1.
Monarchy of Sweden
–
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
–
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
–
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
–
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
–
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
–
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
–
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
–
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
–
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
10.
Varnhem Abbey
–
Varnhem Abbey in Varnhem, Västergötland, Sweden was founded around 1150 by monks of the Cistercian Order from Alvastra Abbey in Östergötland. The Cistercian Order used the floor plan for all its abbeys. A wooden and a church were both erected on the site before the abbey was built. The stone church was erected in the 1040s at the latest, according to radiocarbon dating, the oldest Christian man buried there died in the period 780-970. From other radiocarbon evidence, the Christian burials seem to have begun during the 10th century, a rich lady named Sigrid, probably a widow, donated the property to the cistercian monks, but the queen tried to revoke the donation and instead seize the property herself. The queens attempts failed and the established the abbey in 1150. The Varnhem Abbey was sponsored by the House of Eric which in turn was granted burial privileges there, three kings from the House of Eric lie buried in the abbey church, Canute I of Sweden, Eric X of Sweden and Eric XI of Sweden. In 1234, the abbey was ruined by fire, the catastrophe led to a period of blooming, since Birger jarl and other mediaeval financiers rebuilt the abbey, this time more beautiful and imposing. The abbey church, which at first had been built in Romanesque style, was completed in Gothic style after the fire, in 1260 there was an opening ceremony for the church, which was the largest in Sweden at the time. The abbeys property was confiscated in 1527, and the buildings were burned by Danish forces 1566 during the Northern Seven Years War. In the middle of the 17th century, Magnus Gabriel De la Gardie received the abbey as a gift from the Swedish queen Christina, De la Gardie restored the church and established a family mausoleum in it, while the remaining abbey buildings were left to decay. The church was thoroughly restored 1911–1923, archeological excavations of the central part of the abbey were made 1921–1929, and again 1976 and 1977. In May 2002, the grave of Birger jarl was opened, today, only the abbey church remains standing, surrounded by ruins. The number of tourists visiting Varnhem has grown due to Jan Guillous books about Arn
11.
Blanche of Namur
–
Blanche of Namur, Swedish and Norwegian, Blanka was queen-consort of Sweden and Norway by marriage to King Magnus IV of Sweden. Blanche was the eldest daughter of John I, Marquis of Namur, on her fathers side, she was a member of the powerful House of Dampierre, being a grandchild of Count Guy of Flanders. It is unknown why a marriage was arranged between the king of Sweden and Norway and a member of the House of Namur, in June 1334 king Magnus travelled from Norway to Namur to propose. They were engaged in Namur and Magnus returned to Sweden in the fall of 1334, Blanche left Namur in the fall of 1335 and the wedding took place in October or early November 1335, possibly at Bohus Castle. As a wedding gift Blanche received the province of Tunsberg in Norway and Lödöse in Sweden as fiefs, Tunsberg was exchanged in 1353 to Bohus, Marstrand, Elfsyssel, Rånrike, blanches coronation took place in July 1336, possibly 22 July, in the Great Church in Stockholm. Queen Blanche was known in Sweden as Blanka, the Swedish version of her name, the queen was described as wise and as an extraordinary beauty. At this point, Sweden did not have an official capital, in 1345, her brothers Louis and Robert were made vassals of her spouse. Blanche and Magnus had two sons, Eric and Haakon, plus at least three daughters who died as children. In 1343, it was agreed that the two kingdoms of Sweden and Norway should again be divided, and that their eldest son Eric should inherit Sweden, the same year, Haakon was invested as King of Norway at the age of three. On 18 November 1343, the archbishops and bishops of Sweden swore an oath to assist queen Blanche in the case king Magnus died when prince Eric was still minor. In the will of the couple from 1 May 1346, they made large donations to Bridgets planned Vadstena Abbey. Bridget, however, opposed to their burial in her convent, therefore all her eggs became poisonous. Lucky are those who never experience their burden, in 1356, the opposition supported their eldest son Eric in a rebellion against his parents, resulting in a mediation were king Magnus had to make Eric his co-ruler and divide Sweden between them. During this conflict, queen Blanche seem to have supported her spouse against their son. When Eric and his spouse Beatrice of Bavaria died in 1359, Blanche was accused of having poisoned them, accusations that is regarded to have been. It is now believed that they died from the plague, from 1359, she seem to have resided in Tønsberg Castle in Norway. Tønsberg was a part of her lands, and she ruled the area as her dower. It appears that her economy was somewhat strained during these years, on 9 April 1363, she and Magnus attended the wedding of their son Haakon with Margaret, daughter of Valdemar IV of Denmark in Copenhagen
12.
Eric XII of Sweden
–
Eric XII was a rival king of Sweden of his father Magnus IV from 1356 to his death in 1359. He was married to Beatrix of Bavaria, daughter of Louis IV of Bavaria, in 1343 Eric and his brother Haakon were elected heirs of Sweden and Norway, respectively. That Haakon got the Norwegian throne in 1355 while Eric didnt get any position in the Swedish council might have affected his choice to lead a rebellion against his father in 1355. In 1357 the rebellion had forced Magnus to share Sweden with his son Eric who got to rule most of Southern Sweden, Sweden was reunited again in 1359 when father and son became reconciled, and co-ruled Sweden until Erics death a few months later. While dying Eric accused his mother Blanche of Namur of poisoning him, quite soon after his death his wife Beatrice died too. It is generally believed that they died of the Black Death
13.
Dynasty
–
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a feudal or monarchical system but sometimes also appearing in elective republics. The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a house, historians periodize the histories of many sovereign states, such as Ancient Egypt, the Carolingian Empire and Imperial China, using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the dynasty may be used to delimit the era during which the family reigned and to describe events, trends. The word dynasty itself is often dropped from such adjectival references, until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty, that is, to increase the territory, wealth, and power of his family members. The longest-surviving dynasty in the world is the Imperial House of Japan, dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally, such as under the Frankish Salic law. Succession through a daughter when permitted was considered to establish a new dynasty in her husbands ruling house, however, some states in Africa, determined descent matrilineally, while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mothers dynasty when coming into her inheritance. It is also extended to unrelated people such as poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team. The word dynasty derives via Latin dynastia from Greek dynastéia, where it referred to power, dominion and it was the abstract noun of dynástēs, the agent noun of dynamis, power or ability, from dýnamai, to be able. A ruler in a dynasty is referred to as a dynast. For example, following his abdication, Edward VIII of the United Kingdom ceased to be a member of the House of Windsor. A dynastic marriage is one that complies with monarchical house law restrictions, the marriage of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, to Máxima Zorreguieta in 2002 was dynastic, for example, and their eldest child is expected to inherit the Dutch crown eventually. But the marriage of his younger brother Prince Friso to Mabel Wisse Smit in 2003 lacked government support, thus Friso forfeited his place in the order of succession, lost his title as a Prince of the Netherlands, and left his children without dynastic rights. In historical and monarchist references to formerly reigning families, a dynast is a member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchys rules still in force. Even since abolition of the Austrian monarchy, Max and his descendants have not been considered the rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position. The term dynast is sometimes used only to refer to descendants of a realms monarchs. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people, yet he is not a male-line member of the royal family, and is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor. Thus, in 1999 he requested and obtained permission from Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholic Princess Caroline of Monaco. Yet a clause of the English Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time and that exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts prior to triggering it by marriage to a Catholic
14.
