Princess Astrid, Mrs. Ferner
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Princess Astrid, Mrs. Ferner (Astrid Maud Ingeborg; born 12 February 1932) is the second daughter of King Olav V and his wife, Princess Märtha of Sweden. She is the older sister of King Harald V of Norway and younger sister of the late Princess Ragnhild. She became the “first lady” of Norway during the reign of her grandfather, Haakon VII, after her mother’s death in 1954, and continued in this role during her father’s reign until her brother married in 1968.
Life
Astrid was born on 12 February 1932 at Villa Solbakken to the future King Olav V and Crown Princess Märtha. She was baptized in the Palace Chapel on 31 March 1932. Her godparents were her paternal grandparents, King Haakon VII and Queen Maud of Norway; her maternal grandparents, Prince Carl and Princess Ingeborg of Sweden; her maternal aunt, Princess Astrid, Duchess of Brabant; Elizabeth, Duchess of York; her grandaunt, Princess Thyra of Denmark; her granduncle, Prince Eugen of Sweden; and Prince George of the United Kingdom. Astrid was named after her maternal aunt, paternal grandmother, and maternal grandmother.[1] Astrid is a great-granddaughter of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom and thus a second cousin to Queen Elizabeth II. At the time of her birth, she was 18th in the line of succession to the British throne.
Astrid grew up on the royal estate of Skaugum in Asker and was privately educated during her childhood. During World War II, she joined her family fleeing the Nazis and spent the war with her mother, brother and sister in exile in Washington, DC.[2] Following the royal family's return to Norway she attended Nissen's Girls' School and graduated with the examen artium university entrance exam in 1950.[3] She then studied economics and political history for two years at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University.[4]
Her confirmation took place on 9 May 1948 in the Palace Chapel. Astrid studied ceramics with Halvor Sandøs and had her own pottery studio in Skaugum. She was an accomplished ski-er and yachtswoman.[5]
Astrid's mother died in 1954. From which time until her brother's marriage in August 1968 she was the senior lady of the court and acted as first lady of Norway, working side-by-side with her father on all representation duties, including state visits.[6][1] In September 1954, she took part in the ship tour organized by Queen Frederica and her husband King Paul of Greece, which became known as the “Cruise of the Kings”, attended by over 100 royals from across Europe.
In January 1961 Astrid married commoner John Martin Ferner in Oslo. They met when she hired him to sail her yacht in a race.[7] The marriage was met by "bitter opposition" from the Norwegian Church as Ferner had been previously married. After the marriage, she became known as Princess Astrid, Mrs Ferner[8] and no longer got the annual endowment of 50,000 Norwegian crowns that she previously received as First Lady.[9] They raised their family in Vinderen. She now lives in Nordmarka, Oslo.
In 2002, the government granted Astrid an honorary pension in recognition of her efforts on behalf of Norway, both during and following her years as first lady.[10] In 2005 she took part in ceremonies marking the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, including the unveiling of a plaque marking the Norwegian monarch's exile in London.[11]
In February 2012, Astrid celebrated her 80th birthday with a private dinner at the Royal Palace in Oslo.[12]
Marriage and children
Astrid married commoner Johan Martin Ferner in Asker Church on 12 January 1961.[13] They had five children, seven grandchildren, and as of 2023, three great-grandchildren.[14]
- Cathrine Ferner (b. 22 July 1962, Oslo),[15] married 9 December 1989 in Oslo, Arild Johansen (b. 18 June 1961, Oslo), and has two children:
- Sebastian Ferner Johansen (b. 9 March 1990, Oslo), and his partner Ida Belinda Lundstrøm have two children: a daughter born in 2019, and a son born in 2021.
- Nicoline Johansen (born in 2019)
- Ferdinand Johansen (born in 2021)
- Madeleine Ferner Johansen (b. 7 March 1993, Oslo), married 17 October 2022 in Oslo, Ole-Aleksander Karlsen, and has one daughter, born in 2023.
- Hermine Karlsen (born in 2023)
- Sebastian Ferner Johansen (b. 9 March 1990, Oslo), and his partner Ida Belinda Lundstrøm have two children: a daughter born in 2019, and a son born in 2021.
- Benedikte Ferner (b. 27 September 1963, Oslo),[16] married firstly 30 April 1994 in Oslo (divorced 1998) Rolf Woods (b. 17 June 1963, Oslo), without issue, and married secondly on 2 December 2000 in Oslo and separated in 2002, Mons Einar Stange (b. 26 May 1962, Oslo), without issue.
