1.
Monarchy of Sweden
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The Monarchy of Sweden concerns the monarchical head of state of Sweden, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Kingdom of Sweden has been a monarchy since time immemorial, Sweden in the present day is a representative democracy in a parliamentary system based on popular sovereignty, as defined in the current Instrument of Government. The monarch and the members of the Royal Family undertake a variety of official, unofficial and other duties within Sweden. Carl XVI Gustaf became King on 15 September 1973 on the death of his grandfather, Sweden has been a kingdom since prehistoric times. Originally, the Swedish king had combined powers limited to that of a war chief, a judge, the Royal Court of Sweden, however, does count Olofs father as Swedens first king. The king was elected from a favored dynasty at the Stones of Mora. The ceremonial stones were destroyed around 1515 and that dynasty formed a pre-Kalmar Union Sweden into a strong state, and finally king Magnus IV even ruled Norway and Scania. Following the Black Death, the union was weakened, and Scania was reunited with Denmark. In 1397, after the Black Death and domestic power struggles, Queen Margaret I of Denmark united Sweden, Denmark, continual tension within each country and the union led to open conflict between the Swedes and the Danes in the 15th century. The unions final disintegration in the early 16th century led to prolonged rivalry between Denmark-Norway and Sweden for centuries to come. Catholic bishops had supported the King of Denmark, Christian II, Gustav Vasa was elected King of Sweden by the Estates of the Realm, assembled in Strängnäs on 6 June 1523. Inspired by the teachings of Martin Luther, Gustav I used the Protestant Reformation to curb the power of the Roman Catholic Church. In 1527 he persuaded the Estates of the Realm, assembled in the city of Västerås, to church lands. At the same time, he broke with the papacy and established a state church. Legally Sweden has only been a monarchy since 1544 when the Riksdag of the Estates, through Västerås arvförening. Crown tax revenues increased, but more importantly the new system was perceived as fairer, a war with Lübeck in 1535 resulted in the expulsion of the Hanseatic traders, who previously had had a monopoly on foreign trade. With its own burghers in charge, Swedens economic strength grew rapidly, Sweden now built the first modern army in Europe, supported by a sophisticated tax system and an efficient bureaucracy. At the death of King Gustav I in 1560, he was succeeded by his oldest son Eric XIV and his reign was marked by Swedens entrance into the Livonian War and the Northern Seven Years War
2.
Coronation
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The ceremony can also be conducted for the monarchs consort, either simultaneously with the monarch or as a separate event. A ceremony without the placement of a crown on the head is known as an enthronement. Coronations are still observed in the United Kingdom, Tonga, in addition to investing the monarch with symbols of state, Western-style coronations have often traditionally involve anointing with holy oil, or chrism as it is often called. Wherever a ruler is anointed in this way, as in Great Britain and Tonga, some other lands use bathing or cleansing rites, the drinking of a sacred beverage, or other religious practices to achieve a comparable effect. Such acts symbolise the granting of divine favour to the monarch within the relevant spiritual-religious paradigm of the country, in the past, concepts of royalty, coronation and deity were often inexorably linked. Rome promulgated the practice of worship, in Medieval Europe. Coronations were once a direct expression of these alleged connections. Thus, coronations have often been discarded altogether or altered to reflect the nature of the states in which they are held. However, some monarchies still choose to retain an overtly religious dimension to their accession rituals, others have adopted simpler enthronement or inauguration ceremonies, or even no ceremony at all. In non-Christian states, coronation rites evolved from a variety of sources, buddhism, for instance, influenced the coronation rituals of Thailand, Cambodia and Bhutan, while Hindu elements played a significant role in Nepalese rites. The ceremonies used in modern Egypt, Malaysia, Brunei and Iran were shaped by Islam, Coronations, in one form or another, have existed since ancient times. Egyptian records show coronation scenes, such as that of Seti I in 1290 BC, judeo-Christian scriptures testify to particular rites associated with the conferring of kingship, the most detailed accounts of which are found in II Kings 11,12 and II Chronicles 23,11. Following the assumption of the diadem by Constantine, Roman and Byzantine emperors continued to wear it as the symbol of their authority. Although no specific coronation ceremony was observed at first, one gradually evolved over the following century, the emperor Julian was hoisted upon a shield and crowned with a gold necklace provided by one of his standard-bearers, he later wore a jewel-studded diadem. Later emperors were crowned and acclaimed in a manner, until the momentous decision was taken to permit the Patriarch of Constantinople to physically place the crown on the emperors head. Historians debate when exactly this first took place, but the precedent was established by the reign of Leo II. This ritual included recitation of prayers by the Byzantine prelate over the crown, after this event, according to the Catholic Encyclopedia, the ecclesiastical element in the coronation ceremonial rapidly develop. This was usually performed three times, following this, the king was given a spear, and a diadem wrought of silk or linen was bound around his forehead as a token of regal authority
3.