Bjelbo
–
The House of Bjelbo, also known as the House of Folkung, was an Ostrogothian Swedish family that provided several medieval Swedish bishops, jarls and kings. It also provided three kings of Norway, and one king of Denmark in the 14th century, the house has been known as the House of Folkung since the 17th century, and this name is still the most commonly used in Swedish works of reference. The name folkung does appear as early as in 12th century sources, bjälbo is located in Östergötland, outside of Skänninge in the present-day commune of Mjölby. The House of Bjelbo produced most of the jarls in Sweden in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries until the title was abolished in 1266, different branches of the family were often rivals for the office of jarl. Most of the kings during that time were also from Östergötland, around 1100, Folke the Fat became the first known Bjelbo jarl, and probably the first jarl of all Sweden, under king Inge I of Sweden. He was married to a daughter of king Canute IV of Denmark, according to legends, he was the first of his family so elevated. Nothing is known of any of Folkes collateral relatives, though it is well-established that several of his sons descendants were important lords, other notable jarls from the family were Birger Brosa, Charles the Deaf, Ulf Fase, and Birger jarl. In the early 13th century, some members of the moved to Norway. Noteworthy is that regardless of the royal family, Bjelbos continued to hold the position of the jarl in the kingdom. Several members of the family were also Bishops of Linköping at least in the 13th century, diocese covered the area of Östergötland. Bishop of Linköping was often involved in the eastern activities, early Dukes of Finland were from the House of Bjelbo and used the traditional coat of arms with a rampant lion. Valdemar, a son of Birger jarl, was elected as the King of Sweden in 1250, House of Bjelbo had gradually married to all rival royal dynasties in Sweden eventually producing an heir related to them all. When the previous king Eric had died without an apparent, his sisters son. Members of the house reigned as kings Sweden until 1364, from 1319 to 1387, they were also kings of Norway. Almost all subsequent monarchs of Sweden, Norway and Denmark trace cognatic descent from the House of Bjelbo, particularly, several persons conventionally assigned as sons and grandsons to Benedict Snivel, son of Folke the Fat, may actually be related to him in a different way. Conventional assignments stretch two generations to cover a hundred years, which is not realistic, and three generations over 150 years. List of Swedish monarchs List of Norwegian monarchs Jarl in Sweden Bishop of Linköping This article is fully or partially based on material from Nordisk familjebok, lindkvist, Thomas with Maria Sjöberg Det svenska samhället 800-1720. Klerkernas och adelns tid, Andra upplagan ISBN 91-44-01181-4 Starbäck, Georg, P. O
15.
Eric Magnusson (duke)
–
Eric Magnusson was a Swedish prince, Duke of Svealand, Södermanland, Dalsland, Västergötland, Värmland and North Halland and heir to the throne of Sweden. He was the father of King Magnus who became king of both Norway and Sweden, Eric was born circa 1282, the second son of King Magnus III of Sweden and his Queen consort Helvig of Holstein. He later became the Duke of Södermanland and a part of Uppland in 1302, erik is reported as being more skilled and intelligent than his elder brother who became King Birger of Sweden. He was also bold and ambitious, and his social skills won him many allies and his younger brother Valdemar Magnusson, the duke of Finland, became his close ally and helped him in all his projects. King Birger, who feared his brothers plans, forced them to sign a paper, in 1304 and they then fled to Norway, but in 1305, they reconciled with the king and regained their duchies. Eric was also in possession of Kungahälla, which he had given during his exile by the Norwegian king. Duke Eric planned to topple Birgers marshal Torgils Knutsson who was in the way of his ambitious plans, as the clergy were in opposition to the marshal, they joined Eric. They prevailed on the weak Birger in 1306 to execute Torgils, little more than half a year later, Birger was imprisoned by his brothers, and his brothers took control of Sweden. Birgers brother-in-law, Eric VI of Denmark arrived with his army to support Birger, Haakon V of Norway, however, was on the side of the younger brothers. In 1308, Eric and Valdemar were forced by the Danish king to release Birger, when Birger was free, he sought aid in Denmark, and the strife began anew. The course of events turned against duke Eric, by concluding a peace treaty with the Danish king, unbeknownst to Haakon V, Eric lost Haakons trust. Håkon wanted to have Kungahälla back, but Eric refused, a war broke out between Haakon V of Norway and Eric in 1309, and the kings of Norway and Denmark concluded peace, and allied against the dukes. Through his strategic skills, Eric managed to out the storm, and defeated the Norwegians. He attacked Norway and reconquered Kungahälla, which he had lost to Haakon in 1310, finally, there was peace at Helsingborg, in which Sweden was divided between Birger and his brothers. Eric received Västergötland, Dalsland, Värmland and Kalmar County, as well was northern Halland as a fief from Denmark, in spite of the fact that Eric never returned Kungahälla, and broke almost all his promises to Haakon, he managed to win his approval. He married Haakon V of Norways 11-year-old daughter Ingeborg Haakonsdatter, in 1312, Eric married Ingeborg in a double wedding in Oslo. At the same time, Erics brother Valdemar Magnusson married Ingeborg Eriksdottir of Norway, in 1316 Eric and Ingeborg had a son, the future king Magnus IV of Sweden and in 1317 daughter Euphemia of Sweden. However, his career was stopped and his life was shortened by the treachery of his brother King Birger, the de jure ruler of Sweden
16.
Ingeborg of Norway
–
In 1318-1319, she was Swedens de facto ruler, and from 1319 until 1326, she was Swedens first de jure female regent. Ingeborg was born as the legitimate daughter of King Håkon V of Norway from his marriage with Euphemia of Rügen. As a child, she was first betrothed to Magnus Birgerson, in 1312, Ingeborg and Eric were formally married in a double wedding in Oslo, at the same time, her cousin Ingeborg Eriksdottir of Norway, married Erics brother duke Valdemar Magnusson. At her wedding, her mother Queen Euphemia had published the recently translated famous poems, the couple had two children before Duke Eric was murdered. Upon the imprisonment of her spouse and her brother-in-law, she and her cousin and sister-in-law, Ingeborg Eriksdottir, later the same year, their husbands were confirmed to have died. Her son Magnus VII of Norway, at the age of 3, was proclaimed king of Norway upon her fathers death, Ingeborg was recognized as formal regent of her son in Norway. Duchess Ingeborg held her own court at her residence in Varberg, the exact position of Ingeborg in the regency council is hard to define properly due to the documentation. Mats Kettilumndsson, her ally, presided over the Swedish regency council alongside the two Duchesses Ingeborg, Ingeborg Håkansdotter and her cousin and sister-in-law Ingeborg Eriksdottir, Magnus, already King of Norway, was elected King of Sweden with the approval of the Norwegian council in her presence. Ingeborg was the one with a seat in both the Swedish and the Norwegian minor regency and council of state. She was the independent reigning duchess of her own fiefs, which were autonomous under her rule, Ingeborgs position at court was not well-defined, she was the Kings Mother, but without being a dowager Queen. She was criticized for her way of conducting her own politics without the counsel of the Swedish and Norwegian councils,1 October 1320, she liberated Riga from its debts in her name on behalf of her son. She was known to large donations to her supporters. Canute Porse had been one of the supporters of her spouse and was appointed governor of Varberg, Ingeborg surrounded herself with young foreign men, thought to affect her politics, of which Canute was the most known. Ingeborg and Canute had the ambition to make the then Danish Scania a part of her possessions, in 1321, Ingeborg arranged a marriage with her daughter Euphemia and Albert II, Duke of Mecklenburg. The marriage was arranged with the terms that Mecklenburg, Saxony, Holstein, Rendsburg and this was approved by the council of Norway but not Sweden. To finance the invasion, Ingeborg took a loan from Stralsund with free trade in Sweden, when Ingeborgs forces under command of Canute invaded Scania in 1322-23, Mecklenburg betrayed her to Denmark and the alliance was broken. In 1323, Ingeborg was forced to accept the terms and give up several of her strategical castles,20 February 1323, also the Norwegian regency council rebelled against Ingeborg. She was accused of misusing the royal seal, to have broken the peace with Denmark and for greater costs, after 1323, Ingeborgs power was limited to what was approved by votes in the councils, which in practice had deposed her
17.