- Alexander Ferner (b. 15 March 1965, Oslo),[17] married 27 July 1996 in Holmenkollen Kapell, Oslo, Margrét Gudmundsdóttir (b. 27 March 1966, Reykjavík, Iceland), and has two children:
- Elisabeth Ferner (b. 30 March 1969, Oslo),[18] married 3 October 1992 in Oslo, Tom Folke Beckmann (b. 14 January 1963, Oslo), and has one son:
- Benjamin Ferner Beckmann (b. 25 April 1999, Oslo).
- Carl-Christian Ferner (b. 22 October 1972, Oslo),[19] married 4 October 2014 in Oslo, Anna-Stina Slattum[20] and they have two daughters together, born in 2018 and 2021,[21][22]
- Fay Ferner, (born 10 July 2018)
- Fam Ferner, born 28 January 2021)
Patronages
Astrid is chair of the board of Crown Princess Märtha’s Memorial Fund which provides financial support to social and humanitarian initiatives carried out by non-governmental organisations.[23]
She is a patron of several organisations with a focus on children and young people with dyslexia, having the condition herself.[24][25]
- Foundation 3,14 – Gallery 3,14 (Hordaland International Art Gallery)
- The Norwegian Women’s Public Health Association
- The Norwegian Women’s and Family Association
- The Norwegian Women’s Defence League
- Oslo Art Association
- The Norwegian Women’s Voluntary Defence Association
- Inner Wheel Norway
- The Norwegian Dyslexia Association
- Dissimilis Norway
- Foreningen for Kroniske Smertepasienter ("The Norwegian Association of Chronic Pain Patients")
- Trondheim Symphony Orchestra[26]
Titles, styles and honours
Titles
- 12 February 1932 – 12 January 1961: Her Royal Highness Princess Astrid of Norway
- 12 January 1961 – present: Her Highness Princess Astrid, Mrs. Ferner
Honours
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Astrid has been awarded the following orders and decorations:[27]
National honours
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Saint Olav
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Dame of the Royal Family Order of Haakon VII of Norway
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Dame of the Royal Family Order of King Olav V of Norway
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Dame of the Royal Family Order of King Harald V of Norway
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the King Haakon VII Golden Jubilee Medal
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the Medal of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of King Haakon VII
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the King Olav V Silver Jubilee Medal
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the King Olav V Commemorative Medal[28]
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the Medal of the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of King Olav V
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the Royal House Centenary Medal
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the King Harald V Silver Jubilee Medal[29]
- File:Flag of Norway.svg Norway: Recipient of the Holmenkollen Medal
Foreign honours
- File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown
- File:Flag of Finland.svg Finland: Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose
- File:Flag of France.svg France: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit
- File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
- File:Flag of Iceland.svg Iceland: Grand Cross of the Order of the Falcon[30]
- File:Flag of Jordan.svg Jordan: Knight Grand Cordon of the Order of the Star of Jordan
- File:Flag of Luxembourg.svg Luxembourg: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Adolphe of Nassau
- File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the House of Orange
- File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit
- File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic[31]
- File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden: Member Grand Cross of the Royal Order of the Polar Star
- File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden: Recipient of 90th Birthday Medal of King Gustav V
- File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden: Recipient of 50th Birthday Medal of King Carl XVI
- File:Flag of Thailand.svg Thailand: Knight Grand Cordon of the Order of Chula Chom Klao
- File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom: Recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal[32]
Honorific eponym
References
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- ↑ Birth announcement in Aftenposten 25 February 1984 No. 95 p. 18 and Norwegian tax lists of 2001 and 2009.
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External links
- Pages with script errors
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- 1932 births
- Living people
- Norwegian princesses
- House of Glücksburg (Norway)
- Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Belgium)
- Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Belgium)
- Grand Cross of the Ordre national du Mérite
- Grand Crosses 1st class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
- Recipients of the Order of the Falcon
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Falcon
- Recipients of the Order of the House of Orange
- Grand Crosses of the Order of the House of Orange
- Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Netherlands)
- Grand Crosses of the Order of the Crown (Netherlands)
- Grand Crosses of the Order of Merit (Portugal)
- Recipients of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic
- Commanders Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star
- Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Chula Chom Klao
- Presidents of the Organising Committees for the Olympic Games
- Holmenkollen medalists
- Daughters of kings