It’s been a momentous week for the Norwegian royal house. On Monday, Marius Borg‘s long-awaited sentence was handed down: four years in prison for two counts of rape and a range of additional charges. On Wednesday, it was announced that his mother, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, had undergone a successful lung transplant.
We’re now learning that Borg visited his mother privately after her surgery, taking a brief leave from Ila Prison, where he has been held since earlier this year.
A secret visit
The details of Borg’s visit were reported by the Norwegian outlet Se og Høre, which stated that police officers accompanied him to the hospital. Keeping a low profile, he was allowed to visit his mother following the procedure.
This isn’t the first time Borg has been granted leave to visit his family. On each occasion, the meetings have been carried out with discretion. This time, Borg entered through the back of the hospital to avoid photographers — a move the royal family has made before. Mette-Marit herself once used that same entrance after the birth of her youngest son, Prince Sverre Magnus.
© Getty ImagesAn emotional reunion
Se og Høre reports that the encounter must have been charged with emotion: Mette-Marit was recovering from a major procedure, while Borg was grappling with a four-year sentence that his legal team had sought to limit to just 18 months.
Over the past year, Borg unsuccessfully tried to serve his remand from home, failing to convince the courts. After Mette-Marit was placed on the lung transplant waiting list, he also asked to be released, citing his mother’s health as a key reason for needing to be by her side. An Oslo court initially ruled in his favor, but the prosecution appealed, and the decision was reversed.
© Getty ImagesFamily rallies around the Crown Princess
Over the past week, other members of Mette-Marit’s family have been spotted visiting her at the hospital, among them Crown Prince Haakon and Prince Sverre Magnus. Haakon has canceled a number of official engagements in recent days to be at his wife’s side.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra has also been seen at the hospital. In recent weeks, it was announced that she would complete her upcoming semester at the University of Sydney, taking a temporary break from her studies in Australia to be with her mother during her recovery. Queen Sonja has also been photographed visiting.
© Rune Hellestad – CorbisMary of Denmark’s words of support
The royal houses of Norway and Denmark share a long history. Queen Mary expressed her best wishes for the Crown Princess in remarks made ahead of an engagement in Copenhagen.
“I understand that the surgery went well. I am very happy to hear that. Our warmest thoughts are with the Crown Princess and her whole family,” she said.
Queen Margrethe and King Harald share a common ancestor in King Christian IX of Denmark, with these familial ties continuing in the following generations. King Frederik X served as best man at Haakon and Mette-Marit’s 2001 wedding, and is also the godfather of Princess Ingrid Alexandra. In turn, Haakon and Mette-Marit are godparents to Frederik and Mary’s eldest son, Crown Prince Christian.
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