Stockholm
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The city is spread across 14 islands on the coast in the southeast of Sweden at the mouth of Lake Mälaren, by the Stockholm archipelago and the Baltic Sea. The area has settled since the Stone Age, in the 6th millennium BC. It is also the capital of Stockholm County, Stockholm is the cultural, media, political, and economic centre of Sweden. The Stockholm region alone accounts for over a third of the countrys GDP and it is an important global city, and the main centre for corporate headquarters in the Nordic region. The city is home to some of Europes top ranking universities, such as the Stockholm School of Economics, Karolinska Institute and it hosts the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies and banquet at the Stockholm Concert Hall and Stockholm City Hall. One of the citys most prized museums, the Vasa Museum, is the most visited museum in Scandinavia. The Stockholm metro, opened in 1950, is known for its decoration of the stations. Swedens national football arena is located north of the city centre, Ericsson Globe, the national indoor arena, is in the southern part of the city. The city was the host of the 1912 Summer Olympics, and hosted the equestrian portion of the 1956 Summer Olympics otherwise held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Stockholm is the seat of the Swedish government and most of its agencies, including the highest courts in the judiciary, and the official residencies of the Swedish monarch and the Prime Minister. The government has its seat in the Rosenbad building, the Riksdag is seated in the Parliament House, and the Prime Ministers residence is adjacent at the Sager House. After the Ice Age, around 8,000 BCE, there were already a number of people living in the present-day Stockholm area. Thousands of years later, as the ground thawed, the climate became tolerable, at the intersection of the Baltic Sea and lake Mälaren is an archipelago site where the Old Town of Stockholm was first built from about 1000 CE by Vikings. They had a positive impact on the area because of the trade routes they created. Stockholms location appears in Norse sagas as Agnafit, and in Heimskringla in connection with the legendary king Agne, the earliest written mention of the name Stockholm dates from 1252, by which time the mines in Bergslagen made it an important site in the iron trade. The first part of the name means log in Swedish, although it may also be connected to an old German word meaning fortification, the second part of the name means islet, and is thought to refer to the islet Helgeandsholmen in central Stockholm. Stockholms core, the present Old Town was built on the island next to Helgeandsholmen from the mid 13th century onward. The city originally rose to prominence as a result of the Baltic trade of the Hanseatic League, Stockholm developed strong economic and cultural linkages with Lübeck, Hamburg, Gdańsk, Visby, Reval, and Riga during this time
4.
