Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and writer Ari Behn announced their separation after 14 years of marriage. The divorce will be the first in the modern history of the Norwegian Royal Family.
Last Friday, the Royal House of Norway announced through a statement that the couple had begun divorce proceedings but will share custody of their three daughters Maud Angelica, 13, Leah Isadora, 11, and Emma Tallulah, 7.
They were last seen together on official duties in June during the jubilee celebration of King Harald V and Queen Sonja in Trondheim which they attended and were photographed holding hands.
Ari Behn will settle nearby after the divorce
It was in that same city in which Princess Märtha Louise, the only daughter of the King and Queen, married novelist Ari Mikael Behn at the Nidaros Cathedral on May 24, 2002. Shortly after the wedding, King Harald granted Märtha Louise the royal title of Her Royal Highness.
On April 29, 2003, the couple’s first daughter, Maud Angelica Behn, was born. Leah Isadora Behn, born on April 8, 2005, and Emma Tallulah Behn, born on September 29, 2008, followed. The family has lived in New York, London, and Lommedalen, where they currently reside since May 2014.
The Royal House’s statement said that Princess Märtha Louise would keep the couple’s properties in Lommedalen and Hankø Island but also described the divorce as amicable. Behn will reportedly settle near the family home in Lommedalen.
The Norwegian author wrote three novels, two collections of short stories, and another based on his wedding. His books have sold over 100,000 copies and the critics like him. He also wrote a play called Treningstimen which debuted at the Rogaland Theater directed by Kim Sørensen.
Royal divorce: Norway's Princess Märtha Louise and husband Ari Behn to end marriagehttps://t.co/C72mkqhwIa #royals #norway
— Nordic News (@Nordic_News) August 5, 2016
Princess Martha Louise is fourth in the line of succession to the Norway throne
Märtha Louise said she and Behn had grown apart and for that reason decided “to end the marriage.” But they also vowed to “stay together in parenthood” for their children’s sake.
King Harald and Queen Sonja expressed their sadness over the couple’s “painful” separation but said the journey was a great family experience, and that they would not forsake his soon-to-be former son-in-law.
The 44-year-old princess is currently fourth in the line of succession to the throne of Norway, after brother and heir apparent Haakon, and his two children Ingrid Alexandra and Sverre Magnus. As a great-great-granddaughter of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, she is also in the line of succession to the thrones of the sixteen Commonwealth realms.
Source: Daily Mail
