Skaugum

Skaugum is an estate, manor house and the official residence of Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway and his wife Crown Princess Mette-Marit. The estate is located in Asker, southwest of Oslo, by the foot of the mountain Skaugumsåsen. The estate consists of of agricultural lands and of woodlands.

History

The estate was originally Church property during the Middle Ages, and passed through several owners until 1909, when Fritz Wedel Jarlsberg bought it. When Crown Prince Olav and Crown Princess Märtha were married in 1929, Wedel-Jarlsberg sold it to the couple. In 1937, Prince Harald was born on the estate.

Wedel-Jarlsberg's Swiss chalet style-residence, designed by Herman Backer and completed in 1891, burned to the ground in 1930. The Norwegian architect Arnstein Arneberg was commissioned to design a new structure, entirely on the foundations of the old building. The new building was also built of stone to avoid future fires.

Second World War

During the Nazi occupation of Norway, SS-General Wilhelm Rediess resided at Skaugum for a short period; Reichskommissar Josef Terboven made the estate his official residence in June 1940. Shortly after Hitler's death, Terboven was dismissed from his position by Karl Dönitz and committed suicide in the manor bunker on 8 May 1945 by blowing himself up with fifty kilograms of dynamite.

Residence of the heir apparent

In 1968, King Olav V gave the estate as a wedding gift to his son Crown Prince Harald (later King Harald V) and his wife Crown Princess Sonja, while the King himself relocated to the Royal Palace in Oslo. King Harald would repeat this gesture, giving the estate as a wedding gift to his son, Crown Prince Haakon, and his wife, Crown Princess Mette-Marit when the couple married in 2001.

Unlike the Royal Palace and Oscarshall, Skaugum is owned privately by the royal family and is therefore not open to the public. Like all royal residences in Norway, the estate is protected by the Royal Guards.

Høiby affair

In 2024, Skaugum became known for the Høiby affair involving accused sex offender Marius Borg Høiby, who invited friends, to what he called "Skaugum festivals" at Skaugum, where drugs were consumed. Høiby is also charged with raping women at Skaugum.

Jan Bøhler wrote that "organized crime is today a greater threat to our country than terrorism, and we are allocating increasingly larger resources to combat it. At the same time, a member of the royal family has for years allegedly vacationed and partied with central figures in drug-related crime. Individuals allegedly known for involvement in serious money laundering cases and violent gangs, have also participated in the festivities."

In 2025, it was revealed that the police will investigate Høiby for allegedely sexual abuse that he is alleged to have committed in the cellar of Skaugum.

Gallery

File:Skaugum 1921.jpg, The original Skaugum building prior to the fire in 1930
File:1385. Kronprinsparets bolig. Skougum, Norge. Flyvefoto - no-nb digifoto 20150629 00002 bldsa PK21842.jpg, Aerial view of Skaugum
File:Kongefamilien på Skaugum 1974 (5476890347).jpg, The royal family at Skaugum during a 1974 visit from Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
File:Skaugum.jpg, Skaugum seen from the estate garden
File:Skaugum gard.jpg, Skaugum seen from the west

See also

* Semsvannet and vicinity - millennial site
* List of official residences

References

External links

Skaugum Estate page at the official Norwegian Royal website

{{Royal palaces in Norway

Asker
Royal residences in Norway
Palaces in Norway
Manor houses in Norway