Analysis: “I’m going crazy. When is enough?”
It was a statement that could have been written by anyone experiencing enormous personal challenges. Instead, those words came from Princess Ingrid Alexandra – the future Queen of Norway – who is currently a 22-year-old woman navigating what is likely to be the toughest period of her life.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra is second-in-line to Norway’s throne but for now, she’s simply a student with a lot resting on her young shoulders. Ida Bjørvik/The Royal House of Norway
Posted to her private Instagram page, but leaked to the media, the words revealed Ingrid Alexandra’s inner turmoil as her family faces unprecedented scandal, scrutiny and shame.
The princess moved to Australia in July last year to escape much of the noise in her homeland, choosing to study at Sydney University.
It was hoped that her three years in Australia in relative anonymity, and as a “regular” person, would ultimately prepare the princess for her most significant task of all: saving her country’s monarchy from collapse and safeguarding it into the future.
But now, there’s been a major setback to those unofficial plans. Princess Ingrid Alexandra is returning to Norway to be with her mother, who is gravely ill. Her father, Crown Prince Haakon, confirmed the development to Norwegian media while in Japan on a state visit Monday.
“She plans to come home soon,” Crown Prince Haakon said. “It has to do with the family situation. She wants to be with her mother.”
Ingrid Alexandra’s mother, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, has a chronic lung condition and is being considered for a transplant. In recent weeks her health has deteriorated rapidly, faster than her medical team had been expecting.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra is leaving Australia early to be with her mother Crown Princess Mette-Marit, who is seriously ill. But the princess will be back, her father said. Getty
Mette-Marit has begun wearing a nasal breathing tube, connected to an oxygen tank, at public engagements – a very visible sign that things are not well. Crown Prince Haakon’s Japan visit is being cut short by one day so he can return home to be with her. Last week he told the media: “The Crown Princess is seriously ill and I think she has gotten a little worse lately, so I am worried about her health”.
The Norwegian Royal House has not commented about Princess Ingrid Alexandra leaving Australia, nor has it given a timeline. Haakon said his daughter “has plans to complete her studies in Australia”.
King Harald V has ruled Norway for 35 years alongside his wife Queen Sonja. Crown Prince Haakon will be the country’s next king but his wife, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, is seriously ill. The Royal House of Norway
“But how long she will stay home, we will have to come back to that.”
What is clear is that the young princess will be returning home to a monarchy in turmoil.
In the past two years, Norway’s royal family has become one of the most talked about, making headlines around the world for reasons it would rather avoid.
There are other serious health issues: her grandfather King Harald V is 89 and has been in and out of hospital. Queen Sonja, 88, Ingrid Alexandra’s grandmother, was treated in hospital for heart failure last week but, remarkably, has already returned to duty.
Along with her health problems, Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s past friendship with Jeffrey Epstein – revealed in files released by the US Justice Department – has worrying implications for her husband Crown Prince Haakon’s reign, when the time comes.
Crown Princess Mette-Marit has been wearing a breathing device lately after her chronic lung disease deteriorated significantly. Getty
A recent poll found nearly half of Norwegians now see Crown Princess Mette-Marit as unsuitable for the role of Queen. The 52-year-old apologised twice and described her contact with Epstein as having showed “poor judgement”, admitting it was “simply embarrassing”. In a television interview, the Crown Princess claimed she was “manipulated and deceived” by him.
Also causing a headache for the King is his outspoken daughter Princess Märtha who, with her American husband Shaman Durek Verrett, exploited their royal connections in the 2025 Netflix documentary Rebel Royals, renewing calls for the princess to be stripped of her titles.
But most troubling for Princess Ingrid Alexandra, and the Norwegian monarchy, is the criminal trial of her half-brother Marius Borg Høiby.
Høiby, 29, is Crown Princess Mette-Marit’s son from a previous relationship and he was a toddler when his mother married Norway’s Crown Prince.
Though he’s never held a royal title or carried out official duties, Høiby was raised alongside Princess Ingrid Alexandra and the Crown Prince couple’s son Prince Sverre Magnus, 20, at the family’s private royal estate, Skaugum. He grew up as part of the royal family, attending events with the King and Queen and the Crown Prince couple over the years.
