Solemn Prince William leads the world's royals in mourning at King Harald of Norway's funeral - as the new Queen's disgraced son is released from house arrest to attend

Prince William and his aunt Princess Anne have today joined royals from around the world at the funeral of King Harald V of Norway.The Prince of Wales represented his father, King Charles, at the service at Oslo Cathedral, while the Princess Royal attended in a private and personal capacity as godmother of the new king, Haakon VIII.They were joined by other European senior royals including King Felipe of Spain and Princess Charlene of Monaco. Haakon walked behind the coffin, draped with the red Norwegian royal standard, alongside his oldest child, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra, now heir to the throne, his son Prince Sverre Magnus and his sister Princess Martha Louise.The King's stepson Marius Borg Hoiby, 29, who is currently serving a four-year prison sentence under house arrest at his parents' Skaugum Estate while he appeals his conviction for two counts of rape, also joined members of the Norwegian royal family at the cathedral.He previously joined his relatives to carry the coffin of Harald from the Royal Palace to the palace chapel last week while temporarily released, sparking fierce backlash from royal fans, many of whom strongly condemned his presence at the occasion. His mother, Queen Mette-Marit, who missed her husband's swearing-in ceremony due to 'complications' from her recent lung transplant surgery in June, and Harald's widow, Queen Sonja, followed the coffin in a car. Prince William was joined by his aunt Princess Anne at the funeral of King Harald of Norway. They were seen walking behind Crown Prince Akishino and Princess Kiko of Japan Marius Borg Hoiby, left, arrives for the funeral of Norway's King Harald V at Oslo Cathedral Queen Mette-Marit of Norway arrives for the funeral ceremony of late King Harald V The casket of late King Harald V of Norway leaves the Royal Palace in a royal procession to the Cathedral in Oslo King Felipe of Spain and his wife Queen Letizia were among the mourners who flew into Oslo for the solemn occasion King Frederik and Queen Mary of Denmark and King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden also joined the royals walking behind the coffin, draped with the red Norwegian royal standard.Thousands of people lined the streets of the Norwegian capital to bid a final farewell to Harald, who reigned for 35 years.Norwegian officials and foreign dignitaries, among them political leaders including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, joined the procession.People were tuning in from across the country. Scores of churches, libraries, cultural centers and city halls were making big screens available for the public to watch the funeral, public broadcaster NRK reported.A 21-gun salute rang out over the capital at the start of the funeral procession from the royal palace to Oslo Cathedral.Princess Anne was in attendance in a private capacity as the godmother of the new King of Norway, Haakon. King Charles paid tribute to his 'dear cousin' and 'much-loved kinsman and friend' after news of Harald´s death was announced.In a statement released by Buckingham Palace, he said the monarch served the people of Norway with 'unwavering dedication' and guided them through times of change with 'warmth and humility'. King Haakon was joined by his daughter Crown Princess Ingrid for a final farewell to his father The funeral cortege making its way from the Palace to Oslo cathedral for the service Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands walked behind Charlene of Monaco Princess Charlene of Monaco put on a sombre display as she walked alongside her husband Prince Albert Norway's Queen Sonja, King Haakon, and Queen Mette-Marit arrive at the funeral ceremony of Norway's King Harald Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store bows to the coffin during the funeral ceremonyUnder royal precedent, the sovereign does not attend funerals of other heads of state, and so the duty fell to William. The Prince of Wales represented his father at the funeral of Pope Francis in the Vatican in April last year.The late Queen Elizabeth II and King Harald were second cousins and shared the same great-grandparents, King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.William and the now-Princess of Wales carried out an official tour to Norway in 2018.On 8 September, a group including Felipe, Letizia, Henri, the Serbian Crown Prince couple, Prince Alois of Liechtenstein, Princess Alexia, and Queen Anne-Marie of Greece were bussed to the Palace for the ceremony. Passing away on 28 August aged 89, King Harald V was Europe's oldest reigning sovereign, ruling over Norway for 35 years.Yet, despite modernising his family's rule over the years, he refused to step down like other ageing monarchs.His son immediately became King Haakon VIII and last week pledged an oath of allegiance to Norway's constitution in parliament.The coffin is being taken from the royal palace to Oslo Cathedral in a procession, followed by Haakon, other senior Norwegian royals, foreign guests and representatives of Norway's parliament and others. Norway's Prince Sverre Magnus, King Haakon, Crown Princess Ingrid Alexandra led the funeral procession The funeral procession with Norway's King Harald's coffin leaves the Palace on the way to Oslo Cathedral on the day of his funeral King Philippe of Belgium and Queen Mathilde of Belgium were among the European royals in attendance Abdullah II of Jordan, Queen Rania of Jordan and Princess Charlene of Monaco followed the coffin The coffin of His Majesty King Harald V is transported from the Royal Palace to Oslo CathedralIn attendance are The Netherlands' King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima, Princess Beatrix and Princess Catherina-Amalia, along with Prince William, Princess Anne, Denmark's King Frederik, Queen Mary, Crown Prince Christian and Princess Benedikte.Other royal guests include Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf, Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Carl Philip, Princess Sofia, Princess Madeleine and Princess Christina.Ahead of the funeral, Norwegians waited patiently to file past Harald's coffin as it lay in state in the chapel of the royal palace in Oslo, with the queue stretching seven hours long over the weekend.After the funeral, Harald's coffin will be taken in a procession to the palace chapel at Akershus Castle, where the late king's ancestors are buried.After a private ceremony for the Norwegian royals, who will be joined by some of the foreign guests and senior Norwegian officials, it will be lowered into the crypt. Norway's King Haakon and members of the Royal Guard stand next to the coffin of Norway's King Harald during his funeral in Oslo Bishop Sunniva Gylver speaks during the funeral ceremony of Norway's King HaraldThe Norwegian royal house has kinfolk in other European royal families. Harald and Haakon are related to both King Charles and Spain's King Felipe. They´re all descendants of Queen Victoria.Today, the throne's role in Norway is largely symbolic and power lies with the elected government and parliament, but the Norwegian royal family retains a role in promoting the wealthy Scandinavian nation around the world.Norway´s monarchy traces its origins to King Harald Fairhair in the ninth century. When Norway regained its independence from Sweden in 1905, three-quarters of voters in a national plebiscite approved restoring the monarchy.A minute's silence will be held across Norway at the start of the funeral ceremony. Eulogies will be delivered by Norway's parliament speaker and prime minister, and there will be a candle-lighting ceremony with representatives of different faiths.The government says it's not an official holiday, but schools and workplaces could individually opt to let students and employees tune in for today's events. The government advised that 'noisy events should be suspended while the funeral is ongoing'.