The Story of Norway

by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen

As the insanity of the king made him unable to attend to the government, his son, Crown Prince Frederick, became, in 1784, the responsible regent, and made an excellent selection of a premier in Andreas Bernsdorff (1784-1797). This capable and enlightened man piloted Denmark and Norway safely through the stormy times of the French Revolution. In the latter country four provincial superior courts were established, and a peculiar institution called "commissions of reconciliations," intended to prevent litigation. In 1800 Denmark had the imprudence to conclude a treaty of armed neutrality with Russia and Sweden, with a view to resisting the right, which England demanded, of searching the ships of non-combatants for munitions of war. It was the aim of England to cut France off from all commercial intercourse with the rest of the world and, as munitions of war were regarded not only guns and powder, but grain and all kinds of provisions. The Norwegian and Danish merchant marines, which were then doing a great business as carriers, were injured by this arbitrary interpretation. The government was, however, not strong enough to bid defiance to England, and after the battle in Copenhagen harbor (April 2, 1801) Denmark was forced to retire from the "armed neutrality." The crown prince, Frederick, seemed, however, to have a poor idea of the power of England, for his policy soon again began to show symptoms of friendliness for the emperor of the French. According to a secret agreement between Napoleon and Alexander of Russia (1807) at the Peace of Tilsit, the former was to take possession of the Danish fleet, and by means of it dispute England's dominion over the sea. The English government soon got wind of this plan, and immediately demanded the temporary surrender of the Danish fleet, guaranteeing its return as soon as peace was reëstablished. When this demand was refused, the English landed troops on Seeland and surrounded Copenhagen, while from the sea side they bombarded the city for three days and a half (1807). The Danes then had no choice but to surrender their fleet, but, owing to their resistance, it was never returned. This second battle of Copenhagen threw Denmark more completely into the arms of Napoleon, and when the emperor's star declined and set, his ally was left helpless at the mercy of his enemies.

Owing to the isolation of Denmark during the war and the difficulty of maintaining communication, Norway was temporarily governed by a commission, or council of regency, under the presidency of Prince Christian August of Augustenborg.

PEASANTS DANCING.

When Frederick VI. (1808-1814), at the death of his insane father, mounted the throne, the condition of his two countries was deplorable. His wrong-headed policy had placed him in a position which was wellnigh desperate. The war with England had put an embargo upon all commerce, and famine and misery were the result. Norway, which, without being consulted, had been dragged into this maze of difficulties, suffered from constant naval attacks, to which it was, by its long coast-line, particularly exposed. The finances were in hopeless disorder. To add to the confusion, a war broke out with Sweden, which, in time, had seen its advantage in seeking an English alliance. General Armfelt once more invaded the country, but Christian August did not lose his courage. The Council of Regency unfolded a heroic activity in carrying out his measures for the defence of the land, and divisions of Norwegian troops beat the Swedes in three successive fights (Toverud, Trangen, and Prestebakke). Simultaneously Sweden was attacked by Russia, which had guaranteed to enforce the stipulations of the Peace of Tilsit, one of which was the blockading of the Swedish ports against the English. But the obstinate king, Gustavus IV., would not give his consent to this measure, in consequence of which the Russians invaded Finland, and, after several hotly contested engagements, drove the Swedes out. The result of these disasters was the dethronement of the king and the election of his brother, Charles XIII., as his successor. As the latter was childless, he was induced to adopt the regent of Norway, Prince Christian August, as his heir, and there was thus a chance of the peaceful union of Norway and Sweden under an able and popular king. But, unhappily, this beloved prince died very soon after, at a review of troops in Skaane (1809). At the Peace of Frederickshamn, Sweden was obliged to cede Finland to Russia, but by the Treaty of Paris was guaranteed possession of Pomerania, on condition of its adhering to Napoleon's so-called "continental system." This naturally involved war with England, which was the one unconquered and irreconcilable enemy of the emperor; but as long as Sweden refrained from actively aiding Napoleon, England, which had its hands full elsewhere, assumed an expectant attitude and exercised no hostilities. But this semi-neutrality was far from satisfying Napoleon. Enraged by the indecision of Charles XIII., he again occupied Pomerania, thereby giving Sweden a pretext for openly siding with his enemies. Peace was concluded with England at Oerebro (1812), and soon after Sweden joined the great European alliance, which had for its object the overthrow of Napoleon.

This change of policy was, no doubt, to a large extent, due to Jean Baptiste Bernadotte, Prince of Pontecorvo, who had risen from the ranks in Napoleon's service, had become a field marshal, and after the death of Christian August, had been made crown prince of Sweden (1812). At a meeting with Alexander of Russia at Aabo, he was promised Norway, as a reward for his adherence to the cause of the allies; and the same promise was later repeated by England.

The condition of Norway, during this period, was aggravated by the continued blockading of her ports by the English. In 1812 a famine broke out, and the people were obliged to grind birch bark into flour and bake it into bread. The depreciation of the Danish paper money swept away the savings of thousands of families, and demoralized all commercial relations. Everywhere the greatest discontent prevailed at the union with Denmark, which had brought the country to such a strait. The tardy grant of a charter for a Norwegian University (1811) which had before been refused, caused a temporary enthusiasm, but did not allay the discontent. The political sense which seemed to have been dormant for centuries, began to awake again, and a feeling of independence and a desire for national self-assertion found expression in the Society for Norway's Welfare, (1810), in the liberal contributions to the University, and in a sudden patriotic ferment, which pervaded the land. The native official class came to the front as the leaders and exponents of these political aspirations, and rendered important service by formulating the people's desires and leading them toward rational aims. To be disposed of, like chattels, by foreign powers, which had no sympathy with Norway's traditions, nor interest in her welfare, was revolting to their self-respect, and amid all the insecurity, which the various moves upon the foreign diplomatic chess-board produced, a stubborn determination to resist to the utmost asserted itself among the thinking classes of the people.

As long, however, as Norway was a mere appendage of Denmark, it could not escape being involved in the consequences of King Frederick's policy. When, after Napoleon's disastrous campaign in Russia, the allies demanded the surrender of Norway to Sweden, the king refused and sent his cousin, Prince Christian Frederick, to govern the country as viceroy. But Napoleon's defeat at Leipsic and Bernadotte's invasion of Holstein, at the head of a large army, compelled him to come to terms. At the Peace of Kiel, (January 14, 1814) he ceded Norway to Sweden, and soon after released the Norsemen from their allegiance to him, giving up all claim upon their country for himself and his descendants.