VI.

History

A.

Earliest Peoples

Archaeological records indicate that Norway was inhabited as early as 10,000 bc by a Paleolithic hunting people. These ancient hunters are believed to have migrated to Scandinavia as the great glaciers that once buried the region receded, toward the end of the last ice age. Agriculture and the use of domesticated animals appeared in Norway around 4000 bc. The transition from Stone Age to Bronze Age tools and more elaborate burial customs occurred in Norway about 1500 bc, and by 500 bc Norway had entered the early Iron Age. During the era of the Roman Empire, the inhabitants of Norway had trade contacts with Roman-occupied Gaul, and the area of settlement increased rapidly. Runic writing, a Germanic alphabet developed in the 2nd or 3rd century ad, appeared in Scandinavia at that time along with migrating Germanic peoples.

These new arrivals made their homes on the shores of the large lakes and along the jagged coast, and they spoke a language that would become the mother tongue of the later Scandinavian languages. They also brought with them a vibrant new religion with militaristic gods led by Odin and Thor as well as settlement patterns that would soon evolve into extended family farms. Mountains and fjords formed natural boundaries around most of the settled areas. In time social life in the separate settlements came to be dominated by an aristocracy and, eventually, by petty kings. By the time of the first historical records of Scandinavia, about the 8th century ad, some 29 small kingdoms existed in Norway.

B.

The Viking Period

Inevitably, the kings turned their attention to the sea, the easiest way to communicate and trade with the outside world. About ad 800 ships of war were being built and sent on raiding expeditions, initiating the era of the Vikings. The northern sea rovers were traders, colonizers, and explorers as well as plunderers. After about 865 they established settlements in the British Isles and Iceland, and in the Orkney, Faroe, and Shetland islands. A century later, about 985, Erik the Red led Vikings to Greenland from Iceland; his son, Leif Eriksson, was one of the first Europeans to explore North America, reaching the continent about 1000. Bands of the northern Vikings penetrated Russia. Others settled in France, where they became the ancestors of the Normans of Normandy (Normandie).

In the 9th century King Harald I, called The Fairhaired, of Vestfold (southeastern Norway) made the first successful attempt to form a united Norwegian kingdom. Succeeding to the throne of Vestfold as a child, Harald managed to establish his supremacy over all Norway shortly before 900. However, at Harald’s death, about 940, his sons divided Norway, with Eric Bloodaxe as overking. Dissensions and wars among the heirs disrupted the temporary unity, and many of the petty rulers refused to surrender their independence. In addition to the domestic struggles, Danish and Swedish kings were undertaking campaigns to acquire Norwegian territory.

C.

Christianity Introduced

Christian missionaries traveled in Viking lands as early as AD 825, when Saint Anskar visited trading centers in Sweden and Denmark. Conversions from paganism to Christianity were infrequent, however, until the end of the 900s.

In 995 Olaf I, a great-grandson of Harald I, became king of Norway. Before his accession Olaf had lived in England, where he had converted to Christianity. He took the throne with the firm purpose of forcing Christianity on Norway and he partially succeeded. Five years after his accession he was killed in battle, and Norway was divided for a short time. Norway was reunited by Olaf II, who made himself king of Norway in 1015. He continued the religious work of his predecessor, using force against those who refused a Christian baptism. Olaf established a national Christian church in Norway, and he built churches throughout the land.

By about 1025 Olaf II had become more powerful than any preceding Norwegian king. He aroused the anger of powerful nobles, who, together with Canute II (the Great), king of England and Denmark, drove Olaf into exile in Russia in 1028. Two years later Olaf returned to Norway and was killed in the Battle of Stiklestad. Although a Viking king, he was seen as a martyr for the church. He was canonized as Norway’s patron saint, following reports of miracles associated with him.

D.

Native Kings

On the death of Canute in 1035, Olaf’s son, Magnus I, was invited to return from Russia to Norway by supporters of his father. For the next three centuries a succession of native kings ruled Norway. Although internal confusion and wars between rival claimants to the throne disrupted the country periodically, Norway gradually emerged as a united nation, enjoying a comparative prosperity brought by its great trading fleets.

The Norwegians had become strongly Christian, and a powerful clergy was one of the major influences in the kingdom. In 1046 Magnus proclaimed his uncle Harald Hårdråde a coruler. At the death of Magnus one year later, Harald became king as Harald III; he was killed while participating in the Norman conquest of England in 1066. Harald’s death brought to an end the Viking period, as no further raiding from Scandinavia took place. The last king of the line of Harald III was Sigurd I, whose rule lasted until his death in 1103.

