Norway in 1814
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1814 was a pivotal year in Norwegian history. It started with Norway as a part of the Danish kingdom subject to a naval blockade, saw a constitutional convention in May that was frustrated only months later, and ended up with Norway as part of a personal union with Sweden. Although nationalist aspirations were not to be fully realized until the events of 1905, 1814 was the crisis and turning point in events that would lead to a fully independent Norway.
The year contains the story of two ambitious future kings in Scandinavia who both may have hoped to unite Sweden, Denmark, and Norway under their throne. The Norwegian people and their leaders were caught in the middle of this rivalry, attempting through the crisis to create a measure of self-determination.
[edit] To save Denmark, Frederick VI gives up Norway
Denmark had become entangled on the French side in the Napoleonic War through its participation in the Gunboat War. Having lost its fleet, it was virtually defenseless as the tides turned against France.
On January 7, about to be overrun by Swedish, Russian, and German troops under the command of the elected crown prince of Sweden, Jean Baptiste Jules (Carl Johan) Bernadotte, the Danish king Frederick VI of Denmark agreed to cede Norway in order to avoid an occupation of Jutland. Already in Norway, the Danish viceroy of Norway, Hereditary Prince Christian Frederick had stirred patriotic sentiments in favor of the Danish king, possibly planning an open revolt against the victors. As a result, Frederick VI decided to cede Norway by relinquishing all claims to the Norwegian throne.
These terms were formalized and signed at the Treaty of Kiel on January 14, though Denmark negotiated to maintain sovereignty over Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Iceland. Secret correspondence from the British government in the preceding days had put pressure on the negotiating parties to reach an agreement to avoid a full-scale invasion of Denmark. Bernadotte sent a letter to the governments of Prussia, Austria, and Great Britain thanking them for their support, acknowledging the role of Russia in negotiating the peace, and envisaging greater stability in the Nordic region.
On January 18, the Danish king issued a letter to the Norwegian people, releasing them from their fealty to him.
[edit] The Danish hereditary prince has other plans
All the while, Christian Frederik was contemplating Norwegian independence, planning an independent government with himself at the head. On January 24, he received a letter from his cousin, the king of Denmark, ordering him to surrender border fortresses and return to Denmark. The Danish hereditary prince kept the contents of the letter to himself, ordering his troops to hold the fortresses. He also ordered the issuance of currency in Norway with the Norwegian seal, and these "prince dollars" became the first paper money issued in Norway, though the prince refused to set up a Norwegian central bank. In time, the monetary expansion led to inflation and uncertainty in the financial markets.
On January 30 in Eidsvoll, Christian Frederik convened several Norwegian advisors, arguing that king Frederick had no legal right to relinquish his inheritance, asserting that he was the rightful king of Norway, and that Norway had a right to self-determination. His impromptu council agreed with him, setting the stage for an independence movement.
On February 2, the Norwegian public learned that their country was ceded to Sweden. There was growing enthusiasm for Christian Frederik's ideas for an independent Norway. On February 8, Bernadotte responded by sending an army to occupy Norway, promising a constitutional convention, and threatening a continued grain embargo against Norway if Sweden's claims under the treaty of Kiel were not met.
[edit] The independence movement solidifies and is threatened by war
On February 10, Christian Frederik invited prominent Norwegians to a meeting to be held at his friend Carsten Anker's estate in Eidsvoll. On February 14, the crown prince proclaimed his intent to resist Swedish hegemony and claim the Norwegian crown as his inheritance. But at an emotional meeting in Eidsvoll on February 16, prominent Norwegian leaders convinced him that Norway's claim to independence should rather be based on the principle of self-determination, and that he should act as a regent. Arriving in Christiania on February 19, Christian Frederik proclaimed himself regent of Norway and sent out invitations to a constitutional convention to commence on April 10.
