Christian I was born in 1426 and became King of Denmark in 1448, King of Norway in 1450 and Sweden in 1457. In case this seems greedy he…
Category: Scandinavian history
Alsace/Lorraine & Schleswig/Holstein
These two tongue-twisters used not only to twist tongues, but eject furious spittle from the pursed mouth of European statesmen and politicians. The problem is not only of…
The Nobel Peace Prize
In the case of a suitable candidate being found, this is an international prize, awarded annually, to a person or an institution considered by a Swedish/Norwegian committee, to…
A Swedish royal dynasty (1523 – 1818)
The Vasa dynasty provided monarchs for Sweden, with only two exceptions, from the beginning of the sixteenth century to just after the end of the Napoleonic Wars (q.v.)….
Colonization
These days the word strikes a sour note, arousing images of rough settlements, starving ‘piccaninies’, whips, shackles, thoughtless government from a distance of thousdands of miles etc. If…
Discovery (Part I)
The Crusades had not achieved very much, had cost a great deal in money and lives, but had at least one merit: they introduced the idea of travel…
Gustav V of Sweden
Gustav V of Sweden lived from 1858 to 1950, and reigned from 1907, which makes him the longest reigning king in Swedish history. He was a shy man,…
The battle of Jutland (Norway)
This sea battle of the Great War is interesting for two reasons: the first is that Jutland was the first challenge to British naval superiority since Trafalgar in…
The great House of Savoy
The luxurious Savoy Hotel on the Embankment in London was constructed in the 19th century more or less where another famous house had stood until it was burnt…
The Normans & the Norman Invasion of England
Normans were and are inhabitants of Normandy, a picturesque western coastal part of France. They are of mixed descendence, much of their blood being of Scandinavian or Viking…