These seafaring warriors-known collectively as Vikings or Norsemen. The history of Scandinavia is the history of the geographical region of Scandinavia and its peoples. [5] Many of the legendary kings would have ruled during the Migration Period (c. 375550) and subsequent Vendel Period (c. 550790), but larger political structures in Scandinavia (i. e. the medieval kingdoms of Sweden, Norway and Denmark) are not believed to have formed and centralized until the Viking Age. The missionary Ansgar travelled to Sweden several times during the 9th century in an attempt to Christianize the Swedes. Because he was the first King to rule over the entirety of Norway, he is considered the country's first King. In the writings of his companion Rimbert, the Vita Ansgari, several Swedish kings (who all precede Eric the Victorious) and who they met or heard of at Birka, an important Viking Age trading center, are mentioned. He was recognized as the best of the Norsemen that secured the French territory and was recognized as the ruler of the area when the French king ceded it to them in 911. Vikings placed heavy emphasis on battle, honor and focused on the idea of Valhalla, a mythical home with the gods for fallen warriors. [1] The figure for Norway represents almost 80% of the national population in 1800. [19], The Muns dynasty of kings is the earliest royal lineage that is mentioned not only in Icelandic sagas, but also in medieval Swedish sources. Olaf Tryggvason: Olaf Tryggvason (964-1000) was the first to have widespread evangelistic success in Norway. As with the Yngling kings, precise dates are not presented in the sagas for Ivar Vidfamne or his descendants, but his reign is estimated to have taken place in the 7th century. This page was last edited on 26 April 2023, at 00:01. However, brave Norwegians managed to save over half of the Jewish population from Nazi death camps and help them to escape to safety in Sweden, even though they ran the risk of being severely punished for aiding Jews. In Icelandic sources, such as the 12th/13th-century Langfegatal, Olof Sktkonung is regarded as a late ruler of a significantly older dynasty, stretching back to legendary Viking hero Ragnar Lodbrok. Little evidence remains in Scandinavia of the Stone Age, the Bronze Age, or the Iron Age except limited numbers of tools created from stone, bronze, and iron, some jewelry and ornaments, and stone burial cairns. Finland and Iceland are at times, especially in English-speaking contexts, considered part of Scandinavia. During Vasa's reign the right to inherit the Swedish crown was ratified through so called succession agreements. As a result of the adoption of Christianity by the monarchy and eventually the entirety of the country, traditional shamanistic practices were marginalized and eventually persecuted. Ynglinga saga appears to have been based on an earlier scaldic poem, Ynglingatal, which is quoted at length by Snorri. There are also numerous artifacts of bronze and gold. In the eighth century A.D., Europe was growing richer, fueling the growth of trading centers such as Dorestad and Quentovic on the Continent and Hamwic (now Southampton), London, Ipswich and York in England. More than 96% of the Jewish population was boated to safety in Sweden, while others found refuge with Christian Danish families and organizations. The construction of a railway connecting southern Sweden and the northern mines was of primary importance. The centralization of power under one monarch is believed to have resulted from, or at the very least have been connected to, Viking expansion, with petty kings increasing their power through aggressive military ventures directed both to foreign lands (i. e. Viking raids) and against their neighbors. As a result of the war, Russia supplanted Sweden as the dominant power on the Baltic Sea and became a major player in European politics. Olaf and Olaf II had been baptized voluntarily outside of Norway. They founded Irelands first trading towns: Dublin, Waterford, Wexford, Wicklow and Limerick, and used their base on the Irish coast to launch attacks within Ireland and across the Irish Sea to England. From c. 9,000 to 6,000 B.P. However, bitterness towards Germany grew, and small sabotages directed against Germany became commonplace. From around A.D. 800 to the 11th century, a vast number of Scandinavians left their homelands to seek their fortunes elsewhere. The first "king of Norway" in that sense was Hkon Aalsteinsfostri ("Hakon the Foster-son of Athalstein"), who ruled from about 935 to 960. As Ivar is described as building a vast empire, including parts of Britain and northern Germany, it is unlikely that contemporary and later writers in Europe would not have written of him, had he existed. Britain believed Germany was planning to invade and made counter plans for its own invasion. His reign saw an extended period of internal peace, although state finances stagnated following failed mercantilist doctrines pursued by the Hat administration. Some valleys close to the watershed were indeed ice-free around 30 000 years B.P. While many Germanic tribes sustained continued contact with the culture and military presence of the Roman Empire, much of Scandinavia existed on the most extreme periphery of the Latin world. Gunhild of Wenden 4. Sweden had the short lived colony New Sweden in Delaware in North America during the 1630s and later acquired the islands of Saint-Barthlemy (17851878) and