Dynastic conflict followed the death of Sigurd, as Norway’s kings fought the jarls, or nobles, who threatened their power. Of the many later kings, the most notable was Sverre, king from 1184 to 1202. A statesman of great ability, Sverre built a strong monarchy and considerably weakened the power of the clergy and the great nobles. A period of peaceful and productive rule ensued during the long reign of Håkon IV (1217-1263), Sverre’s grandson.

Under Håkon IV, Norway reached the apex of its medieval prosperity and political and cultural power. Iceland was added to the kingdom in 1262, and the organization of a central government was completed, greatly increasing royal authority. Overseas trade flourished during this period. The landed aristocracy was virtually crushed by Håkon V, who reigned from 1299 to 1319, and Oslo became the capital of Norway, replacing Bergen as the principal city of the kingdom. Afterward the old noble families gradually declined, and for the most part the Norwegian people became a nation of peasants. The Hanseatic League, a powerful federation of German merchants and cities that supplied Norway’s grain, gradually entrenched itself in Bergen. This development foreshadowed a decline of the Norwegian merchant class, as the German traders secured privileges and came to control commercial activities.

Håkon V died in 1319 without male heirs, giving the throne to King Magnus II of Sweden, the three-year-old son of Håkon’s daughter. In 1343 Magnus was succeeded by his son, Håkon VI, and in 1380 the latter’s son, Oluf III, king of Denmark, became king of Norway as Olaf IV. The young king exercised only nominal rule, with real power held by his mother, Margaret I. When he died, he was succeeded by his mother as ruler of Norway and Denmark and, in 1389, of Sweden also. To obtain German support against the dukes of Mecklenburg, who claimed the Swedish throne, Margaret had her grandnephew, Eric of Pomerania, elected king.

E.

Union with Denmark and Sweden

By the Union of Kalmar in 1397, the kingdoms of Norway, Denmark, and Sweden were made a single administrative unit. Sweden and Denmark were larger and wealthier than Norway, which had lost much of its population and many of its farms in the mid-14th century during an outbreak of bubonic plague called the Black Death. In 1523 Sweden dropped out of the union, and Norway was increasingly treated as an appendage of the Danish crown.

In the wake of the introduction of Lutheranism as a state religion in Norway by Danish king Christian III in 1536, Norway became a province of Denmark. Norwegian culture came increasingly under Danish domination. The creation of a hereditary monarchy in Denmark in 1660 and the establishment of royal absolutism weakened the nobility and increased the administrative role of the state in political and economic affairs. However, the long-term impact of absolutism was generally benign, in contrast to the despotic forms it took in many other European states. During the subsequent centuries of Danish rule, Norway contributed its natural resources to building up the dual monarchy of Denmark-Norway. In particular, timber from Norwegian forests was exported to western Europe, and Norway developed an impressive shipping industry to carry on the trade.

The union with Denmark lasted until the Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815), when Denmark joined France against Britain—Norway’s primary trading partner. Britain quickly cut off trade with Norway, and the British navy blockaded Norwegian ports. The blockade led to a period of great hardship in Norway, but it also isolated the country from Denmark, and Norwegians began to assert control over their own affairs.

After the defeat of Napoleon I in 1814, Denmark was compelled to sign the Treaty of Kiel, ceding Norway to the king of Sweden—an ally of Britain against France. The Norwegians, however, disavowed the treaty. They declared themselves an independent kingdom, drew up a liberal constitution, and offered the throne to the Danish crown prince Christian Frederick (later Christian VIII of Denmark). The Norwegian move was opposed by the European powers, and the head of an army, Marshal Jean Bernadotte, later King Charles XIV John, persuaded Norway to accept the Treaty of Kiel. In return for its cooperation, Norway was allowed to retain the newly promulgated constitution. By the Act of Union of 1815, Norway was given its own army, navy, customs, and parliament (Storting), and was permitted full liberty and autonomy within its own boundaries.

F.

Second Union with Sweden

After 1815 the Storting was chiefly occupied with stabilizing and improving the financial condition of Norway and in implementing and guarding its newly won self-governance. Despite the bitter opposition of Swedish king Charles XIV John, an autocratic monarch, the Norwegian legislature passed a law in 1821 abolishing the titles of the nobility. The Storting held that the true Norwegian nobles were the peasant descendants of the medieval barons. Norwegian nationalism increased, and the Storting complained that Swedish treatment of Norway was inconsistent with the spirit of the Act of Union and with the status of Norway as a coequal state. In 1839 Charles XIV John appointed a joint committee of Swedes and Norwegians to revise the wording of the Act of Union. King Charles died in 1844, before the committee submitted its report. His son, Oscar I, admitted the justice of many Norwegian claims, and he granted Norway a national flag for its navy, although the flag bore the symbol of union with Sweden.

