Crown Prince Haakon of Norway (born Haakon Magnus on July 20, 1973 in Oslo) is the heir apparent to the throne of Norway. On birth he was named Prince Haakon Magnus but it was stressed in the announcement that he would go by the name Haakon. He became Crown Prince Haakon when his father ascended to the crown as Harald V in 1991. If Prince Haakon becomes king as expected, he will be known as King Haakon VIII of Norway.
Haakon's godparents are King Olav V of Norway, Princess Astrid of Norway, Prince Carl Bernadotte, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Princess Anne, The Princess Royal. As a descendant of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, Haakon is currently the 61st in line to the British crown. He is a third cousin to The Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, heir to the British throne.
Haakon has one sibling, Princess Märtha Louise (born 1971).
Haakon married commoner and single mother Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby on August 25, 2001, at the Oslo Cathedral, who has since then been known as Crown Princess Mette-Marit. Their relationship met with controversy due to Mette-Marit's status as a single mother and because the couple had openly lived together before announcing their engagement.
Their daughter, Princess Ingrid, was born on January 21, 2004, she is second in succession to the Norwegian throne. Mette-Marit gave birth to her third child, Prince Sverre Magnus, on December 3, 2005, he is third in the line to the Norwegian throne after his sister, Princess Ingrid. The Crown Prince's stepson, Marius Borg Høiby, is not in line for the throne.