On February 20, the Swedish government sent a mission to Christian Fredrik that warned him that Norway's independence movement is a violation of the treaty of Kiel and put Norway at war with the victorious parties in the Napoleonic War. The consequences would be famine and bankruptcy. Christian Fredrik sent letters through his personal network to governments throughout Norway, assuring them that he was not leading a Danish conspiracy to reverse the terms of the treaty of Kiel, but rather his efforts reflected the Norwegian will for self-determination. He also sought a secret accommodation with Napoleon.
The mission from the Swedish government arrived in Christiania on February 24 and met with Christian Frederik. Christian Frederik refused to accept a proclamation from the Swedish king but insisted on reading his letter to the Norwegian people, proclaiming himself regent. The Swedish delegation characterized his decisions as reckless and illegal, asking for leave to return to Sweden. The day after, church bells in Christiania rang for a full hour, and the city's citizens convened to swear fealty to Christian Frederik. On February 26, he initiated a long correspondence with the Swedish government.
Carsten Anker was sent to London to negotiate recognition by the British government and found that Swedish authorities were canvassing border areas with pamphlets subverting the independence movement. By early March, Christian Frederik had also convened a council and five departments, though he retained all decision-making authority.
[edit] Christian Frederik meets increasing opposition from within and abroad
Count Wedel-Jarlsberg, one of the most prominent of the Norwegian nobility arrived in Norway on March 3 and confronted the regent, accusing him of playing a dangerous game. Christian Frederik responded by accusing Wedel-Jarlsberg of colluding with the Swedes. Returns from elections for delegates to the constitutional convention also showed there were widespread misgivings about the independence movement. By the end of March, there is openly expressed concern in Norway that Christian Frederik's ambition is to bring Norway back under Danish sovereignty.
Before Carsten Anker arrived in England, the British foreign secretary Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh reimposed the naval blockade of Norway and assured the Swedish king that the British would not accept any Norwegian claims of sovereignty. A conciliatory letter sent by Christian Frederik to the Swedish king was returned unopened. On March 9, the Swedish mission to Copenhagen demanded that Christian Frederik be disinherited from succession to the Danish throne, and that European powers would go to war with Denmark unless she disassociated herself from the Norwegian independence movement. On March 17, Niels Rosenkrantz, the Danish foreign ministry responds to Swedish demands by asserting that the Danish government in no way supported Norwegian independence, but that they could not vacate border posts they did not hold. The demand for disinheriting Christian Frederik did not get addressed.
In several letters to Hans Henrik von Essen, the commander of the Swedish military force at Norway's borders, Bernadotte referred to Christian Frederik as a rebel who had probably been misled by the Danish nobility. He ordered his forces to treat all Danish officials who did not return home to be treated as outlaws, and all use of the "prince dollars" to be considered counterfeiters. Swedish troops amassed along the border to Norway, and there were daily rumors of an invasion.
In spite of his open opposition to Christian Frederik, Wedel-Jarlsberg was elected as a delegate to the constitutional convention on March 14. There were clear signs that the convention, only weeks away, would be contentious.
Carsten Anker arrived in London on March 24, where he met with an undersecretary of foreign affairs. The undersecretary rejected Anker's appeal for self-determination and Anker found all other doors closed to him in London. On March 29, Christian Frederik sent Carsten Anker's brother Peder to London as an unofficial emissary. On April 3, Carsten Anker was imprisoned for three days in debtors' prison on account of an old debt, probably at the behest of the Swedish ambassador to London.
On March 31, Christian Frederik arrested officers of the Danish brigs stationed in Norway as they were preparing to follow orders to bring the ships to Norway. The ships are confiscated.
On April 1, Frederik VI sent a letter to Christian Frederik, asking him to give up his efforts and return to Denmark. The possibility of disinheriting the crown prince was mentioned in the letter. Christian Frederik rejected the overture, in the same letter invoking Norway's right to self-determination and the possibility of keeping Norway under the Danish throne. A few days later, Christian Frederik warned off a meeting with the Danish foreign minister Niels Rosenkrantz, pointing out that such a meeting would fuel speculation that the prince was motivated by Danish designs on Norway.
[edit] The constitutional convention
Although the European powers refused to acknowledge the Norwegian independence movement, there were signs by early April that they were not inclined to support Sweden in an all-out confrontation on the matter.