Roman Catholicism
–
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church or the Universal Church, is the largest Christian church, with more than 1.28 billion members worldwide. As one of the oldest religious institutions in the world, it has played a prominent role in the history, headed by the Bishop of Rome, known as the Pope, the churchs doctrines are summarised in the Nicene Creed and the Apostles Creed. Its central administration is located in Vatican City, enclaved within Rome, the Catholic Church is notable within Western Christianity for its sacred tradition and seven sacraments. It teaches that it is the one church founded by Jesus Christ, that its bishops are the successors of Christs apostles. The Catholic Church maintains that the doctrine on faith and morals that it declares as definitive is infallible. The Latin Church, the Eastern Catholic Churches, as well as such as mendicant orders and enclosed monastic orders. Among the sacraments, the one is the Eucharist, celebrated liturgically in the Mass. The church teaches that through consecration by a priest the sacrificial bread and wine become the body, the Catholic Church practises closed communion, with only baptised members in a state of grace ordinarily permitted to receive the Eucharist. The Virgin Mary is venerated in the Catholic Church as Queen of Heaven and is honoured in numerous Marian devotions. The Catholic Church has influenced Western philosophy, science, art and culture, Catholic spiritual teaching includes spreading the Gospel while Catholic social teaching emphasises support for the sick, the poor and the afflicted through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. The Catholic Church is the largest non-government provider of education and medical services in the world, from the late 20th century, the Catholic Church has been criticised for its doctrines on sexuality, its refusal to ordain women and its handling of sexual abuse cases. Catholic was first used to describe the church in the early 2nd century, the first known use of the phrase the catholic church occurred in the letter from Saint Ignatius of Antioch to the Smyrnaeans, written about 110 AD. In the Catechetical Discourses of Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, the name Catholic Church was used to distinguish it from other groups that call themselves the church. The use of the adjective Roman to describe the Church as governed especially by the Bishop of Rome became more widespread after the Fall of the Western Roman Empire and into the Early Middle Ages. Catholic Church is the name used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church follows an episcopal polity, led by bishops who have received the sacrament of Holy Orders who are given formal jurisdictions of governance within the church. Ultimately leading the entire Catholic Church is the Bishop of Rome, commonly called the pope, in parallel to the diocesan structure are a variety of religious institutes that function autonomously, often subject only to the authority of the pope, though sometimes subject to the local bishop. Most religious institutes only have male or female members but some have both, additionally, lay members aid many liturgical functions during worship services
18.
Iceland
–
Iceland is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of 332,529 and an area of 103,000 km2, the capital and largest city is Reykjavík. Reykjavík and the areas in the southwest of the country are home to over two-thirds of the population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically active, the interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and lava fields, mountains and glaciers, while many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands. Iceland is warmed by the Gulf Stream and has a climate, despite a high latitude just outside the Arctic Circle. Its high latitude and marine influence still keeps summers chilly, with most of the archipelago having a tundra climate. According to the ancient manuscript Landnámabók, the settlement of Iceland began in the year 874 AD when the Norwegian chieftain Ingólfr Arnarson became the first permanent settler on the island. In the following centuries, Norwegians, and to a lesser extent other Scandinavians, emigrated to Iceland, the island was governed as an independent commonwealth under the Althing, one of the worlds oldest functioning legislative assemblies. Following a period of strife, Iceland acceded to Norwegian rule in the 13th century. The establishment of the Kalmar Union in 1397 united the kingdoms of Norway, Denmark, Iceland thus followed Norways integration to that Union and came under Danish rule after Swedens secession from that union in 1523. In the wake of the French revolution and the Napoleonic wars, Icelands struggle for independence took form and culminated in independence in 1918, until the 20th century, Iceland relied largely on subsistence fishing and agriculture, and was among the poorest in Europe. Industrialisation of the fisheries and Marshall Plan aid following World War II brought prosperity, in 1994, it became a part of the European Economic Area, which further diversified the economy into sectors such as finance, biotechnology, and manufacturing. Iceland has an economy with relatively low taxes compared to other OECD countries. It maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides health care. Iceland ranks high in economic, political and social stability and equality, in 2013, it was ranked as the 13th most-developed country in the world by the United Nations Human Development Index. Iceland runs almost completely on renewable energy, some bankers were jailed, and the economy has made a significant recovery, in large part due to a surge in tourism. Icelandic culture is founded upon the nations Scandinavian heritage, most Icelanders are descendants of Germanic and Gaelic settlers. Icelandic, a North Germanic language, is descended from Old Norse and is related to Faroese
19.
Greenland
–
Greenland is an autonomous constituent country within the Danish Realm between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for more than a millennium. The majority of its residents are Inuit, whose ancestors began migrating from the Canadian mainland in the 13th century, Greenland is the worlds largest island. Three-quarters of Greenland is covered by the permanent ice sheet outside Antarctica. With a population of about 56,480, it is the least densely populated country in the world, the Arctic Umiaq Line ferry acts as a lifeline for western Greenland, connecting the various cities and settlements. Greenland has been inhabited off and on for at least the last 4,500 years by Arctic peoples whose forebears migrated there from what is now Canada, Norsemen settled the uninhabited southern part of Greenland beginning in the 10th century, and Inuit peoples arrived in the 13th century. The Norse colonies disappeared in the late 15th century, soon after their demise, beginning in 1499, the Portuguese briefly explored and claimed the island, naming it Terra do Lavrador. In the early 18th century, Scandinavian explorers reached Greenland again, to strengthen trading and power, Denmark-Norway affirmed sovereignty over the island. Greenland was settled by Vikings more than a thousand years ago, Vikings set sail from Greenland and Iceland, discovering North America nearly 500 years before Columbus reached Caribbean islands. Though under continuous influence of Norway and Norwegians, Greenland was not formally under the Norwegian crown until 1262, the Kingdom of Norway was extensive and a military power until the mid-14th century. Thus, the two kingdoms resources were directed at creating Copenhagen, Norway became the weaker part and lost sovereignty over Greenland in 1814 when the union was dissolved. Greenland became a Danish colony in 1814, and was made a part of the Danish Realm in 1953 under the Constitution of Denmark, in 1973, Greenland joined the European Economic Community with Denmark. However, in a referendum in 1982, a majority of the population voted for Greenland to withdraw from the EEC which was effected in 1985, Greenland contains the worlds largest and most northernly national park, Northeast Greenland National Park. Greenland is divided into four municipalities - Sermersooq, Kujalleq, Qaasuitsup and it also retains control of monetary policy, providing an initial annual subsidy of DKK3.4 billion, which is planned to diminish gradually over time. Greenland expects to grow its economy based on increased income from the extraction of natural resources, the capital, Nuuk, held the 2016 Arctic Winter Games. At 70%, Greenland has one of the highest shares of renewable energy in the world, the early Viking settlers named the island as Greenland. In the Icelandic sagas, the Norwegian-born Icelander Erik the Red was said to be exiled from Iceland for manslaughter, along with his extended family and his thralls, he set out in ships to explore an icy land known to lie to the northwest. After finding an area and settling there, he named it Grœnland
20.
Scania
–
Scania, also known by its local name Skåne, is the southernmost province of Sweden which consists of a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian Peninsula and some islands close to it. Scania is roughly equivalent to the modern Skåne County, the responsibility for overseeing implementation of state policy in the county is administered by the County Administrative Board. Within Scania there are 33 municipalities that are independent and separate from the Scania Regional Council which has its seat in Kristianstad, the largest city is Malmö, which is also the third largest city in Sweden. To the north, Scania borders the provinces of Halland and Småland, to the northeast Blekinge, to the east and south the Baltic Sea and Bornholm island, since 2000 a road and railway bridge, the Øresund Bridge, bridges the sound to the Danish island of Zealand. The HH Ferry route across the part of Øresund also remains as an important link between the Scandinavian Peninsula and Zealand. Scania is part of the transnational Øresund Region, Scania was part of the kingdom of Denmark up until the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658. The transition to Sweden was later confirmed by the 1660 Treaty of Copenhagen, the 1679 Peace of Lund, the last serious Danish attempt to invade the province failed in 1710, after the Battle of Helsingborg. The period 1658–1720 saw widespread violence by the Swedish militaries against the local population, the same was also true about the Danish military, though to a far lesser extent. The region did not form part of Sweden proper until 1720 and it was then divided in two counties and has since then been regarded as fully integrated in Sweden. Until the early 19th century, a policy of forced assimilation was employed by the Swedish government in what then had been a linguistically Danish region. Controversy relating to whether the Scanian dialects should be classified as a language or as Danish or Swedish dialects remains to this day. From north to south Scania is around 130 kilometres and covers less than 3% of Swedens total area, about 16% of Scanias population is foreign-born. With 120 inh/km2 Scania is the second most densely populated province of Sweden, the western part, along the coast of the Øresund, is by far the most populated part. The endonym used in Swedish and other North Germanic languages is Skåne, the Latinized form Scania occurs especially in British English as an exonym. Scania is the only Swedish province for which exonyms are still used in many languages, e. g. French Scanie, Dutch and German Schonen, Polish Skania, Spanish Escania, Italian Scania. For the provinces modern administrative counterpart, Skåne län, the endonym Skåne is used in English, in the Alfredian translation of Orosiuss and Wulfstans travel accounts, the Old English form Sconeg appears. The names Scania and Scandinavia are considered to have the same etymology, the name is possibly derived from the Germanic root *Skaðin-awjã, which appears in Old Norse as Skáney. According to some scholars, the Germanic stem can be reconstructed as *Skaðan- meaning danger or damage, Skanör in Scania, with its long Falsterbo reef, has the same stem combined with -ör, which means sandbanks
21.
