Post 1 of 2:
Wow! This is the NRF and they were, as usual, going to go BIG! And this left-winged egalitarian royal-mad 33-year-old guy (I mean me) is REALLY looking forward to it!
Press release from the government (published on Dec 16 -
link), which includes this statement from the Prime Minister:
''Myndighetsdagen er en stor begivenhet i alle unge menneskers liv. Det gjelder ikke minst for en tronarving som skal representere Norge og det norske folk. Jeg hadde sett frem til å feire prinsesse Ingrid Alexandra på myndighetsdagen, men smittesituasjonen gjør det dessverre ikke mulig nå. Jeg håper likevel hun får en fin feiring med sine nærmeste.''
Translation by me - with a few changes to make it more reader-friendly:
''The age of majority day is a major event in the lives of all young people. Not least for an heir to the throne who is to represent Norway and the Norwegian people. I had been looking forward to celebrating Princess Ingrid Alexandra on the day she reaches her majority age, but unfortunately, the infection situation doesn't make it possible now. I still hope she has a nice celebration with her nearest.'' (Yes, would have sounded better if I had written ''her loved ones'' instead of ''her nearest,'' but that wouldn't have been a direct translation of what the prime minister was saying.)
BTW, I see that the news-site Norway Today (like many others) translates ''myndighetsdag'' to ''coming of age day'' (
link), while the Norwegian historian and correspondent at Royal Central, Oskar Aanmoen, has translated it to ''day of adulthood'' (
link).
I, OTOH, have decided to use "age of majority day" since I think it fits better with the Norwegian word.
Scheduled programme:
January 20:
The Princess (as you can read in one of Eya's posts) will visit:
*The Parliament (known in Norway as the ''Storting'') at 10:00 am, where the President of the Storting will brief her about the work of the parliament.
*The Supreme Court at 11:15 am, where the Chief Justice will brief her about the work of the highest court in the land.
*The Prime Minister's Office at 12:30 pm, where the Prime Minister and other government representatives will brief her about the work of the government.
January 21 (her birthday):
*11:40 -13:45: The Princess, accompanied by her parents, will receive representatives (or ''receive deputations'' as it's called) from the so-called ''official Norway'' at the Royal Palace (which includes the Prime Minister and the President of the Storting), who will come to offer gifts and wish her a happy birthday. (The last time deputations were received at the palace BTW was during the Regent-Couple's joint 80th birthday celebrations in May 2017).
*At noon: A 21-gun-salute from all (nine) salute stations around the country.
Ingrid will also most likely be given the Order of St. Olav by her grandfather.
And the court could also release some more official photos, which may be the first time we see the Princess in a tiara (but I think we will have to wait until the postponed white-tie gala dinner can take place).
Postponed events:
Originally scheduled for January 20:
Official black-tie government dinner with music and other cultural elements at the new Deichman Library at Bjørvika in Oslo (will write more about the library in a later post BTW). The dinner is the government's gift to the Princess and broad participation from all over the country (especially by young people) was planned.
And to those wondering how I could write that it will be black-tie (and not white-tie) when that hasn't been announced?
Simply because that has been the norm with all royal dinners hosted by the government over the last two decades, and I would be EXTREMELY surprised if that should change now (will go more into detail in a later post).
Originally scheduled for January 21:
White-tie gala dinner at the Royal Palace hosted by the King and Queen, which will most likely be Ingrid's first tiara event. (The reason I write ''most likely'' is because there is a possibility that the birthday celebrations will take place after QMII's Golden Jubilee celebrations in September, which could be attended by Ingrid. But as I wrote above, we may already see her in a tiara on Friday, if the court releases more official photos.)
And to those wondering how I could write that the dinner will be white-tie when that hasn't been announced?
Because when the court in December informed that the celebrations would be postponed due to COVID (
link), they used the word ''gallamiddag'' (gala dinner), which is how they have always described white-tie palace dinners in the past.
For black-tie palace dinners, OTOH, they have always used the words ''festmiddag, smokingmiddag, or offisiell middag'' (''celebratory/party-dinner, smoking dinner or official dinner'').
The word festmiddag, BTW, is also used by the Prime Minister's office to describe government-dinners (also when they used to be white-tie from the 1950s to the 1990s, which is in contrast to court who have always used that word for non-white-tie dinners, whether it's black-tie or suit).
And to those who are wondering when these two dinners will take place? Well, there are three options I think:
1. As soon as COVID makes it possible, which may take its time. But if the situation allows it, as early as April/May (not very likely).
2. In the summer. Most likely right before or right after the school holiday (which last from around mid-June to mid-August).
3. Sometimes in the early autumn (most likely after the Danish celebrations).
But what about balcony appearances, open-car processions and walkabouts along the crowds, such as we have seen for celebrations of King Haakon VII, King Olav V and the current King and Queen? Well, except for weddings, such events have usually been reserved for celebrations of the monarch or joint celebrations of the monarch/consort. But there have been a few exceptions. I.e. balcony appearances with the heir and his wife-to-be after their engagement, the balcony appearance for Ingrid's christening in 2004, Queen Sonja's 70th birthday walkabout in 2007 and a short unexpected balcony appearance with CP Haakon and Ingrid during her confirmation in 2019. So it could happen again!
And if there were to be a balcony appearance during Ingrid's 18th birthday celebrations, it would most likely be during the white-tie gala dinner at the palace, which would mean a bunch of royals on the balcony with tiaras, orders and everything (such as we saw for the balcony appearances of King Harald's 70th birthday celebrations in February 2007 and the Regent-Couple's joint 80th birthday celebrations in May 2017).
Good photos.
