning for a man who had been part of his life for decades. But this was not simply a private funeral gathering behind closed doors. It was a highly photographed royal ceremony involving the new monarch, the heir to the throne and the late King’s closest family. And that makes the decision worth examining.

Marius Borg Høiby is not simply a relative dealing with an embarrassing scandal. A Norwegian court convicted him of two counts of rape and domestic violence and sentenced him to four years in prison. He is appealing that conviction, but he was reportedly under house arrest when he appeared inside the Royal Palace and joined the procession carrying King Harald’s coffin.  

So this is why the optics become very difficult to defend. This was one of the most solemn and highly photographed moments of the royal transition. King Haakon was walking beside his daughter and heir, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra. Queen Sonja was mourning her husband. The family was publicly saying goodbye to a monarch who had reigned for more than three decades.

Yet somehow Høiby was given a visible place in that moment. Was this something King Harald specifically wanted before his death? Was it a family decision made by Haakon and Mette-Marit? And did anyone consider how his prominent inclusion might look to the women involved in the criminal case? Those are reasonable questions because, without an explanation, the image risks sending a terrible message about privilege.

Høiby has no royal title, performs no official royal duties and is not in the line of succession.

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People reports that he nevertheless took part in the coffin procession while serving house arrest during his appeal.  So this means the consequences are not only about the sentence written on a piece of paper. They are also about access, status and whether powerful institutions continue treating somebody as though nothing fundamental has changed.

Most convicted people do not get to step out of home confinement and appear in ceremonial photographs inside a royal palace. Perhaps there were compassionate or legal reasons for allowing him to attend his step-grandfather’s mourning ceremonies. Families do remain families after someone commits a crime. But allowing him to mourn privately would have been very different from placing him within such a visible royal procession.

And that is why the photograph bothers many people. Too many observers, it looks like institutional protection. Whether that was the intention or not, the image tells the public that a man convicted of rape can still occupy a place inside one of Norway’s most prestigious institutions while his appeal continues.

The Norwegian monarchy is already dealing with serious questions about judgement and accountability. Haakon has taken the throne while his wife faces renewed scrutiny over her past association with Jeffrey Epstein, and his stepson has been convicted of rape and domestic violence. Reuters has reported that these controversies have damaged the royal family’s public image.

So why create another completely avoidable controversy?

Final Thoughts

King Harald’s death should have been about Harald, Queen Sonja and a country saying goodbye to its monarch. Instead, somebody made a decision that ensured one of the photographs from that historic moment would immediately trigger another debate about Marius Borg Høiby.

And perhaps that is the larger problem. When ordinary people face serious criminal convictions, society expects their lives to change. When somebody sits close enough to royalty, however, there always seems to be another exception, another accommodation and another explanation for why the normal rules cannot quite apply.

That is not a reassuring message for a monarchy already asking the public to keep believing in it.

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