Hereditary Kingdom of Norway
–
The Kingdom of Norway as a unified realm was initiated by King Harald I Fairhair in the 9th century. His efforts in unifying the petty kingdoms of Norway, resulted in the first known Norwegian central government, the country however fragmented soon, and was collected into one entity in the first half of the 11th century. Norway has been a monarchy since then, passing through several eras, thus was born the medieval kingdom of Norway, the realm of the Fairhair dynasty. According to the view, Norway was the hereditary kingdom of this dynasty. The throne was inherited by all of Haralds male descendants after year 872, in the 13th century, the kingdom was officially declared hereditary by law, contrary to the other Scandinavian monarchies which were elective kingdoms in the Middle Ages. Harald Fairhair was the first king of Norway, as opposed to in 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. Harald Fairhair unified Norway, at least the coastal areas north to Trøndelag, after his death, the fragmentation back into petty kingdoms happened almost instantly. However, most of them were now in the hands of Haralds putative sons, although there were districts in the hands of other dynasties, the concept of a central power on an hereditary basis had come into existence. It remains uncertain whether Norway can be defined as an hereditary kingdom even after the successions of Eric I of Norway and Haakon I of Norway, sons of Fairhair himself. Some historians put emphasis on the actual control over the country and assert that St. Olav. Olav is traditionally held to be the force behind Norways final conversion to Christianity. He was later revered as Rex Perpetuum Norvegiæ. The Fairhair dynasty can, however, be seen as an artificial construct, adherents of this proposal consider Harald Hardråde to be the actual dynastic founder. This claim has won wide, but not universal, acceptance among historians and it is a disputed question whether Harald Hardråde himself actually claimed inheritance from Harald Fairhair, or whether this claim was constructed later by his descendants. From our sources, it seems reasonable to assume that Olav II and Harald Hardråde were half-brothers, with a common mother, descent from the same mother was not in Germanic understanding a proper dynastic tie, and Harald Hardrådes supporters did not base his rights and claims on that. Instead, Harald Hardrådes father was supposedly a descendent, in male line. The same has been claimed regarding Olav IIs line, to researchers, one or perhaps both of these somewhat obscure male-line descents may be legendary. Research has generally shown a tendency to create a prestigious past to the country
22.
Thing (assembly)
–
A thing was the governing assembly of a Northern Germanic society, made up of the free people of the community presided over by lawspeakers. Its meeting-place was called a thingstead, the Anglo-Saxon folkmoot or folkmote was analogous, the forerunner to the witenagemot and a precursor of the modern Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Old Norse, Old Frisian, and Old English þing with the assembly is identical in origin to the English word thing, German Ding, Dutch ding. All of these derive from Proto-Germanic *þingą meaning appointed time. The word shift in the meaning of the thing from assembly to object is mirrored in the evolution of the Latin causa to modern French chose, Spanish/Italian/Catalan cosa. In English the term is attested from 685 to 686 CE in the meaning assembly, later it referred to a being, entity or matter. The early sense of meeting, assembly did not survive the shift to Middle English, the meaning of personal possessions, commonly in the plural, first appears in Middle English around 1300. In the pre-Christian clan-culture of Scandinavia the members of a clan were obliged to avenge injuries against their dead, a balancing structure was necessary to reduce tribal feuds and avoid social disorder. It is known from North-Germanic cultures that the institution was the thing, although similar assemblies are reported also from other Germanic peoples. The thing was the assembly of the men and women of a country. There were consequently hierarchies of things, so that the things were represented at the higher-level thing. At the thing, disputes were solved and political decisions were made, the place for the thing was often also the place for public religious rites and for commerce. The thing met at regular intervals, legislated, elected chieftains and kings, and judged according to the law, the things negotiations were presided over by the lawspeaker and the chieftain or the king. In reality the thing was dominated by the most influential members of the community, the heads of clans and wealthy families, Haugating, the Thing for Vestfold in Norway, was located in Tønsberg at Haugar. This site was one of Norways most important places for the proclamation of kings, in 1130, Harald Gille called together a meeting at the Haugating at which he was declared to be King of Norway. Sigurd Magnusson was proclaimed king in 1193 at Haugating, magnus VII was acclaimed hereditary King of Norway and Sweden at the Haugating in August 1319. Main things in Sweden were the Thing of all Swedes, the Thing of all Geats, the island of Gotland had twenty things in late medieval times, each represented at the island-thing called landsting by its elected judge. New laws were decided at the landsting, which also took other decisions regarding the island as a whole, the landstings authority was successively eroded after the island was occupied by the Teutonic Order in 1398
23.
Haugating
–
Haugating was a Thing in medieval Norway. Haugating served as an assembly for the regions around Vestfold and the area west of Oslofjord, although it was not as recognized nationally as the Øreting in Trøndelag, Haugating did play an important role in the history of Norway as a site for the proclamation of kings. At various times, Harald Gille, Sigurd Magnusson, Magnus Erlingsson and Jon Kuvlung were all proclaimed there to be contenders to the throne of Norway, Haugating was seated in Tønsberg at Haugar. During the Civil war era in Norway, Tonsberg was one of the area where the Bagler faction, several rebel bands hailed their royal subjects from Haugating. Haugar Vestfold Kunstmuseum, which opened to the public 1995, is now located at the site of the former Haugating, a memorial stone was erected on the site during 1954
24.
Hedwig of Holstein
–
Hedwig of Holstein or Helvig was a Swedish queen consort, spouse of King Magnus III of Sweden. She was the child of Gerhard I, Count of Holstein-Itzehoe, Hedwig was married to Magnus Ladulås in 1276, and was granted the fief of Dåvö in Munktorp in Västmanland. Magnus succeeded in preventing a Danish-Holstein alliance by marrying her, however, he had obtained a dispensation for their marriage only after the wedding. Her father was captured during the Folkunge party revolt by rebellious noblemen in Skara in 1278, the actions of the rebels were well timed, they coincided with her journey through Sweden. She sought refuge in the convent in the city, Hedwig was crowned Queen of Sweden in the city of Söderköping on 29 June 1281, this is the first confirmed coronation of a queen consort in Sweden. It included the prayers for her fertility, which was the matter of great importance and she founded the Greyfriars convent in Stockholm and several other churches and convents. As a queen, however, she is not very much heard of, despite the fact that she held the position for fourteen years, she lived a discreet life, both as a queen and as a dowager queen. She took a prominent part in processions which accompanied the inauguration of bishops, celebrations of a feast day, after the death of her spouse in 1290, Hedwig acted as one of the executors of the will of the King. In 1291, she withdrew to her estate Dåvö in Västmanland and she is not known to have taken any political role, formal or informal, during or after the reign of her spouse. She was described as a noble, loyal and peace-loving mother figure and she acted as a foster mother for her sons future bride, Martha of Denmark, who spent a lot of her childhood in Sweden as the future Queen of Sweden after 1290. In 1302, she was present at the coronation of her son, as dowager queen, she governed Fjärdhundraland, which was given to her as dower. Queen Hedwig is buried in Riddarholm Church in Stockholm, with her husband, hedwigs wedding took place at Kalmar castle the 11 November 1276 with king Magnus III Ladulås of Sweden. They had the children, Ingeborg Magnusdotter of Sweden, born abt. Married King Eric VI of Denmark, Erik Menved, Eric Magnusson, Duke of Södermanland in 1302 and Halland etc. Died of starvation 1318 at Nyköpingshus Castle while imprisoned by his brother, valdemar Magnusson, Duke of Finland in 1302 and Öland 1310. Died of starvation 1318 at Nyköpingshus castle while imprisoned by his brother King Birger, Richeza Magnusdotter of Sweden, abbess of the convent of St. Clara at Stockholm
25.
