ABSTRACT
Haakon VII (1872-1957) King of Norway. In 1905, Norway declared its independence from Sweden and elected Prince Carl of Denmark as King Haakon VII. At the be ginning of World War II, he hoped Norway could remain neutral, but the German invasion of 8 April 1940 forced him to choose between submission or resistance. To Adolf Hitlers (q.v.) surprise, Haakon refused to appoint Vidkun Quisling (q.v.) prime minister and advocated that Norway fight to main tain its independence. Forced into exile on 7 June 1940, after the Allies evacuated Narvik (q.v.), he organized a government-in-exile in London. He returned to Norway on 7 June 1946, and reigned until his death on 21 September 1957.