As time approaches for the constitutional convention, there was growing support for opposition to the treaty of Kiel, especially from Bergen.
On April 10, the constitutional convention convened for the first time, at church services in Eidsvoll. The sermon caused some stir by flattering Christian Frederik in particular and the monarchy in general. The delegates' were accredited that afternoon, after Severin Løvenskiold had refused to give fealty to the independence movement.
Seated on uncomfortable benches, the convention elected its officers in the presence of Christian Frederik on April 11. The debates started on April 12, when Nicolai Wergeland and Georg Sverdrup argued over the mandate of the assembly and the basis for the regent's legitimacy. Party lines took form, with the "Independence party," variously known as the "Danish party," "the Prince's party," or "the urgent" on one side of the aisle; and the "Union Party," also known as the "western party," "Swedish party," or "the hesitant" on the other.
As it turned out, there was a clear consensus among all delegates that independence would be the ideal solution, but there was disagreement what solution was workable given real-world constraints.
- The Independence party had the majority and argued that the mandate of the convention was limited to formalizing Norway's independence based on the popular oath of fealty from earlier that year. With Christian Frederik as the regent, the relationship with Denmark would be negotiated within the context of Norwegian independence.
- The Union party was in minority believed that Norway would achieve more of its independence within a loose union with Sweden than as part of the Danish monarchy, and that the assembly should continue its work even after the constitution was complete.
A constitutional committee presented its proposals on April 16, which provoked lively debate. The Independence party won the day with a vote 78-33 to establish Norway as an independent monarchy. There was also lively debate on the issue of military conscription, in which the upper classes argued for exemption. In the following days, mutual suspicion and distrust came to the surface within the convention. In particular, delegates disagreed on whether to give the sentiments of the European powers consideration, and some facts may have been withheld from the convention.
By April 20, the principle of the people's right to self-determination articulated by Christian Magnus Falsen and Gunder Adler had been established as foundational for the framing of the constitution. Continued work and debate is characterized by acrimony and recrimination, but the constitutional committee makes progress.
[edit] Framing the constitution
On May 1, the first draft of the constitution was signed by the drafting committee. In addition to the principle of the Norwegian people's right to self-determination, the constitution's key precepts included the assurance of individual freedom, the right to property, and equality.
Following a contentious debate on May 4, the assembly decided that Norway would profess itself to the Lutheran-Evangelical faith, that its monarch must always have profess himself to this faith (thereby precluding the Catholic-born Bernadotte from being a king), and that Jews and Jesuits would be barred from entering the kingdom.
On May 5, the Independence party lost another battle when the assembly voted 98 to 11 to allow the kingdom's monarch to reign over another country with the assent of two thirds of the legislative assembly's vote.
On May 7, the assembly effectively abolished aristocracy in Norway, allowing the disposition of hereditary rights to be decided by a future legislative body. On May 8, proposed laws concerning naturalization and suffrage were debated. On the next day, it was decided that foreign citizens would be eligible after ten years of residency, and that the right to vote would be extended to men who were either farmers who owned their own land, civil servants, or urban property owners. With this, about half of all Norwegian men earned the right to vote, a radical proposition at the time.
On May 8, the assembly decided on a bicameral legislative body to be known as the Storting with the expectation that one would be an upper house and the other a lower house. They also vested the right to establish and collect taxes in the legislative body. The assembly also passed the so-called "farmer's paragraph" that stipulates that two-thirds of the Storting had to be elected from rural districs, and one-third from urban areas. (This paragraph remained in force until 1952).
On May 11, the assembly overwhelmingly passed universal conscription, over the objections of the financial and administrative elite, who threatened mass emigration if their sons were forced into military service.
On May 13, after two days of debate, the assembly passed a law in which the assembly guaranteed the issue of a Norwegian currency. The Union party opposed this, claiming that there simply wasn't an economic basis for an independent currency. The Independence party, carrying the day, responded that an independent currency was necessary to ensure the existence of an independent state, regardless of the financial considerations. Nevertheless, on the next day, the assembly decided to postpone the establishment of a central bank until a legislative body was in session. Christian Frederik was dismayed by this decision.