The verdict in Høiby’s case will be handed down by an Oslo court on June 15 following a seven-week trial. He denies the most serious charges, which include four counts of rape and assault.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra is close with her brother, Marius Borg Høiby, who is facing a lengthy prison sentence after he was charged with rape and assault. Getty
Høiby has pleaded guilty to some of the lesser offences, which include a drugs charge, traffic offences and breaching a restraining order.
Prosecutors have requested a jail term of seven years, but his legal team have called for a lesser sentence, arguing Høiby has lived under extraordinary media pressure due to his royal connections, which they said has shaped public perception of the case.
He was first arrested in August 2024 and became the first member of Norway’s royal family to be charged with a crime.
Høiby was first arrested in August 2024, and his criminal trial lasted nearly seven weeks. AP
The case, unsurprisingly, has dominated the news cycle across Scandinavia but has also propelled the Norwegian monarchy into the global spotlight.
Combined with the other controversies the monarchy is dealing with, the criminal trial has undoubtedly tarnished the latter years of the King’s 35-year reign and damaged the royal family’s reputation.
Ingrid Alexandra returned to Norway in December and joined the king and queen, and her parents, at the Nobel Peace Prize awards for the first time. Getty
Affection for King Harald, though, remains high with an approval rating of nine out of 10.
Support for the Norwegian monarchy was at 70 per cent late last year, but in February it dropped to 60 per cent, the lowest ever figure, because of the issues facing its key members.
“Some people say this is the beginning of the end,” Kristi Marie Skrede, royal correspondent from Norway’s national broadcaster NRK previously told nine.com.au.
“There are people saying King Harald should be the last king.”
There have even been suggestions of the line of succession skipping Crown Prince Haakon for his daughter, as unlikely as that may be.
When the time comes for Ingrid Alexandra to sit on the throne, she will do so as Norway’s first queen regnant in more than 600 years.
Whether the monarchy can recover from the above scandals remains to be seen – and it might just be up to Princess Ingrid Alexandra to restore the royal family’s standing among the public.
It’s a momentous undertaking and her time in Australia will arguably be a vital character-building and learning experience for the young princess. Anyone who has studied or worked far from home during those formative adult years knows the impact such adventures can have on their lives.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra is doing a three-year bachelor degree at Sydney University where she is living on campus as a regular student. But she’s now due to return home unexpectedly early. Photo: Raquel Pires Photography/The Royal House of Norway
By Ingrid Alexandra’s own admission during her first-ever interview with Norwegian media, given from Sydney University in November, she had been “so sheltered” in Norway.
Despite her place as eventual heir, the princess began carrying out regular appearances at public events in Norway in mid-2025.
But the princess didn’t come to Australia to hide away.
Recently she made her first public appearance in Australia by joining Sydney’s Norwegian community in celebrating its national day, known as Constitution Day, on May 17.
In May, Ingrid Alexandra made her first public appearance in Australia celebrating Norway’s National Day in Sydney. Natalie Oliveri
Closely observing the royal during what was her most high-profile engagement outside of Norway yet, I saw a quietly confident and relaxed young woman who is clearly still adjusting to her growing profile.
Moments after her arrival at the park where 400 Norwegian-Australians were eagerly awaiting a glimpse of their princess, Ingrid Alexandra seemed slightly hesitant about where to walk and where to stand.
Often on official engagements, it is the royals themselves who take the lead, but it is not uncommon for them to be directed into position by those running the particular event.
The event marked a milestone in the princess’ royal life as she gradually prepares for her eventual role as queen of Norway. Instagram/detnorskekongehus
Princess Ingrid Alexandra quickly relaxed and stood poised as she listened to speeches, later engaging in small talk with the NSW Governor Margaret Beazley and Norway’s ambassador to Australia Anne Grete Riise – both years her senior.
She smiled and laughed on cue and spent more than 30 minutes mingling with the crowds, crouching down to speak to children and sharing stories about back home, student life and her time in Australia so far.