Birger, King of Sweden
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Birger was King of Sweden from 1290 to 1318. Birger was the son of King Magnus III and Hedwig of Holstein and he was hailed king of Sweden when he was four years old. This was done by his father in order to secure the succession, in 1275, King Magnus had led a rebellion against his elder brother, King Valdemar, and ousted him from the throne. King Magnus ordered his kinsman Torgils Knutsson, the Constable of the Realm, in 1293, Birger was crowned at Söderköping after marrying Martha, the daughter of King Eric V of Denmark. Birger was only ten years old when his father died, at which time Torgils Knutsson was the most influential statesman in Sweden, in 1293, Torgils Knutsson led the Swedes to a victory which won a part of western Karelia. This expedition has traditionally been dubbed as the Third Swedish Crusade, when Torgils Knutsson returned from leading the crusade in Finland, a feud had developed between the brothers. The kings brothers Erik Magnusson, Duke of Södermanland and Valdemar Magnusson, a civil war broke out, but by 1306 emotions had cooled to the point where the dukes acknowledged the son of Birger, Magnus Birgersson, as the successor to the throne. Torgils Knutsson, who was Duke Valdemars father-in-law, was executed in 1306 as a token of reconciliation between King Birger and his brothers. The same year, in an event known as the Håtuna games, Birger was taken captive by his brothers on the Håtuna royal estate in Uppland and taken as prisoner to Nyköping Castle. In 1308, Eric and Valdemar were forced by the Danish king to release King Birger, when King Birger was free, he sought aid in Denmark, and the strife began anew. In 1312, Duke Eric married Ingeborg of Norway, daughter of King Haakon V of Norway in a wedding in Oslo. At the same time, Erics brother Duke Valdemar married Ingeborg Eriksdottir of Norway, Duke Erik also held Bohuslän from Norway as well as northern Halland and was creating a separate kingdom centered on Göta älv. In 1317 however, Birger captured his brothers during the Nyköping Banquet, according to Erics Chronicle, the dukes were starved to death in a cellar of Nyköping Castle. Birger was ousted by his brothers supporters in 1318 and went into exile to his brother-in-law King Eric VI of Denmark and his son, Prince Magnus Birgersson, was executed at Stockholm. In 1319, the son of Duke Erik, King Magnus VII of Norway, was hailed King Magnus IV of Sweden under the Regency of his grandmother Queen Helvig. Magnus Birgersson Eric Birgersson Agnes Birgersdotter Katarina Birgersdotter In 2003, the band Falconer released The Sceptre of Deception, the album covers events during the reign of King Birger of Sweden and lengthy strife with his brothers, and the Danish and Norwegian crowns. Barck, Sven Eric, Persson, ÅkeKungligt skvaller genom tusen år, En annorlunda bok om svensk historia Lindqvist, Från islossning till kungarike Harrison, Dick Jarlens sekel, en berättelse om 1200-talets Sverige Bergman, Mats Nyköpingshus. En rundvandring i historia och nutid Mannervik, Cyrus Sagor och sägner – Från Nordens forntid och medeltid
5.
Albert, King of Sweden
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Albert was King of Sweden from 1364 to 1389 and Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin from 1384 to 1412 as Albert III. He was the son of Duke Albert II of Mecklenburg and Euphemia Eriksdotter, the daughter of duke Erik Magnusson of Södermanland. He married Richardis of Schwerin, daughter of count Otto of Schwerin, in 1384 he inherited the ducal title of Mecklenburg and united it with Sweden in a personal union. Sverker II had been the king of Sweden between 1196 and 1208, in 1363, members of the Swedish Council of Aristocracy, led by Bo Jonsson Grip, arrived in the court of Mecklenburg. They had been banished from the country after a revolt against king Magnus Eriksson, at the nobles request, Albert launched an invasion of Sweden supported by several German dukes and counts. Several Hanseatic cities and dukes in Northern Germany expressed support of the new king, Stockholm and Kalmar, with large Hanseatic populations, also welcomed the intervention. Albert was proclaimed King of Sweden and officially crowned on 18 February 1364, the coronation took place at the Stones of Mora. A fragment still remains of the stone commemorating the occasion, the Three Crowns stone and this is the earliest known example of the use of the three crowns as a national symbol for Sweden. The arrival of Albert led to eight years of war in Sweden between Alberts and Magnus supporters. In a battle near Enköping in 1365 between Alberts German forces and king Magnus Erikssons forces, supported by king Haakon VI of Norway, Magnus was defeated and taken prisoner by Albert. After the initial defeat, Valdemar IV of Denmark intervened on Magnus and Haakons behalf, apart from German strongholds like Stockholm, Albert was unpopular among Swedes who were discontent with Alberts policy of appointing Germans as officials in all the Swedish provinces. With the help of Danish and Swedish allies, Haakon managed to beat back Albert. However, the siege was short-lived, with help from the Swedish nobility in Stockholm, Albert was able beat back the Norwegians. A peace agreement was signed, with the condition that Magnus be released and allowed to travel back to Norway. Albert had secured the Swedish crown, but was forced to make a belated coronation oath in which he agreed to extensive concessions to the Swedish nobility in the regency council. Albert kept the crown of Sweden for another 19 years, however, it was only when he attempted to introduce reduction of the large estates of the Swedish nobility that he lost his support in Stockholm. In 1389, facing a loss of landholdings and wealth, the Swedish regency council turned to Margaret I of Denmark to plead for help in getting rid of Albert, Margaret sent troops and in February 1389, the Danes defeated Albert at the Battle of Åsle. Albert was captured, deposed and sent to Lindholmen Castle in Scania and he was released after 16 days of peace negotiations in 1395, during which he agreed to either give up Stockholm within three years, or pay large sums in retribution to Margaret
6.