Christopher II of Denmark
–
Christopher II was king of Denmark from 1320 to 1326 and again from 1329 until his death. His name is connected with national disaster, as his rule ended in an almost total dissolution of the Danish state, being the brother of King Eric VI, Christopher was a possible heir to the throne. As a young man with the title of Duke of Estonia, among other things he arrested Archbishop Jens Grand in 1294. But later on he joined the opposition and went into exile at the death of Eric in 1319 and he received a bankrupt estate in which entire regions of the kingdom were mortgaged to German and Danish magnates. The conditions of the charter were very hard, because they limited his ability to assess taxes, Christopher could make no decision regarding the realm without the consent of the nobility and the bishops. The privileges of the nobility and the church were included in the charter and this shift of power away from the king would last until 1660. Despite signing the charter, King Christopher ruled as if it did not exist, since he could not tax the church or Danish nobles he levied disastrous taxes on the German territories and peasants. During the next years Christopher tried to strengthen his position by reviving Erik’s policy of warfare against the duchies, counties and this resulted in new mortgages and taxes, and very soon he was in conflict with both the church and the magnates. During a rebellion in 1326 he was overthrown by an alliance between Danish magnates and Holstein Count Gerhard III and Count Johann I of Holstein-Kiel. Christopher was forced into abdication and exile, while the 12-year-old Duke Valdemar of Southern Jutland was made a king of Denmark under the regent, Count Gerhard. They forced the Valdemar in his charter to separate southern Jutland from Denmark so that never again would the King of Denmark rule there. Knud Knudson Porse took Halland for himself for his services to Count Gerhard, the squabbling over who got which pieces of Denmark broke down the alliances which had forced Christopher out of the country. Suddenly, with the help of Henry of Mecklenburg, Christopher stood poised at Vordingborg with 2000 mounted German knights, unfortunately for Christopher they allowed themselves to be surrounded and were forced to surrender. After a peasant uprising in Jutland which was crushed ruthlessly by Count Gerhard and he readily accepted and Denmark ceased to exist as a united kingdom. Christopher was restored as Danish king 1329–1330 by the co-operation of Count Johan, most of his country was mortgaged, and he had no chance of holding real royal power. Jutland for example was mortgaged for 100,000 silver marks which had to be laid on the table all at once or the mortgage was not redeemed and it was an enormous mortgage and impossible to pay. Count Gerhard took all of Jutland as his personal property, Count Johan did the same on Funen and Zealand. In 1331 Christopher attempted to use a conflict between Counts Gerhard and Johan by joining the latter ended in a clear military defeat at Dannevirke
26.
Louis VIII of France
–
Louis VIII the Lion was King of France from 1223 to 1226. He also claimed the title King of England from 1216 to 1217, Louis VIII was born in Paris, the son of King Philip II of France and Isabelle of Hainaut, from whom he inherited the County of Artois. While Louis VIII only briefly reigned as king of France, he was a leader in his years as crown prince. During the First Barons War of 1215-17 against King John of England, after his victory at the Battle of Roche-au-Moine in 1214, he invaded southern England and was proclaimed King of England by rebellious barons in London on the 2 June 1216. He was never crowned, however, and renounced his claim after being excommunicated and repelled, in 1217, Louis started the conquest of Guyenne, leaving only a small region around Bordeaux to Henry III of England. Louiss short reign was marked by an intervention using royal forces into the Albigensian Crusade in southern France that decisively moved the conflict towards a conclusion and he died in 1226 and was succeeded by his son Louis IX. In summer 1195, a marriage between Louis and Eleanor of Brittany, niece of Richard I of England, was suggested for an alliance between Philip II and Richard, but it failed and this led to a sudden deterioration in relations between Richard and Philip. On 23 May 1200, at the age of 12, Louis was married to Blanche of Castile, daughter of King Alfonso VIII of Castile and Eleanor of England, the marriage could only be concluded after prolonged negotiations between King Philip II of France and Blanches uncle John. In 1214, King John of England began his campaign to reclaim the Duchy of Normandy from Philip II. John was optimistic, as he had built up alliances with Holy Roman Emperor Otto IV, Count Renaud of Boulogne. Johns plan was to split Philips forces by pushing north-east from Poitou towards Paris, while Otto, Renaud and Ferdinand, supported by the Earl of Salisbury, marched south-west from Flanders. Whereas Philip II took personal command of the front against the emperor and his allies. The first part of the campaign went well for the English, with John outmanoeuvring the forces under the command of Prince Louis, John besieged the castle of Roche-au-Moine, a key stronghold, forcing Louis to give battle against Johns larger army. The local Angevin nobles refused to advance with the king, left at something of a disadvantage, shortly afterwards, Philip won the hard-fought Battle of Bouvines in the north against Otto and Johns other allies, bringing an end to Johns hopes of retaking Normandy. In 1215, the English barons rebelled against the unpopular King John in the First Barons War, the barons offered the throne to Prince Louis, who landed unopposed on the Isle of Thanet in eastern Kent, England, at the head of an army on 21 May 1216. There was little resistance when the prince entered London, and Louis was proclaimed king at Old St Pauls Cathedral with great pomp and celebration in the presence of all of London. Even though he was not crowned, many nobles, as well as King Alexander II of Scotland on behalf of his English possessions, on 14 June 1216, Louis captured Winchester and soon controlled over half of the English kingdom. But just when it seemed that England was his, King Johns death in October 1216 caused many of the barons to desert Louis in favour of Johns nine-year-old son
27.
Bohus
–
Bohus Fortress lies along the old Norwegian–Swedish border in Kungälv, Bohuslän, Sweden, north east from Hisingen where the Göta river splits into two branches. It commands the area from a cliff 40 m high. The construction of Bohus Fortress began in 1308 under King Haakon V Magnuson, håkon V also initiated construction of Norwegian fortresses at Akershus and Vardøhus as part of a broader defensive policy. At the time Bohuslän was Norwegian territory and served as the main Norwegian defence against Sweden, according to architect Guthorm Kavli, The fortress was attacked or besieged 14 times, but was never captured. During the Northern Seven Years War, in 1563–1570, it was seriously damaged and this occurred in 1566, when 250 Swedish soldiers successfully stormed the northeastern-most tower. The Norwegian commander sent in a volunteer to blow up the ammunition stores underneath the tower, killing the Swedes, as a reward the family of the volunteer got a piece of land which is still owned by the descendants of this volunteer. The Norwegians rebuilt the fortress of stone and brick, and reinforced it substantially, the reconstruction immediately after the war was directed by Hans Paaske from the Netherlands. In 1593–1604, similar to the construction then undertaken at Akershus in Oslo, a new outer fortification was raised. This construction was one of the works of Hans van Steenwinckel, also from the Netherlands. As Swedish invasions continuously threatened Norwegian Båhuslen during this time period, under the terms of the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658, Denmark–Norway ceded the Danish provinces of Scania, Blekinge and Halland and the Norwegian provinces Trøndelag and Bohuslän. After Denmark–Norway ceded the territory which included Bohus Fortress, Fredriksten Fortress was constructed in Fredrikshald on the newly established Norwegian-Swedish border. Since the Bohus Fortress no longer lay on the border, it was of use to Sweden, which relied on the existing Älvsborg fortress at Gothenburg. Instead the fortress was used as a prison, the most noted prisoner was the radical pietist Thomas Leopold, who spent 42 years of his life behind bars,32 of those at Bohus, for his alleged heresies. His stone-clad cell still exists in the castle, at the end of the 18th century it was decided that the now unused fortress should be demolished. Demolition crews worked at the fortress for two months, after that the allocated for the job had run out. Residents of the town of Kungälv used the dressed stone from the fortress to build houses. However, much of the fortress is still intact, including the northern tower. As of 2015, the fortress is a open to visitors during summer
28.