Guadeloupe in the Caribbean. We exists to inform people about the people, culture, and history . The inglorious deaths of many of the Swedish Ynglings; with examples such as murder, burning to death, drowning in mead and being "hag-ridden" to death,[15] might be an attempt by Sturluson to say that the kings who ruled Norway in his time and claimed Yngling descent were not to be taken seriously. Bronze continued to be used for torques and kettles, the style of which were a continuity from the Bronze Age. [12] These hunters and gatherers of the late Paleolithic and early Mesolithic were named Komsa by the researchers as what they identified themselves as is unknown. None of the Scandinavian countries (except Finland) have joined the Euro, membership being rejected by referendum in both Denmark and Sweden. The Protestant Reformation came to Scandinavia in the 1530s, and Scandinavia soon became one of the heartlands of Lutheranism. These repressive measures ensured that the cooperation was small. The nine greatest Viking kings and leaders are: Ragnar Lodbrok Cnut the Great Erik the Red Rollo of Normandy Herald of Norway Olaf Tryggvason Leif Eriksson Ivar the Boneless Gorm the Old These leaders and kings are known for their incredible reigns, legacies, and famous discoveries. The beginning of the Viking Age is commonly given as 793, when Vikings pillaged the important British island monastery of Lindisfarne, and its end is marked by the unsuccessful invasion of England attempted by Harald Hrdrde in 1066 and the Norman conquest.[13]. The Western allies sent military assistance, but the campaign was not effectively run. [18], The existence of Ivar Vidfamne and his dynasty, at least in the way described in the sagas, is considered highly unlikely in modern scholarship. Crawley, ed. Did you know? The arrowhead made of iron was revealed with its cracked wooden shaft and a feather, is 17cm long and weighs just 28 grams. What is genuine history and what is myth and legend in the sagas is impossible to determine today, and everything contained in them must as such be regarded as legendary, if not fictional. These two tribes, the Cimbri and the Teutons, initially inflicted the heaviest losses that Rome had suffered since the Second Punic War. [11] As a historical source, the Ynglinga saga is much better used as a source on historiography and society during Sturluson's own time than as a source on Sweden's early history. Nevertheless, there was a hostile relationship, with an occupation force of almost one German for every ten Norwegians. Fauna included aurochs, wisent, moose and red deer. All Rights Reserved. From around A.D. 800 to the 11th century, a vast number of Scandinavians left their homelands to seek their fortunes elsewhere. Sweden decided to join the alliance against France in 1813 and was promised Norway as a reward. Attempts have been made to harmonize Ansgar's kings with the kings mentioned in the sagas but such attempts have to be considered unreliable and unverifiable. "The Scandinavian currency union 18751914." Sweden abandoned the tie to gold on 2 August 1914, and without a fixed exchange rate the free circulation came to an end. The modern use of the term Scandinavia rises from the Scandinavist political movement, which was active in the middle of the 19th century, chiefly between the First war of Schleswig (18481850), in which Sweden and Norway contributed with considerable military force, and the Second war of Schleswig (1864) when the Riksdag of the Estates denounced the King's promises of military support for Denmark. Gustav Vasa is the first King in Swedish history of whose life we have a clear view. [6], According to the Ynglinga saga, the Yngling dynasty's rule in Sweden was succeeded by Ivar Vidfamne, previously a petty king in Scania, who founded a new royal line. A brief Swedish civil war ensued in 1066 primarily reflecting the divisions between practitioners of indigenous religions and advocates of Christianity; by the mid-twelfth century, the Christian faction appeared to have triumphed; the once resistant center of Uppsala became the seat of the Swedish Archbishop in 1164. Thank you for visiting Scandinavia Facts. Norway, which was in union with Sweden entered the union two years later, in 1875 by pegging its currency to gold at the same level as Denmark and Sweden (.403grams [2]). Before and during this age, the Norsemen significantly intermixed with the Slavs. Vidkun Quisling was installed as Minister-President, a puppet to Berlin's High Command. The second is lighter, adorned with 2,868 diamonds . After the battle of Leipzig in October 1813, Bernadotte abandoned the pursuit of Napoleon and marched against Denmark, where he forced the king of Denmark-Norway to conclude the Treaty of Kiel on 14 January 1814. [8], The Ynglinga saga contains no references to chronology (such as specific dates of the reigns of the various kings) with the exception of presenting the rulers in chronological order. The vast majority of emigrants left from the countryside in search of better farming and economic opportunities. A few years later (c. 831) the archbishopric of Hamburg was established and became at once the center for missionary work in the north. [22], The Icelandic Commonwealth adopted Christianity in 1000 AD, after pressure from Norway. Royal Hotel, Denmark. [4] The Ynglings are described in the Ynglinga saga as the first royal blood line of the Swedes.
Feven Kay Photos,
Articles W