King of Norway
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The Norwegian monarch is the monarchical head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The present monarch is King Harald V, who has reigned since 17 January 1991, succeeding his father, the heir apparent is his only son, Crown Prince Haakon. The crown prince undertakes various public functions, as does the kings wife. The crown prince also acts as regent in the kings absence, there are several other members of the Royal Family, including the kings daughter, grandchildren and siblings. Whilst the Constitution of Norway grants important executive powers to the King, formally the King appoints the government according to his own judgement, but parliamentary practice has been in place since 1884. Constitutional practice has replaced the meaning of the word King in most articles of the constitution from the king personally to the elected government. The powers vested in the monarch are significant, but are treated only as reserve powers, the King does not, by convention, have direct participation in government. He ratifies laws and royal resolutions, receives and sends envoys from and to foreign countries and he has a more tangible influence as the symbol of national unity. The annual New Years Eve speech is one occasion when the King traditionally raises negative issues, the King is also Supreme Commander of the Norwegian Armed Forces and Grand Master of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav and of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit. The King has no role in the Church of Norway. The position of King of Norway has been in existence since the unification of Norway in 872. In recent years members of the Socialist Left party have proposed the abolition of the monarchy during each new session of parliament and this gives the Norwegian monarchy the unique status of being a popularly elected royal family and receiving regular formal confirmations of support from the Storting. Prior to and in the phase of the Viking Age Norway was divided into several smaller kingdoms. Harald Fairhair was the first king of Norway, the boundaries of Fairhairs kingdom were not identical to those of present-day Norway, and upon his death the kingship was shared among his sons. Some historians emphasise the actual control over the country and assert that Olaf II, alias Saint Olaf. Olaf is generally held to have been the force behind Norways final conversion to Christianity. In the 12th and 13th centuries the Norwegian kingdom was at its geographical and cultural peak, the kingdom included Norway, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Shetland, Orkney and other smaller areas in the British Isles. The king had diplomatic relations with most of the European kingdoms and formed alliances with Scotland and Castile, large castles such as Haakons Hall and cathedrals, the foremost being Nidaros Cathedral, were built
7.
Haakon V of Norway
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Haakon V Magnusson was king of Norway from 1299 until 1319. Haakon was the surviving son of Magnus the Lawmender, King of Norway. Through his mother, he was a descendant of Eric IV, in 1273, his elder brother, Eirik, was named junior king under the reign of their father, King Magnus. Haakon succeeded to the throne when his older brother died without sons. In 1295, Haakon married firstly with Isabelle, daughter of Jean I, Count of Joigny and their son, Magnus Eriksson would succeed Haakon V as king of Norway. He also had a daughter named Agnes Hákonardottir. During Haakons reign, Oslo gradually took over the functions of capital of Norway from Bergen, Haakon is also associated with the construction of Akershus Fortress and Bohus Fortress. During his reign he revived his brothers war policy against Denmark, in domestic matters he energetically and successfully tried to limit the power of the magnates and to strengthen the kings power. In 1319, Haakon was succeeded by his daughters son, prince Magnus who was an infant, Haakons daughter Ingeborg was recognized as formal regent of her son. Havtore Jonsson was put in the government until he himself died the following year. Haakon was buried in St. Marys church in Oslo, remains of two people, deemed to be Haakon and Eufemia, were discovered during excavations of the ruins of that church and reinterred in the royal mausoleum at Akershus Castle. Helle, Knut Norge blir en stat, 1130–1319 ISBN 82-00-01323-5 Holmsen, fra de eldste tider til 1660 Gjerset, Knut History of the Norwegian People
8.