Varberg
–
Varberg is a locality and the seat of Varberg Municipality, Halland County, Sweden with 27,602 inhabitants in 2010. Varberg and all of Halland are well known for their typical west coast sandy beaches, in Varberg the coast changes from wide sandy beaches to rocky terrain that continues north into the Bohuslän archipelago and as far as the North Cape. Varberg is a charming and popular resort and many people from inland cities such as Borås are either moving to Varberg or holidaying there. Varberg is located in a terrain of hills and plains and it is largely without trees and green areas, in its place are bald rocks and sand. The Swedish authoritative author and bishop Esaias Tegnér described it in 1826 as the least appealing place in Sweden, the sandy beaches are however very popular in the summer. Another main factor in Varberg is its natural surroundings, just a 20-minute drive inland reveals a totally different landscape. Here you will be among a landscape, rolling hills with lakes. Varberg has a climate that although moderate by Swedish standards. Summers are in general cooler than both in Halmstad and Gothenburg, with highs being moderated by the marine airflow, although this moderation occurs, some summer days can be very warm, and some winter nights see severe frosts. A fortress called Varberg was erected in the 1280s as part of a chain of establishments along the coast. In the middle of the 14th century, the old settlement Getakärr 1 kilometre north of the fortress took its new name from the fortress, the town was moved 5 km northwards around the year 1400. It was destroyed during the Kalmar War and rebuilt near the fortress, in 1645 Halland passed from Denmark to Sweden by the Treaty of Brömsebro for a period of 30 years. It had at that time about 600 inhabitants, the transfer was made permanent by the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658. The town was moved again after a fire in 1666, to the location were the city centre is today, the city was devastated by a huge fire in 1863 and was subsequently rebuilt with stone or brick houses. In 1890 the population figure had passed 4,000 and with industrialization it reached 8,500 in 1930, the local government reform of 1971 made Varberg the seat of the much larger Varberg Municipality, with a current population of close to 56,000 inhabitants. Although several houses were torn down in the 1970s, most of the city still remains intact. Varbergs fortress is its most notable building, mostly because of its size as it has no architectural uniformity. It was first built as a castle in 1280, with new parts being built in successions, near Varberg there is the VLF transmitter Grimeton, an interesting radio-technical facility and classified by UNESCO to be a World Cultural Heritage site
29.
Regent
–
A regent is a person appointed to administer a state because the monarch is a minor, is absent or is incapacitated. The rule of a regent or regents is called a regency, a regent or regency council may be formed ad hoc or in accordance with a constitutional rule. Regent is sometimes a formal title, if the formally appointed regent is unavailable or cannot serve on a temporary basis, a Regent ad interim may be appointed to fill the gap. In a monarchy, a regent usually governs due to one of these reasons and this was the case in the Kingdom of Finland and the Kingdom of Hungary, where the royal line was considered extinct in the aftermath of World War I. In Iceland, the regent represented the King of Denmark as sovereign of Iceland until the country became a republic in 1944, in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, kings were elective, which often led to a fairly long interregnum. In the interim, it was the Roman Catholic Primate who served as the regent, in the small republic of San Marino, the two Captains Regent, or Capitani Reggenti, are elected semi-annually as joint heads of state and of government. Famous regency periods include that of the Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, giving rise to terms such as Regency era. Strictly this period lasted from 1811 to 1820, when his father George III was insane, as of 1 December 2016, Liechtenstein is the only country with an active regency. The term regent may refer to lower than the ruler of a country. The term may be used in the governance of organisations, typically as an equivalent of director, some university managers in North America are called regents and a management board for a college or university may be titled the Board of Regents. The term regent is used for members of governing bodies of institutions such as the national banks of France. This type of group portrait was popular in Dutch Golden Age painting during the 17th century, in the Dutch East Indies, a regent was a native prince allowed to rule de facto colonized state as a regentschap. Consequently, in the state of Indonesia, the term regent is used in English to mean a bupati. Again in Belgium and France, Regent is the title of a teacher in a lower secondary school. In the Philippines, specifically, the University of Santo Tomas, the Father Regent and they also form the Council of Regents that serves as the highest administrative council of the university. In the Society of Jesus, a regent is a training to be a Jesuit. A regent in the Jesuits is often assigned to teach in a school or some other academic institution as part of the formation toward final vows, list of regents Viceroy, an individual who, in a colony or province, exercised the power of a monarch on his behalf
30.
Yury of Moscow
–
Yuriy Danilovich, also known as Georgiy Danilovich was Prince of Moscow and Grand Prince of Vladimir. Yury was the oldest son of Daniel, the first prince of Moscow and his first official action was to defend Pereslavl-Zalessky against Grand Duke Andrew III. Upon Andrews death the year, Yury had to contend the title of Grand Duke of Vladimir with Mikhail of Tver. While the Tverian army besieged Pereslavl and Moscow itself, Mikhail went to the Golden Horde, in the meantime, Yury arranged the murder of Prince Konstantin of Ryazan. This unlucky ruler had been captured by Yurys father back in 1302 and had been incarcerated in Moscow since then, while Ryazan was shocked by such a barbarity, Yury annexed the key Ryazanian fortress of Kolomna to Moscow Duchy. He also captured Mozhaisk, which belonged to the princes of Smolensk. By 1314, Yury secured backing from the Metropolitan Peter and formed an alliance with Novgorod against Tver, now, he felt strong enough to challenge Mikhail of Tver in the Horde. In 1315 Yury went to the Golden Horde and, after spending two years there, constructed an alliance with Uzbeg Khan, upon Yurys marriage to the khans sister Konchaka, Uzbeg Khan deposed Mikhail and nominated Yury as the Grand Duke of Vladimir. Back in Russia with a force of Mongols, Yury approached Tver. However, Yuris army was defeated and his brother Boris and his wife were taken prisoners, thereupon he fled to Novgorod and sued for peace. At that time his wife, still held in Tver as a hostage, Yury availed himself of the confusion that followed and announced to the khan that she had been poisoned on Mikhails order. The khan summoned both princes to Sarai and, after a trial, had Mikhail executed, Yury returned to Russia, hated by other princes and populace alike, in 1319. He was now entrusted with the task of gathering all-Russian tribute to the Horde, but Mikhails son and successor, Dmitry the Terrible Eyes, still opposed him. In 1322, Dmitry, seeking revenge for his fathers murder, went to Sarai, Yury was summoned to the Horde for a trial but, before any formal investigation, was killed by Dmitry. Eight months later, Dmitry was also executed in the Horde, shortly before his death, Yury led the army of Novgorod to fight the Swedes and founded a fort in the mouth of the Neva River. Upon signing the Treaty of Orekhovo in 1323, Yury continued eastward and conquered Velikiy Ustyug the same year
31.
Schlisselburg
–
Shlisselburg is a town in Kirovsky District of Leningrad Oblast, Russia, located at the head of the Neva River on Lake Ladoga,35 kilometers east of St. Petersburg. From 1944 to 1992, it was known as Petrokrepost, the fortress and the town center are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. A wooden fortress named Oreshek or Orekhov was built by Grand Prince Yury of Moscow on behalf of the Novgorod Republic in 1323 and it guarded the northern approaches to Novgorod and access to the Baltic Sea. The fortress is situated on Orekhovets Island whose name refers to nuts in Swedish as well as in Finnish, after a series of conflicts, a peace treaty was signed at Oreshek on August 12,1323 between Sweden and Grand Prince Yury and the Novgorod Republic. This was the first agreement on the border between Eastern and Western Christianity running through present-day Finland, a modern stone monument to the north of the Church of St. John in the fortress commemorates the treaty. Twenty-five years later, King Magnus Eriksson attacked and briefly took the fortress during his crusade in the region in 1348–1352 and it was largely ruined by the time the Novgorodians retook the fortress in 1351. The remnants of the walls of 1352 were excavated in 1969, the fort was captured by Sweden in 1611 during the Ingrian War. As part of the Swedish Empire, the fortress was known as Nöteborg in Swedish or Pähkinälinna in Finnish, and became the center of the north-Ingrian Nöteborg county. In 1702, during the Great Northern War, the fortress was taken by Russians under Peter the Great in an assault,250 Swedish soldiers defended the fort for ten days before surrendering. Russian losses were 6,000 men against 110 Swedish losses and it was then given its current name, Shlisselburg, a corruption of Schlüsselburg. The name, meaning Key-fortress in German, refers to Peters perception of the fortress as the key to Ingria. During Imperial times, the fortress was used as a political prison, among its famous prisoners were Wilhelm Küchelbecker, Mikhail Bakunin and, for thirty-eight years. Ivan VI was murdered in the fortress in 1764, and Lenins brother, out of original ten towers, the fortress retains only six. The remains of a church inside the fortress were transformed into a memorial to the fortresss defenders, the fortress has been the site of an annual rock concert since 2003. There is also a museum of political prisoners of the Russian Empire, the town on the mainland opposite the island fortress was founded in 1702 by Peter the Great. In the course of Peters administrative reform, Shlisselburg was included into Ingermanland Governorate, in 1727, it became a part of Sankt-Petersburgsky Uyezd, and in 1755 Shlisselburgsky Uyezd was established. In 1914, Sankt-Peterburgsky Uyezd was renamed Petrogradsky Uyezd, on February 14,1923, Shlisselburgsky Uyezd was merged into Petrogradsky Uyezd. In January 1924, the uyezd was renamed Leningradsky, St. Petersburg Governorate was twice renamed, first Petrograd Governorate and subsequently Leningrad Governorate
32.
