The Royal 2016: Princess Martha Louise of Norway separates

Princess Martha Louise of Norway is separating from her husband. Ari Behn

(photo Royal Court of Norway/ Catherine Wessel)

Every year brings happiness and sadness, light and shade and in August. we learned that Princess Martha Louise of Norway had separated from her husband of fourteen years, Ari Behn. The couple's statement and their family's response to it were filled with all the sadness that comes with the end of a marriage. Here's a look back at how events unfolded this summer.

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The news of the separation came as a surprise - the couple celebrated their fourteenth wedding anniversary in May and their last high profile joint appearance was during the Silver Jubilee tour of King Harald and Queen Sonja at the end of June when they and their children joined the Royal Family in Trondheim where they had married in 2002.The Royal Court said that the couple had decided to separate and that they would share custody of their three children - Maud, 13, Leah, 11 and Emma, 7. Princess Martha Louise will live at Lommedalen and will keep the family estate of Bloksbjerg while Ari Behn will settle near his daughters.

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In her statement, Princess Martha Louise said that 'life does not go smoothly' adding that while the marriage was over, the 'remain together in parenthood'. The princess said it was 'unspeakably sad' to discover that the 'road ahead does not go together in the way it used to'. Martha Louise also said that the couple had tried everything to keep their marriage going and added that she and her husband felt guilty for not being able to 'create the safe harbour..our children deserve;. She ended by asking for peace to get through the difficult times.

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King Harald and Queen Sonja also made a statement in which they said that the end of a marriage affected many and it was painful and sad for those watching on. The King and Queen of Norway said they were grateful for all that they had experienced together as a family and said they wanted a good relationship with Ari Behn in the future.

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Princess Martha Louise, then second in line to the throne of Norway, married Ari Behn on May 24th 2002 in Trondheim. Their first daughter, Maud Angelica, was born on April 29th 2003 and they welcomed their second child, Leah Isadora, on April 8th 2005 with a third, Emma Tallulah, joining the family on September 29th 2008.

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Princess Martha Louise is now fourth in line to her country's throne with her daughters following her in the line of succession.