Editing History of Norway (section)

==Middle Ages==
{{See also|Kingdom of Norway (872–1397)}}
[[File:KingdomOfNorway(872-1397).jpg|left|thumb|The [[Kingdom of Norway (872–1397)|Kingdom of Norway]] about 1265, at its greatest extent]]
[[Christianization of Scandinavia|Christianization]] and the abolition of the traditional paganism reflected in [[Norse mythology]] was first attempted by [[Håkon the Good]], and later by [[Olav Tryggvason]], but he was killed in the [[Battle of Svolder]] in 1000.<ref>Stenersen: 29</ref> [[Olaf II of Norway|Olav Haraldsson]], starting in 1015, made the ''[[Thing (assembly)|things]]'' pass church laws, destroyed [[heathen hofs]], built churches and created an institution of priests. Many chieftains feared that Christianization would rob them of power as ''[[goði|Goðar]]'' in traditional [[Norse paganism]], and had Olaf banished from Norway in 1028. When he tried to return in 1030, he was met by the locals in the [[Battle of Stiklestad]], where Olaf was killed, in accordance with the law.<ref>Stenersen: 31</ref> The church elevated Olaf I to [[sainthood]], and [[Nidaros]] (today [[Trondheim]]) became the Christian centre of Norway.<ref>Stenersen: 33</ref> Within a few years the Danish rule had become sufficiently unpopular that Norway again united under a Norwegian king, Magnus Olavson the Good, in 1035.<ref>Stenersen: 34</ref>

From the 1040s to 1130 the country was at peace.<ref>Stenersen: 36</ref> In 1130, a [[civil war era in Norway|civil war era]] broke out over [[line of succession to the Norwegian throne|succession to the throne]], which allowed all the king's sons to rule jointly by dividing Norway into portions for each to rule. At times there were periods of peace, before a lesser son allied himself with a chieftain and started a new conflict. The [[Archdiocese of Nidaros]] was created in 1152 in an attempt to control the appointment of kings.<ref>Stenersen: 38</ref> The church inevitably took sides in these conflicts, with the church's influence on the king also becoming an issue in the civil wars. The wars ended in 1217 with the appointment of [[Håkon Håkonsson]], who introduced clear succession laws.<ref>Stenersen: 39</ref> He also managed to subject Greenland and Iceland to Norwegian rule; the [[Icelandic Commonwealth]] thus came to an end after the [[Age of the Sturlungs]] civil war resulted in a pro-Norwegian victory.

The population increased from 150,000 in 1000 to 400,000 in 1300, resulting both in more land being cleared and the subdivision of farms. While in the Viking Age all farmers owned their own land, by 1300 seventy percent of the land was owned by the king, the church, or the aristocracy. This was a gradual process where farmers would borrow money in meagre times, often not being able to repay them. However, tenants always remained free men and the large distances and often scattered ownership meant that Norwegian farmers enjoyed much more freedom than continental serfs. In the 13th century about twenty percent of a farmer's yield went to the king, church and landowners.<ref>Stenersen: 37</ref>

===Decline and the Kalmar Union===
[[File:Bergen-Bryggen17.jpg|thumb|[[Bryggen]] in [[Bergen]], once the centre of trade in Norway under the [[Hanseatic League]] trade network, now preserved as a [[World Heritage Site]]]]

The 13th century is described as Norway's [[Golden Age]], with peace and increase in trade, especially with the British islands, although Germany became increasingly important towards the end of the century. Throughout the [[High Middle Ages]] the king established Norway as a sovereign state with a central administration and local representatives.<ref>Stenersen: 41</ref>

In 1349, the [[Black Death in Norway|Black Death]] spread to Norway and within a year killed nearly two-thirds of the population. Later plagues halved the population by 1400. Many communities were entirely wiped out, resulting in an abundance of land, allowing farmers to switch to more [[animal husbandry]]. The reduction in taxes weakened the king's position,<ref>Stenersen: 44</ref> and many aristocrats lost their surplus income, reducing some to mere farmers. High [[tithe]]s made the church more powerful, and the archbishop became a member of the [[Norwegian Council of State|Council of State]].<ref name="s45">Stenersen: 45</ref>
[[File:Kalmar Union ca. 1400.svg|thumb|left|The Kalmar Union, {{circa|1400}}]]
The [[Hanseatic League]] took control of Norwegian trade in the 14th century and established trading posts in most Norwegian port cities, such as [[Oslo]] and [[Bergen]], which had the largest German colony. In 1380, [[Olaf II of Denmark|Olaf Haakonsson]] inherited both the Norwegian and Danish thrones, creating a union between the two countries.<ref name="s45" /> In 1397, under [[Margaret I of Denmark|Margaret I]], the [[Kalmar Union]] was created between the three Scandinavian countries. She waged war against the Hanse, resulting in a trade blockade and higher taxation on Norwegians, which resulted in [[Engelbrekt rebellion|a rebellion]]. However, Norway and its Council of State was too weak to secede from the union.<ref name="s46">Stenersen: 46</ref>

Margaret pursued a centralising policy which inevitably favoured Denmark, because it had a greater population than Norway and Sweden combined.<ref>Derry p.75</ref> Margaret also granted trade privileges to the Hanseatic merchants of [[Lübeck]] in Bergen in return for recognition of her right to rule, and these hurt the Norwegian economy. The Hanseatic merchants formed a state within a state in Bergen for generations.<ref>Derry pp. 77–78</ref> Even worse were the pirates, the "[[Victual Brothers]]", who launched three devastating raids on the port (the last in 1427).<ref>Derry p.77</ref>

Norway slipped ever more into the background under the [[House of Oldenburg|Oldenburg dynasty]] ([[Treaty of Bergen|established 1450]]). There was a [[Dano-Swedish War (1501–1512)|revolt]] under [[Knut Alvsson]] in 1502.<ref>Derry pp. 81–82</ref> Norwegians had some affection for king [[Christian II of Denmark|Christian II]], who resided in the country for several years. Norway did not take any part in the events which led to [[Swedish War of Liberation|Swedish independence from Denmark in the 1520s]].<ref>Derry pp.83–84</ref>