Lake Ladoga
–
Lake Ladoga is a freshwater lake located in the Republic of Karelia and Leningrad Oblast in northwestern Russia just outside the outskirts of Saint Petersburg. It is the largest lake in Europe, and the 15th largest freshwater lake by area in the world, Ladoga Lacus, a methane lake on Saturns moon Titan, is named after the lake. In one of Nestors chronicles from the 12th century he mentions a lake called the Great Nevo, ancient Norse sagas and Hanseatic treaties both mention a city made of lakes named Old Norse Aldeigja or Aldoga. Since the beginning of the 14th century this hydronym was commonly known as Ladoga, according to T. N. Jackson, it can be taken almost for granted, that the name of Ladoga first referred to the river, then the city, and only then the lake. Therefore, he considers the primary hydronym Ladoga to originate in the inflow to the lower reaches of the Volkhov River whose Finnic name was Alodejoki river of the lowlands. The Germanic toponym was soon borrowed by the Slavic population and transformed by means of the Old Russian metathesis ald- → lad- to Old East Slavic, Ладога. Other theories about the origin of the name derive it from Karelian, aalto wave and Karelian, aaltokas wavy, or from the Russian dialectal word алодь, meaning open lake, eugene Helimski by contrast, offers an etymology rooted in German. Through the intermediate form *Aldaugja, Old Norse, Aldeigja cam about, the lake has an average surface area of 17,891 km2. Its north-to-south length is 219 km and its width is 83 km. Basin area,276,000 km2, volume,837 km3, there are around 660 islands, with a total area of about 435 km2. Ladoga is, on average,5 m above sea level, most of the islands, including the famous Valaam archipelago, Kilpola and Konevets, are situated in the northwest of the lake. Separated from the Baltic Sea by the Karelian Isthmus, it drains into the Gulf of Finland via the Neva River, Lake Ladoga is navigable, being a part of the Volga-Baltic Waterway connecting the Baltic Sea with the Volga River. The Ladoga Canal bypasses the lake in the part, connecting the Neva to the Svir. The basin of Lake Ladoga includes about 50,000 lakes and 3,500 rivers longer than 10 km, about 85% of the water inflow is due to tributaries, 13% is due to precipitation, and 2% is due to underground waters. Geologically, the Lake Ladoga depression is a graben and syncline structure of Proterozoic age and this Ladoga–Pasha structure, as it known, hosts Jotnian sediments. During the Pleistocene glaciations the depression was partially stripped of its sedimentary rock fill by glacial overdeepening, deglaciation following the Weichsel glaciation took place in the Lake Ladoga basin between 12,500 and 11,500 radiocarbon years BP. Lake Ladoga was initially part of the Baltic Ice Lake, a historical stage of Baltic Sea. It is possible, though not certain, that Ladoga was isolated from it during regression of the subsequent Yoldia Sea brackish stage, at 9,500 BP, Lake Onega, previously draining into the White Sea, started emptying into Ladoga via the River Svir
33.
Neva River
–
The Neva is a river in northwestern Russia flowing from Lake Ladoga through the western part of Leningrad Oblast to the Neva Bay of the Gulf of Finland. Despite its modest length of 74 kilometres, it is the fourth largest river in Europe in terms of average discharge, the Neva is the only river flowing from Lake Ladoga. It flows through the city of Saint Petersburg, three towns of Shlisselburg, Kirovsk and Otradnoye, and dozens of settlements. The river is navigable throughout and is part of the Volga–Baltic Waterway and White Sea – Baltic Canal. There are at least three versions of the origin of the name Neva, from the ancient Finnish name of Lake Ladoga, from the Finnish, neva meaning swamp, or from the Swedish, ny – new river. Modern names for the distributaries of the delta were settled only by the end of the 18th century. In the Paleozoic, 300–400 million years ago, the territory of the modern delta of the Neva River was covered by a sea. Modern relief was formed as a result of glacier activity and its retreat formed the Littorina Sea, the water level of which was some 7 to 9 metres higher than the present level of the Baltic Sea. Then, the Tosna River was flowing in the bed of the Neva. In the north of the Karelian Isthmus, the Littorina Sea united by a strait with Lake Ladoga. The Mga River then flowed to the east, into Lake Ladoga, near the source of the Neva River. Near the modern Lake Ladoga, land rose faster, and a reservoir was formed. Its water level began to rise, eventually flooded the valley of Mga, the Ivanovo rapids of the modern Neva were created in the breakthrough area. So about 2000 BC the Neva was created with its tributaries Tosna, according to some newer data, it happened at 1410–1250 BC making the Neva a rather young river. The valley of Neva is formed by glacial and post-glacial sediments, the delta of Neva was formed at that time, which is actually pseudodelta, as it was formed not by accumulation of river material but by plunging into the past sediments. The Neva flows out of Lake Ladoga near Shlisselburg, flows through the Neva Lowland and it has a length of 74 kilometres, and the shortest distance from the source to the mouth is 45 kilometres. The river banks are low and steep, on average about 3 to 6 metres and 2 to 3 metres at the mouth. There are three turns, the Ivanovskye rapids, at Nevsky Forest Park of the Ust-Slavyanka region and near the Smolny Institute
34.
Korela
–
Korela Fortress, at the town of Priozersk, was founded by the Novgorodians to protect North Rus from Sweden. It was first mentioned in a Novgorodian chronicle of 1143 as Korela, Swedish chronicles first reported of the settlement of Keksholm in 1294. Until the 16th century, the fortress belonged to the Novgorod Republic, Novgorodians built the current stone bastions and towers in 1364 after a fire had destroyed the original wooden fortress in 1360. During a Swedish-Novgorodian war in 1314, a small Karelian force re-captured their fortress from the representatives of Novgorod and they invited Swedes to keep it against Novgorod, however, the Novgorodians reconquered the fortress. The fortress was confirmed as belonging to Novgorod in the treaty of Nöteborg of 1323, in the 1330s, the Novgorod Republic gave the castle of Korela, to duke Narimantas of Lithuania. In 1383 Korela, Oreshek and Koporye were inherited by Narimantas son, Patrikas, the following year local burghers lodged a complaint about his administration, and Patrikas was forced to exchange Korela for Ladoga and Russa. Patrikas occupied his lands in Ingria and Karelia at least from 1383 to 1397, in 1408, it is recorded that he settled in Moscow under the protection of Vasili I, together with his younger sons, Georgi and Fyodor, who had grown up in Ingria. Soon after their seizure of Korela in 1580, the Swedes rebuilt the following a Western European pattern of bastion fortifications. In the Treaty of Teusina of 1595 Sweden undertook to return Korela to Russia, during the subsequent Ingrian War starting 1610, Gustavus Adolphus restored Swedish control of the castle and the whole area. They were incorporated with Sweden as Kexholms län in the peace of Stolbova in 1617, the fortress and the region remained with Sweden until Peter the Great captured the fortress and parts of Kexholms län during the Great Northern War. After losing the Finnish War in 1809 Sweden ceded its eastern half to Russia, in the mid-18th century, the fortress was turned into a political prison of Imperial Russia. Some participants of the Decembrist Revolt were confined there, in 1917 Finland declared independence and Käkisalmi county became a part of the Karelian province. It was finally ceded to the Soviet Union in 1944, in October 1996, the opening scene of the film Brother was filmed outside the walls of the fortress. In the scene, the protagonist, Danila Bagrov, walks onto a set for a Nautilus Pompilius music video. Photos of the fortress Detailed information
35.
