Queen Maud 1869-1938

The Lodge is named in honor of Queen Maud of Norway. She was born in 1869 in London, England as the youngest daughter of the Prince and Princess of Wales of England (later King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra). As such, she was the granddaughter of Queen Victoria of England, and had such imperial aunts as Empress Marie of Russia and the then-Crown Princess Louise of Denmark (the mother of her future husband).

Maud’s childhood has been described as highly spirited and although a modest girl, she enjoyed being a follower and setter of high fashion. Even though she traveled frequently with her family to Scandinavia while growing up, she loved England. She kept her English country home even after becoming Queen of Norway and visited it regularly.

In 1896, at age 27, she married her first cousin, Prince Charles (Carl) of Denmark, a naval officer and the second son of King Frederick VIII of Denmark. In 1903, they had one son, Alexander who was born in England and who eventually became King Olav V of Norway. During Norway’s separation from Sweden in 1905, Prince Carl was offered the Norwegian crown and took the name King Haakon VII, and Maud thus became Queen of Norway.

TM Queen Maud and King Haakon VII of Norway and Prince Olav

The new royal family were welcomed into Oslo at the end of November 1905. The royals immediately moved into the Norwegian Royal Palace in Oslo, becoming the first Norwegian royal family to use this castle as their main residence. Here, Queen Maud introduced British furnishings to the castle. The Norwegian throne suited Maud’s tastes as it allowed her to be her down-to-earth-self and because she had no court society to deal with. Although she loved her new home, Maud continued to make frequent trips back to England throughout her life.

King Haakon VII and Queen Maud’s June 22, 1906 coronation at Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim, Norway, was the last coronation of a Scandinavian monarch. This same year, the Norwegian people officially welcomed their new king and his family by giving them a royal residence--Kongsseteren, The Royal Mountain Farm. This lodge is near Holmenkollen, the world-famous ski jump, and overlooks Oslo and the Oslo Fjord. Here, under Maud’s directions, an English garden was created. The family could ski from this lodge into the surrounding countryside. Being athletic, it is not surprising that Maud could ski well into her sixties.

The Norwegians loved Queen Maud. She earned admiration for supporting charitable organizations, notably those involving children and animals. Also, Maud strongly supported the arts—especially musicians and artists. The Norwegian explorer, Roald Amundsen, honored Queen Maud in 1939 by naming one of his discoveries after her in the Norwegian sector of Antarctic. Queen Maud Land is located between the Weddell Sea and Enderby Land.

On November 20, 1938, Queen Maud died of a sudden heart attack in England, after successful gall bladder surgery, at age 68. She is buried at Akershus Castle in Norway, located on the coast coming into Oslo.

Queen Maud’s husband, King Haakon VII, ruled from 1905 until his death in 1957. He was succeeded by their son, King Olav V, who died in 1991. King Olav V was succeeded by his son, King Harold V, the current reigning Norwegian monarch and Queen Maud’s grandson.