Ingrid Alexandra’s engagement that day was a rite of passage for the princess, no doubt, as all ‘first appearances’ are for royals as they navigate their growing roles in the public eye.
On the other side of the world, her family was celebrating the national holiday in Oslo. Crown Princess Mette-Marit wore a nasal breathing tube, forging ahead with official duties in spite of her worsening illness. It was a brave move and a sign royal duties must continue no matter how difficult the situation is behind palace walls.
With the upheaval back home, one might wonder why the princess had chosen to study in Australia, so far away from Norway during a time when it can be argued her family needs her presence more than ever.
Crown Princess Mette-Marit spent six months at Wangaratta High School in Victoria, in her late teens in 1992, perhaps influencing her daughter’s decision to chose Australia. Ingrid Alexandra is also an award-winning surfer and our beaches are likely to have played a small role in enticing her Down Under.
Our most famous royal exchange student is King Charles III of Britain, who was sent to rural Victoria in 1966 after his years at Gordonstoun in Scotland.
The princess chose Australia to study, taking her far from the current issues facing the royal family in Norway. Simen Sund / The Royal House of Norway
In 1966 Charles, who was 17 at the time, spent two terms at Timbertop – part of Geelong Grammar – which he later described as “by far the best part” of his education and “a life-shaping and life-affirming opportunity”.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra’s experience at Sydney University is a far cry from Charles’ gruelling stay in the bush. She lives on campus at the prestigious St Andrew’s College, in a private room with a shared bathroom, where the annual fee is around $44k per year.
Crucially for the princess, living on campus offers an authentic university experience away from the very different life she has known growing up in the family’s private royal estate just outside of Oslo.
Despite her place as second-in-line to the throne, the princess started carrying out official duties just a couple of years ago. Patrick van Katwijk/Getty Images
“I think she is happy to be [in Australia], far away from all the problems,” Skrede said.
“It gives her the possibility to concentrate on her studies and to concentrate on being a young woman and spending time with her friends. She wants to be Ingrid. She’s not ready to be an official person yet.
“Choosing to move so far away when they really need her there, that tells us that it’s important for her to be free as Ingrid.”
How long Ingrid Alexandra will have that freedom cannot be predicted.
King Harald has suffered numerous health issues in the past few years, handing over many duties to his son the crown prince. Getty
Her grandfather – Europe’s oldest-serving monarch – is 89 and was hospitalised in February with an infection. He was fitted with a pacemaker in 2024 and since then, King Harald has reduced his official duties due to his age and health. His wife had a pacemaker fitted in 2025.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra’s destiny, as second-in-line to the throne, is Queen of Norway and when that time comes she’ll be in good company.
Five of Europe’s next heads of state will be female out of the eight main royal houses across the region.
The future heads of state of Europe: Sweden’s Princess Estelle, Crown Prince Christian of Denmark, Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands and Princess Elisabeth of Belgium. Keld Navntoft, Kongehuset
The House of Glücksburg has ruled Norway since 1905 and its monarchy dates back more than 1000 years, making it one of Europe’s oldest. It may very well be up to this young princess, who is still finding her feet, to carry on the institution of monarchy into the future.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra has so far proven herself capable of stepping into the spotlight amid extraordinary pressures, keeping a brave face while representing her country and navigating student life in a foreign country.
It’s understandable that she is leaving now, so soon after her arrival last year. And it’s hard not to emphasise with the princess when her mother is gravely ill, so far away, and her brother is very likely to be going to jail for a long time.
Princess Ingrid Alexandra completed military service in 2025, one of the requirements for her eventual role as queen. Per Ole Hagen/Getty Images
The princess has also had to deal with the threat of a stalker with her security detail intercepting a suspicious letter, sent to her on campus. A 63-year-old Glebe man has now been issued with an AVO and will front court on Wednesday.
But from what I have seen of her during her first public appearance in Australia and observing her from afar, Ingrid Alexandra has a lot to offer her country.
Hopefully the princess’ time in Australia – the months that she’s already spent here and when she eventually returns – gives her the space and freedom to grow, cementing her position as Norway’s future head of state and a major player in global affairs.