History of 17 May celebrations..

This started as a brief summary of the history of 17 May celebrations in Norway but ended up getting a little more involved as I delved deeper. It is mostly taken from Wikipedia so if you want to know even more then I refer you to their webpages...

King Haakon V of Norway died in 1319 leaving no male heir to the throne. His daughter had married a Swedish prince and had a son called Magnus Eriksson who inherited both the Swedish and the Norwegian kingdoms. This union with Sweden was only personal to Magnus Eriksson and it was agreed that his two sons would inherit one kingdom each. King Magnus only had one son Haakon and he became king of Norway and co King of Sweden, he then married Margrethe the daughter of a Danish King.

Haakon and Margrethe’s son Olav became the King of Denmark in 1376 and on his father’s deathbed in 1380 also succeeded to the Norwegian throne as King Olav IV. Denmark and Norway were thus united in a personal union under Olav. With brief exception Norway and Denmark were ruled from this date by the same king until 1814.

King Olafs mother (Margrethe) united Denmark and Norway with Sweden in the Kalmar Union (1396 -1523). During this period the Norwegian power was greatly weakened due to large losses in population resulting from the Black Death pandemic. In 1523 Sweden withdrew from the union and Norway was so weakened that it was unable to resist pressures from the Danes. More and more decisions were being taken in Copenhagen and in 1536 the Norwegian council was abolished.

From 1536 until 1814 Norway was in a personal union with Denmark. Whilst the political and economic power emanated from Copenhagen the King maintained Norway’s legal status as a separate hereditary kingdom.

During the Napoleonic Wars, Denmark had at first tried to keep itself neutral so that it could continue to trade with both France and the UK. It entered the League of Armed Neutrality, a policy designed to protect neutral shipping against the British Royal Navy’s wartime policy of unlimited search of neutral shipping for French contraband. The British considered this action to be hostile and attacked Copenhagen in 1801 and 1807 pushing Denmark into an alliance with Napoleon.

Following the defeat of Denmark in the Napoleonic wars in 1814 it was forced to abandon Norway and transfer it to the King of Sweden. Despite the treaty the Norwegians revolted and declared independence on May 17, adopted a constitution and elected the hereditary prince Christian Frederik as king of independent Norway. This marks the day that is still celebrated in Norway as their Independence Day.

Norwegian independence at this time was short lived and later that year they were invaded by Sweden. In the peace negotiations, Christian Frederik agreed to relinquish claims to the Norwegian throne and return to Denmark if Sweden would accept the democratic Norwegian constitution and a loose personal union. The Norwegian parliament (Stortinget) then elected the Swedish king as king of Norway on November 4, 1814.

The Union between Sweden and Norway was peacefully dissolved in 1905 and Norway called on a Danish prince to become King Haakon VII, the first king of an independent Norway in 586 years. However, Norway once again lost its independence in 1940 when it was occupied by Nazi Germany.

Norwegian National Day - 17. Mai

The 17 May, or ''syttende mai'' as it is known locally marks the Norwegian Independence Day. It is a big celebration in Norway and although it is said to be a day for children, you see people of all ages getting excited in anticipation of the event.

The day is a holiday and because of this I normally leave the country for a long weekend of Munro bagging in Scotland. This year it fell on a weekend and I was at home in Bergen so I had no excuse but to find out what all the fuss was about.

I woke up to the sound of canons being fired and the sound of the Buekorps drumming in the street below my window. Although this day is celebrated throughout Norway the drumming is unique to Bergen. The Buekorps is made up of groups of children, mostly boys who march through the streets drumming. It is thought to date back to 1856 and originates from the old police force or brigades. Unfortunately for those residing in town, the Buekorps start their drumming practise as early as March and are heard early on many a weekend morning and throwing eggs at them is not the done thing. On this morning I could hear how proudly they beat their drums after all their hours of practise – and my hours of painful listening. On the plus side, the arrival of 17 May meant that from this day and onwards for the rest of the year I could look forward to Sunday free drumming.

I had arranged to meet Cecilie to watch the parade of people that would march through town. I dressed relatively smart knowing how important the day was and headed out. Immediately out of my door I joined a steady stream of people who were walking in the same direction and proudly wearing the National Dress – the Bunad. Feeling out of place in my modern day attire I allowed myself to be carried along the old narrow cobbled streets that are lined with wonky wooden houses and that lead to town.

The Bunad is typically of rural origin and are local to the different regions of Norway. The ladies Bunad is made of thick wool, mostly black but can be seen occasionally in green, red and white and is ornate with elaborate embroidered designs, scarves, shawls and handmade silver or gold jewellery. It is worn over a white shirt which is also embroidered. Accessories also vary according to status, for example red tights are worn by the unmarried and black by the married. The tradition is mostly held by women are typically bought for them for their confirmation. At 3000 pounds a pop though they are only replaced once in a lifetime with the onset of middle age spread. Apart from 17th May the Bunad is worn at weddings and other formal social gatherings.

I was quite moved to see Cecilie wearing her Bunad from Alesund (see picture). We wandered the streets watching the parade and Cecilie educated me on different bunad styles and meanings. Although even Cecilie couldn’t explain the punk rocker clad in Bunad but for me it meant this was a day that people of all walks of life felt united.

Also a tradition that ends on the same day is the celebration period of the end of schooling for Upper secondary school students. For the 3 weeks leading up to this day kids are seen dressed in red dungarees (or other colours depending on their line of study) with the words Russ down the side. Their time is spent partying hard both day and night, hanging around on street corners and goading each other to do silly things. Those from the more affluent families transport themselves around town in self-decorated buses and vans with slogans and booming music. After this day they have to buckle down and hope to pass their looming exams.

I have to say that I am really happy that I was in Norway to see at least one 17 May celebrations. It is quite a unique experience and as one person described it – it’s comparable to going to a wedding in a folk museum.

For a summary of the history of events leading up to the 17 May celebrations see here.