Haakon VI of Norway
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Haakon Magnusson was King of Norway from 1343 until his death and King of Sweden between 1362 and 1364. He is sometimes known as Haakon Magnusson the Younger to distinguish him from his great-grandfather, Haakon V. Haakon was the son of Magnus Eriksson. His older brother Eric was meant to succeed their father on the throne of Sweden, Magnus greatly favored Haakon over Eric, leading to the latters rebellion and seizure of Southern Sweden. Eric died in 1359, and Haakon became co-ruler of Sweden with his three years later. The two reigned over Sweden together until 1364, when they were deposed in favor of Magnus sororal nephew, Albert of Mecklenburg, Magnus and Haakon tried to retake the Swedish throne, but without success. In 1363, Haakon married Margaret, daughter of Valdemar IV of Denmark, the marriage, itself a significant element in the Nordic power struggle, resulted in the birth of one son, Olaf. Haakons continuous conflicts with his father-in-law ended only with the death in 1375. Haakon seized the opportunity to have his son elected Valdemars successor, upon his death in 1380, Haakon was succeeded by Olaf, with Margaret as regent. Olaf died childless seven years later, and Haakons widow proceeded to assert authority over all three Scandinavian kingdoms as their first female monarch, Haakon was born in 1340, most likely in Sweden, though the exact date and location of his birth remain unknown. He was the son of Magnus Eriksson, king of Sweden and Norway. His older brother Eric was a king of Sweden in opposition to his father between 1356 and 1359. Haakon and his family belonged to the Swedish House of Bjelbo, which had succeeded the House of Eric in Sweden. Haakon was a great-grandson of Haakon V of Norway through his legitimate daughter, Ingeborg. Another noteworthy ancestor of Haakon, through his paternal grandfather Eric Magnusson, Haakon was raised in Norway, to prepare the young prince to later rule the kingdom in his own right. During the early autumn of 1343, the most prominent members of the Norwegian Council of the Realm attended a meeting with Magnus at Varberg Castle. On 15 August 1343, letters were issued throughout Norway and Sweden stating that the King and the Council had decided to place Haakon on the throne of Norway. Barely a year later, representatives of the cities and the general public assembled at Båhus Castle, the next in line to the Norwegian throne would then be his older brother Eric and his descendants, but the provision became moot when Eric died in 1359. The meetings at Varberg Castle in 1343 and at Båhus Castle in 1344 were later ratified in another meeting in the port city of Bergen as late as 1350
9.
Norway
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The Antarctic Peter I Island and the sub-Antarctic Bouvet Island are dependent territories and thus not considered part of the Kingdom. Norway also lays claim to a section of Antarctica known as Queen Maud Land, until 1814, the kingdom included the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Iceland. It also included Isle of Man until 1266, Shetland and Orkney until 1468, Norway has a total area of 385,252 square kilometres and a population of 5,258,317. The country shares a long border with Sweden. Norway is bordered by Finland and Russia to the north-east, Norway has an extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea. King Harald V of the Dano-German House of Glücksburg is the current King of Norway, erna Solberg became Prime Minister in 2013, replacing Jens Stoltenberg. A constitutional monarchy, Norway divides state power between the Parliament, the Cabinet and the Supreme Court, as determined by the 1814 Constitution, the kingdom is established as a merger of several petty kingdoms. By the traditional count from the year 872, the kingdom has existed continuously for 1,144 years, Norway has both administrative and political subdivisions on two levels, counties and municipalities. The Sámi people have an amount of self-determination and influence over traditional territories through the Sámi Parliament. Norway maintains close ties with the European Union and the United States, the country maintains a combination of market economy and a Nordic welfare model with universal health care and a comprehensive social security system. Norway has extensive reserves of petroleum, natural gas, minerals, lumber, seafood, the petroleum industry accounts for around a quarter of the countrys gross domestic product. On a per-capita basis, Norway is the worlds largest producer of oil, the country has the fourth-highest per capita income in the world on the World Bank and IMF lists. On the CIAs GDP per capita list which includes territories and some regions, from 2001 to 2006, and then again from 2009 to 2017, Norway had the highest Human Development Index ranking in the world. It also has the highest inequality-adjusted ranking, Norway ranks first on the World Happiness Report, the OECD Better Life Index, the Index of Public Integrity and the Democracy Index. Norway has two names, Noreg in Nynorsk and Norge in Bokmål. The name Norway comes from the Old English word Norðrveg mentioned in 880, meaning way or way leading to the north. In contrasting with suðrvegar southern way for Germany, and austrvegr eastern way for the Baltic, the Anglo-Saxon of Britain also referred to the kingdom of Norway in 880 as Norðmanna land. This was the area of Harald Fairhair, the first king of Norway, and because of him
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