G.

Rising Nationalism

A liberal movement in Norwegian politics, which accompanied the surge of nationalism, became more pronounced after the revolutions of 1848 in the major countries of Europe. Political nationalism was bolstered by intellectual and cultural nationalism. Norwegian folktales and folk songs were collected and arranged and became highly popular. Norwegian dictionaries, histories, and grammars were compiled. The literary renaissance included such writers as Henrik Ibsen, Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, Jonas Lie, and Alexander Kielland.

When, in 1860, Sweden began to propose revisions in the Act of Union designed to enhance its power, the two greatest Norwegian political parties—the Lawyers Party and the Peasant Party—combined to form the liberal Venstre (Left) Party and blocked the revisions. Led by Johan Sverdrup, president of the Storting, the Norwegian legislature engaged in a long struggle with King Oscar II of Sweden over the issue of whether the king or the Storting would choose the cabinet (executive) in Norway. Under established tradition, the cabinet was responsible only to the Swedish king, giving the crown a permanent veto on legislation. Oscar was forced to yield in 1884, following the impeachment of his members from the Norwegian cabinet and their removal from office. Afterward, Oscar appointed Sverdrup to lead the first government responsible to the Storting, and Norway became a parliamentary democracy.

Once Norway had attained control over executive power, Norwegians demanded their own foreign minister to negotiate on behalf of the country. This was seen in Sweden as a threat to the authority of the king, and Sweden refused to capitulate. As a substitute policy, however, Norway demanded a separate consular service (to regulate Norway’s international economic and commercial relations) and a Norwegian flag for its merchant marine without the symbol of union. The flag was approved by Sweden in 1898, but Sweden balked at the demand for a consular service. Finally, in 1905, led by Prime Minister Christian Michelsen, the Storting declared the union with Sweden dissolved. In a plebiscite in August 1905 the Norwegian people voted overwhelmingly for separation from Sweden. The Swedish Riksdag (legislature) ratified the separation in October. A month later Prince Carl of Denmark accepted the Norwegian crown as Håkon VII.

H.

Independence

The Norwegian government, dominated by ministers with liberal politics, quickly became one of the most progressive in Europe in matters such as unemployment insurance benefits, old-age pensions, and liberal laws concerning divorce and illegitimacy. In 1913 Norwegian women achieved the right to vote in all national elections. In addition, new laws were passed to restrain foreign investment in Norway. The achievement of complete political independence coincided with the beginning of industrialization spurred by the development of waterpower and hydroelectricity. During the early 20th century the Norwegian merchant marine expanded its fleet of steam-powered ships, and Norwegian whaling vessels led the exploitation of waters around Antarctica.

I.

Norway During the World Wars

After the beginning of World War I in 1914 the sovereigns of Sweden, Norway, and Denmark agreed to maintain the neutrality of the Scandinavian countries and to cooperate for their mutual interest. This policy of neutrality and friendship continued as the joint policy of all three nations after the war ended. The world economic depression that began in 1929 affected Norway considerably because of the country’s dependence on international commerce. In 1935 the Labor Party was elected to power and it continued the policies of progressive liberalism that had dominated Norwegian politics since 1905.

Norway maintained its traditional neutrality when World War II began in 1939. Despite sympathy for Finland during the Russo-Finnish phase of the conflict, Norway rejected an Anglo-French demand for transit of troops to aid Finland. Germany’s maritime warfare along the Norwegian coast, however, made neutrality increasingly difficult. On April 8, 1940, the United Kingdom and France announced that they had mined Norwegian territorial waters to prevent their use by German supply ships. The next day German forces invaded Norway, occupying all the major cities and important ports in a well-coordinated and long-planned assault.

Within three weeks German troops had fanned out into the hinterland, dispersing the isolated Norwegian forces that remained. King Håkon VII and his cabinet, after an unsuccessful attempt at resistance, fled to the United Kingdom in June, where they continued to direct the merchant marine and a small infantry, navy, and air force. The Storting had empowered the king and the cabinet to exercise sovereignty from abroad, and for five years thereafter, London was the seat of the Norwegian government-in-exile.