Vyborg
–
The area where Vyborg is located used to be a trading center on the Vuoksi Rivers western branch, which has dried up. The region was inhabited by the Karelians, a Balto-Finnic tribe which came under the domination of Novgorod. Settlement in the area of Vyborg is generally regarded to date from 13th century onwards when Hanseatic traders started to travel to Novgorod, the Viborg Castle was founded during the so-called Third Swedish Crusade in 1293 by marsk Torkel Knutsson on the site of older Karelian fort which was burned. The castle was fought over for decades between Sweden and the Novgorod Republic, by the Treaty of Nöteborg in 1323 between the Republic of Novgorod and Sweden, Vyborg was finally recognized as a part of Sweden. The towns trade privileges were chartered by the Pan-Scandinavian King Eric of Pomerania in 1403 and it withstood a prolonged siege by Daniil Shchenya during the Russo–Swedish War of 1496–1497. Under Swedish rule, Vyborg was closely associated with the family of Bååt. The late-medieval commanders and fief holders of Vyborg were descended from or married to the Bååt family, Vyborg remained in Swedish hands until its capture in 1710 after the Siege of Vyborg by Tsar Peter the Great in the Great Northern War. In the course of Peters second administrative reform, Vyborg became the seat of Vyborg Province of St. Petersburg Governorate, the 1721 Treaty of Nystad, which concluded the war with Sweden, finalized the transfer of the town and a part of Old Finland to Russia. In 1744, Vyborg became the seat of Vyborg Governorate, in 1783, the governorate was transformed into Vyborg Viceroyalty, then in 1801 back into Vyborg Governorate. In 1802, Vyborg Governorate was renamed Finland Governorate, One of the largest naval battles in history, the Battle of Vyborg Bay, was fought off the shore of the Vyborg Bay on July 4,1790. After the rest of Finland was ceded to Russia in 1809, Emperor Alexander I incorporated the town, in the course of the 19th century, the town developed as the center of administration and trade for the eastern part of Finland. The inauguration of the Saimaa Canal in 1856 benefited the economy as it opened the vast waterways of Eastern Finland to the sea. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the fall of the Russian Empire, during the Finnish Civil War, Vyborg was in the hands of the Finnish Red Guards until it was captured by the White Guard on the Battle of Vyborg, April 29,1918. In April–May 1918, 360–420 civilians, mainly Russian men are murdered by White Guards during the Vyborg massacre, in the inter-war decades, the town, Viipuri, was the second biggest town in Finland and the seat of Viipuri Province. In 1939, Vyborg had some 80,000 inhabitants, including sizable minorities of Swedes, Germans, Russians, Gypsies, Tatars, during this time, Alvar Aalto built the Vyborg Library—a masterpiece of modern architecture. During the Winter War between the Soviet Union and Finland in 1939–1940, over seventy people were evacuated from Vyborg to western Finland. As the town was held by the Finns, the remaining Finnish population. Thus, practically the whole population of Finnish Vyborg was resettled elsewhere in Finland, the town became the administrative center of Vyborgsky District
36.
Lake Onega
–
Lake Onega is a lake in the north-west European part of Russia, located on the territory of Republic of Karelia, Leningrad Oblast and Vologda Oblast. It belongs to the basin of the Baltic Sea, Atlantic Ocean, the lake is fed by about 50 rivers and is drained by the Svir River. There are about 1,650 islands on the lake and they include Kizhi, which hosts a historical complex of 89 orthodox wooden churches and other wooden constructions of 15th–20th centuries. The complex includes a UNESCO World Heritage site Kizhi Pogost, eastern shores of the lake contain about 1200 petroglyphs dated to 4th–2nd millennia BC. The major cities on the lake are Petrozavodsk, Kondopoga and Medvezhyegorsk, the lake is of glacial-tectonic origin and is a small remnant of a larger body of water which existed in this area during an Ice Age. Sediments at that time – sandstone, sand, clay and limestone – form a 200-meter thick layer covering the Baltic Shield which consists of granite, gneiss, the retreat of the Ice Age glaciers formed the Littorina Sea. Its level was first 7–9 meters higher than at present, but it gradually lowered, thereby decreasing the sea area and forming several lakes in the Baltic region. Lake Onega has an area of 9,700 km² without islands. It is the second largest lake in Europe, and the 18th largest lake by area in the world and its southern banks are mostly low and continuous, whereas northern banks are rocky and rugged. They contain numerous elongated bays shaping the lake into a giant crayfish, in the northern part lies a large Zaonezhye Peninsula, south of it, is the Big Klimenetsky island. To the west of them lies a deep Big Onego area with its Kondopozhskaya, Ilem-Gorskaya, to the south-west of the Big Onega lies Petrozavodsk Onego with its large Petrozavodsk and small Yalguba and Pinguba bays. To the east of Zaonezhye there is a bay, northern part of which is called Povenetsky Bay, there, deep sections alternate with banks and islands which split the bay into several parts. The southernmost part of them, Small Onega, is 40–50 meters deep, the average depth of the lake is 31 meters, and the deepest place is located in the northern part. The average depth is 50–60 meters in the center and rises to 20–30 meters in the southern part, the bottom has a very uneven profile, it is covered with silt, and contains numerous trenches of various size and shape in the northern part. The trenches are separated by shallow banks. Such bottom structure is favorable for fish, and the banks are used for commercial fishing, the water level is stabilized by the Verhnesvirskaya hydropower plant and varies by only 0. 9–1.5 meters over the year. It rises due to the flood which lasts 1. 5–2 months. The highest water level is in June–August and the lowest is in March–April, rivers bring 15.6 km³ of water per year to the lake, that is up to 74% of the water balance, the rest is provided by precipitation
37.
Thrall
–
A thrall was a slave or serf in Scandinavian lands during the Viking Age. The corresponding term in Old English was þēow, the status of slave contrasts with that of the freeman and the nobleman. The Middle Latin rendition of the term in early Germanic law is servus, the social system of serfdom is continued in medieval feudalism. Thrall is from the Old Norse þræll, meaning a person who is in bondage or serfdom, the Old Norse term was lent into late Old English, as þræl. The term is from a Common Germanic þragilaz, Old High German had a cognate, dregil, meaning servant, runner. The English derivation thraldom is of High Medieval date, the verb to enthrall is of Early Modern origin. Thralls were the lowest class of workers in Scandinavian society and they were Northern Europeans brought into slavery due to debt, the losers of wars, and the children of previous thralls. Thralls in Scandinavia had no rights and their conditions were variable depending on the master. The thrall trade as the prize of plunder was a key part of the Viking economy, while there are some estimates of as many as thirty slaves per household, most families only owned one or two slaves. In 1043, Hallvard Vebjørnsson, the son of a nobleman in the district of greater Lier, was killed while trying to defend a thrall woman from men who accused her of theft. The Church strongly approved of his action, recognizing him as a martyr and canonizing him as Saint Hallvard, despite the existence of a caste system, thralls could experience a level of social fluidity. Thralls could be freed by their masters at any time, be freed in a will, once a thrall was freed, he became a freedman—a member of an intermediary group between slaves and freemen. He still owed allegiance to his master and would have to vote according to his former masters wishes. It took at least two generations for freedmen to lose the allegiance to their masters and become full freemen. If a freedman had no descendants, his former master inherited his land, the Viking slave trade slowly ended in the 11th century, as a number of Vikings settled in the European territories they had once raided. They converted serfs to Christianity and merged with the local populace, the thrall system was finally abolished in the mid-14th century in Scandinavia
.jpg)
.jpg)