Although the final edit of the constitution was signed on May 16, the unanimous election of Christian Frederik on May 17 is considered Constitution Day in Norway. The election was unanimous, but several of the delegates had asked that it be postponed until the political situation had stabilized.
On May 20, the assembly adjourned, joining hands and proclaiming that they would remain "in agreement and faithful until Dovre falls!"
[edit] Seeking domestic and international legitimacy
On May 22, the newly elected king makes a triumphant entrance to Christiania, exactly one year after he first arrived as viceroy to Norway. The cannons at Akershus Fortress sound off the royal salute, and a celebratory service was held at the Oslo cathedral. There is continuing concern about the international climate, and on May 24 the government decided to send two of the delegates from the constitutional assembly to join Carsten Anker in England to make Norway's case.
On May 25 the first council of state convened, establishing the nation's supreme court.
On May 31, general major Johannes Klingenberg Sejersted proposed to take a stand against invading Swedish forces at the river Glomma, but some believed that the Swedes should be stopped at the border.
On June 5, the British emissary John Philip Morier arrived in Christiania on what appeared to be an unofficial visit. He accepted the hospitality of one of Christian Frederik's ministers and agreed to meet with the king himself informally, stressing that nothing he did should be construed as a recognition of Norwegian independence. Rumors fly that Morier wanted Bernadotte deposed and exiled to the Danish island of Bornholm.
Christian Frederik asked Great Britain to mediate between Norway and Sweden, but Morier never deviated from the British rejection of an independent Norway. He offered to bring the Norwegian emissaries Niels Aall and Wilhelm Christie to England on his ship, but does not follow through on his promise. He demanded that Norway subject itself to Swedish supremacy, and also that his government's position be printed in all Norwegian newspapers. On June 10, the Norwegian army was ordered mobilized and arms and ammunitions distributed.
On June 13, Christian Frederik also ordered a census in preparation for parliamentary elections.
On June 16, Carsten Anker sent a letter to Christian Frederik in which he made references to discussions he has had with a high-ranking Prussian diplomat. He learned that Prussia and Austria were waning in their support of Sweden's claims to Norway, that Tsar Alexander I of Russia (a distant cousin of Christian Frederik's) favored a Swedish-Norwegian union but not with Bernadotte as the king, and Great Britain was looking for a solution to the problem that kept Norway out of Russia's influence.
[edit] Prelude to war
On June 26, emissaries from Russia, Prussia, Austria, and Great Britain arrived in Vänersborg in Sweden to convince Christian Frederik to comply with the provisions of the treaty of Kiel. There they conferred with von Essen, who said there were 65,000 Swedish troops ready to invade Norway. On June 30 the group arrived in Christiania, where they rudely turned down Christian Frederik's hospitality. Meeting with the Norwegian council of state the following day, the Russian emissary Orlow put the choice to those present: Norway could subject itself to the Swedish crown or face war with the rest of Europe. When Christian Frederik argued that the Norwegian people had a right to determine its own destiny, the Austrian emissary August Ernst Steigentesch made the famous comment:
- The people? What do they have to say against the will of its rulers? That would be to put the world on its head.
In the course of the negotiations, Christian Frederik, offered to relinquish the throne and return to Denmark, provided the Norwegians have a say in their future through an extraordinary session in the Storting. But he refused to surrender the Norwegian border forts to Swedish troops. On 15 July the four-power delegation rejected Christian Frederik's proposal that Norway's constitution form the basis for negotiations about a union with Sweden, but promised to put the proposal to the Swedish king for consideration. The negotiations were a partial success in that the delegation left convinced that Christian Frederik was sincere and had the backing of a popular movement.
On July 20, Bernadotte sent a letter to his "cousin" Christian Frederik accusing him of intrigues and foolhardly adventurism. To add to the problems, the three Norwegians who had made their way to London were arrested there with false passports and papers. They were deported immediately.