Political leaders in Norway refused to cooperate in any way with Josef Terboven, the German commissioner. In September 1940 Terboven dissolved all political parties except the fascist and pro-German Nasjonal Samling (National Union), which had never won a seat in the Storting. Terboven set up a governing council composed of National Union members and other German sympathizers, and announced the abolition of the monarchy and the Storting. In 1942 Germany installed a puppet government in Norway under National Union leader Vidkun Quisling. However, resistance to the Germans and to the puppet regime was widespread. As the Norwegian opposition became more organized, general strikes and other forms of passive resistance gave way to large-scale industrial sabotage and espionage on behalf of the Allied Powers. Germany’s response, which included declarations of martial law and death sentences for conspirators, did little to contain the resistance.

The leaders of the resistance in Norway cooperated closely with the government-in-exile in London, preparing for eventual liberation. The German forces in Norway finally surrendered on May 8, 1945, and King Håkon returned to Norway in June. The immediate tasks facing Norway were reconstruction of an economy that had been stripped of its resources and the prosecution of about 90,000 alleged cases of treason and defection. To punish traitors, capital punishment, abolished in 1876, was restored (it was subsequently abolished again in 1979). Quisling—whose name has since become synonymous with treason—along with 23 other Norwegians, was tried and executed. The government-in-exile resigned after order was reestablished.

J.

Labor Governments

J.1.

Postwar Reconstruction

In the general elections of October 1945, the Labor Party won a majority of votes, bringing to power a Labor cabinet headed by Einar Gerhardsen. The party remained in power for the next 20 years. Under its stewardship, Norway developed into a social democracy and welfare state, became a charter member of the United Nations (UN) in 1945, participated in the European Recovery Program in 1947, and joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1949. NATO membership, by which Norway abandoned its traditional neutrality, was tacitly approved by the Norwegian people in the elections of October 1949.

The Norwegian economy came out of the war badly damaged by German exploitation and by domestic sabotage; retreating German troops burned many northern towns. Reconstruction began at once, directed by the Labor government. The government soon took over the planning of the entire economy in order to strengthen Norway’s position in international markets and redistribute the national wealth along more egalitarian lines. Subsidies were given to various industries and price controls were imposed on goods and services. Within three years, Norwegian gross domestic product (GDP) had reached its prewar level. This development was accompanied by new social legislation that greatly increased the welfare of the citizens. In 1959 Norway became one of the founding members of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), a trading bloc that went into force the following year.

J.2.

Declining Support for Labor

The parliamentary elections held in September 1961 resulted in the failure of the Labor Party to win a majority of seats for the first time since World War II, although it kept its place as the leading party. Gerhardsen, who had been prime minister since the end of the war, except for an interval from 1951 to 1955, was designated once again to head the cabinet. In 1965 the Labor Party was defeated in general elections, ending a 30-year period of rule. King Olaf V, who had succeeded Håkon VII on the latter’s death in 1957, then asked Per Borten, leader of the Center Party, to form a government as head of a coalition of nonsocialist parties. Norway’s economic policies, however, did not markedly change. Norway instituted a comprehensive social security program in 1967.

Although it was not obvious at the time, the Labor Party’s defeat in 1965 had closed an era in Norwegian history. The dominance of the Labor Party was at an end. Although it would continue to be Norway’s largest party, Labor would no longer be able to achieve majority status on its own. The succeeding decades of the 20th century would be characterized by coalition governments and conflict over Norway’s place within Europe.

K.

Political Shifts and Internal Divisions

In 1970 Norway applied for membership in the European Community (EC), now called the European Union (EU), a move that split the citizenry and government. Many Norwegians opposed membership, fearing that their fishing, farming, and other industries would be at a competitive disadvantage. The following year Per Borten resigned after charges surfaced that he had divulged confidential information. Trygve Bratteli of the Labor Party then formed a minority government that campaigned strongly for EC membership. In a referendum in 1972, however, the voters rejected the government’s recommendation. As a result, the government resigned and was succeeded by a centrist coalition headed by Lars Korvald of the Christian People’s Party. In 1973 Norway signed a free-trade agreement with the EC. Labor suffered considerable losses in the 1973 elections, but Bratteli again was able to form a minority government.

Bratteli resigned in 1976, but the party remained in power until the elections of 1981. From February to October 1981, the party was headed by Gro Harlem Brundtland, Norway’s first female prime minister. The nonsocialist parties gained a comfortable majority in September, and Kåre Willoch of the Conservative Party formed a coalition government in October. A broader coalition government, again headed by Willoch, was formed in 1983 and was reelected in 1985.