On July 22, Bernadotte met with the delegation that had been in Norway. They encouraged him to consider Christian Frederik's proposed terms for a union with Sweden, but the crown prince was outraged. He reiterated his ultimatum that Christian Frederik either relinquish all rights to the throne and abandon the border posts, or face war. On July 27, a Swedish naval fleet took over Hvaler, effectively putting Sweden at war with Norway. The day after, Christian Frederik rejected the Swedish ultimatum, saying that such a surrender would constitute treason against the Norwegian people. On July 29, Swedish forces moved to invade Norway.
[edit] A short but decisive war
Swedish forces met no resistance as they advance westward into Norway, and on August 3 Christian Frederik announces his political will in a council of state in Moss. The first hostilities were short and ended with decisive victories for Sweden. Christian Frederik ordered a retreat.
On August 7 a delegation from Bernadotte arrived at the Norwegian headquarters in Spydeberg with a cease-fire offer that would join Norway in a union with Sweden and respect the Norwegian constitution. The day after, Christian Frederik expressed favor to the terms, allowing Swedish troops to remain in positions east of Glomma. Hostilities broke out at Glomma, resulting in casualties, but the Norwegian forces were ordered to retreat. By August 13, it had been become clear to military and political leadership alike that Norway has no hope of prevailing against the Swedish troops. On August 14, the Convention of Moss resulted in a general cease-fire based on terms that effectively are terms of peace.
[edit] An uneasy, but durable cease-fire
The news hit the Norwegian public hard, and reactions included anger at the "cowardice" and "treason" of the military commanders, despair over the prospects of Norwegian nationhood, and confusion about the country's options. Christian Frederik abdicated the throne for "reasons of health," leaving his authority with the state council as agreed in a secret protocol at Moss. In a letter dated, August 28, Christian Frederik ordered the council to accept orders from the "highest authority," clearly referring to the Swedish king. Two days later, the Swedish king announced that he was ruler of both Sweden and Norway.
On September 3, the British announced that the naval blockade of Norway was lifted. Postal service between Norway and Sweden was resumed. By September 8, prominent Norwegians were taking note of the generous terms offered by Bernadotte. The Swedish general in Norway, Magnus Fredrik Ferdinand Björnstjerna, threatened with war to force the Norwegians to more strictly abiding by the armistice agreement and more eagerly accepting the union with Sweden. Christian Frederik was reputed to have fallen into a deep funk and was variously blamed for the battleground defeats.
In late September, a dispute arose between Swedish authorities and the Norwegian council of state over the distribution of grain among the poor in Oslo. The grain was intended as a gift from the Swedish king to the Norwegians, but it became a matter of principle for the Norwegian council to avoid the appearance that Norway had a new king until the transition was formalized. Björnstjerna sent several missives threatening to resume hostilities.
On 26 September, the Norwegian general in the "northern" region of Norway, Carl Jacob Waldemar von Schmettow vowed in Norwegian newspapers to forcibly resist any Swedish troop movements into Norway.
[edit] Easing into a new arrangement
In early October, Norwegians again refused to accept a shipment of corn from Bernadotte, and Norwegian merchants instead assumed loans to purchase food and other necessities from Denmark. However, by early October, there were emerging support for a union with Sweden. On October 7, an extraordinary session of the Norwegian parliament convened. Delegates from areas occupied by Sweden in Østfold were admitted only after submitting assurances they had no loyalty to the Swedish authorities. On October 10, Christian Frederik signed a declaration renouncing his claim to the throne of Norway.
On October 20, with one day to spare before the cease-fire expired, the Norwegian parliament voted 72 to 5 to join Sweden in a personal union, but a motion to elect Charles XIII king of Norway failed to pass. The issue was tabled pending the necessary amendments to the Norwegian constitution. In the following days, the parliament passed several resolutions to assert as much sovereignty as possible under the union. On November 1, they voted 52 to 25 that Norway did not its own consuls, a decision that would have serious consequences in 1905. On November 4, parliament unanimously elected Charles XIII king of Norway, rather than acknowledging him as such.