Petroleum and natural gas deposits had been discovered in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea in the late 1960s, and exploitation by a state company began in the 1970s. By the early 1980s oil and gas from the North Sea fields accounted for some 30 percent of Norway’s annual export earnings. Oil prices dropped abruptly in 1985 and 1986, and the prospect of lower tax revenues and reduced export earnings led the Willoch government to call for higher gasoline taxes in April 1986. Willoch lost a vote of no confidence on the issue and was succeeded by a minority Labor government led by Brundtland. She resigned after inconclusive elections in 1989, carrying Labor into the opposition.

Jan P. Syse of the Conservative Party succeeded Brundtland as prime minister, heading a minority center-right coalition. The Syse government’s tenure, however, was short. Unable to agree on a common position concerning future relations with the EC, it fell in 1990 and was replaced by another minority Labor government led by Brundtland. Again, Norway’s relationship with Europe was at the center of national politics. The death of King Olaf V in January 1991 and the succession by his son, Harald V, left Norwegians mourning their beloved king but still split on the issue of joining the rest of Europe. The Center Party emerged as the principal opponent of integration, arguing that Norwegian sovereignty would be compromised and its welfare state policies eroded.

Brundtland’s Labor government returned to power following the 1993 general election. In May 1994 the European Parliament endorsed membership for Norway in the EU. However, aided by a rush of Norwegian patriotism and nationalism following the Lillehammer Winter Olympic Games in February 1994, Norwegians voted down membership in the EU in a November 1994 referendum.

Brundtland had stepped down as Labor Party leader in 1992 and was replaced by Thorbjørn Jagland. In 1996 Brundtland abruptly resigned as prime minister and was succeeded by Jagland. Jagland’s term in office was marred by scandals among his cabinet members, and he was sharply criticized by the opposition for rejecting a proposal to increase pension payments for the elderly. Although the Labor Party won the largest share of seats in the 1997 general election, Jagland stepped down as prime minister, honoring his pledge to resign the post should his party receive fewer votes than it did in 1993. An alliance led by Kjell Magne Bondevik, a leader of the Christian People’s Party, attracted enough support to form a government. Bondevik’s minority coalition government also included the Center and Liberal parties.

Bondevik resigned as prime minister in 2000 after losing a no-confidence vote over the issue of whether to build gas-fired electricity plants in Norway. Bondevik strongly opposed the plants, which would have required Norway to amend its strict antipollution laws. Bondevik was replaced by Labor Party leader Jens Stoltenberg. Stoltenberg, although initially providing a spark when he took over as prime minister, was unable to stem the electoral decline of the Labor Party, which suffered a devastating defeat in the 2001 elections.

Bondevik returned as prime minister leading a new center-right coalition of the Christian People’s Party, the Conservative Party, and the Liberal Party. The coalition’s platform included lower taxes, more privatization, and reforms in health care, education, and welfare. In order to gain a parliamentary majority, Bondevik’s coalition won backing from the far-right Progress Party, which, although the largest nonsocialist party after the 2001 elections, remained formally outside the coalition. Over the next four years Bondevik’s government implemented major economic reforms, including tax cuts for businesses. Meanwhile, record high oil prices on the world market boosted government revenues and led to unprecedented economic prosperity in Norway.

Management of the country’s huge oil wealth became the central debate in the 2005 election campaign. Labor Party leader Stoltenberg accused Bondevik’s government of neglecting welfare services and promised to spend more on health care and education. Bondevik advocated additional tax cuts, which Stoltenberg opposed. In September voters overwhelmingly supported Stoltenberg’s center-left bloc, which included the Labor, Socialist Left, and Center parties. The bloc won 87 seats in the 169-member Storting (parliament), giving Norway its first majority government in 20 years. As leader of the Labor Party, which won 61 seats, Stoltenberg became the new prime minister.

L.

Foreign Affairs

In foreign affairs Norway has sought to expand its participation in international organizations such as the United Nations (UN). Norway has also emphasized its commitment to international peace talks, demonstrated in 1993 by its role in hosting negotiations between Israel and Palestinians, which resulted in the establishment of the Palestinian National Authority under the so-called Oslo Accords. Since then, Norwegian diplomats have sought to help resolve international conflicts in many regions, including Afghanistan, Colombia, Guatemala, East Timor, Sri Lanka, Somalia, and Sudan. However, the character of Norway’s larger place within Europe—exemplified by the debate over Norway’s possible membership in the European Union (EU)—remains a divisive and unresolved issue.