Editing History of Iceland (section)

==Iceland under Norwegian and Danish kings (1262–1944)==

===Norwegian rule===
Little changed in the decades following the treaty. Norway's consolidation of power in Iceland was slow, and the Althing intended to hold onto its legislative and judicial power. Nonetheless, the Christian clergy had unique opportunities to accumulate wealth via the [[tithe]], and power gradually shifted to ecclesiastical authorities as Iceland's two bishops in [[Skálholt]] and [[Hólar]] acquired land at the expense of the old chieftains.

[[File:Stockfisch.wmt.jpg|thumb|upright|For a long period, [[stockfish]] trade made up the bulk of Iceland's exports.]]
Around the time Iceland became a vassal state of Norway, a climate shift occurred—a phenomenon now called the [[Little Ice Age]]. Areas near the [[Arctic Circle]] such as Iceland and [[Greenland]] began to have shorter growing seasons and colder winters. Since Iceland had marginal farmland in good times, the climate change resulted in hardship for the population.<ref name="gestgjafinn.is">{{cite web |url=http://www.gestgjafinn.is/english/nr/349 |title=What Did They Eat? - Icelandic food from the Settlement through the Middle Ages |access-date=20 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120220165654/http://www.gestgjafinn.is/english/nr/349 |archive-date=20 February 2012 }} Information about Icelandic diet & history thereof</ref> A serfdom-like institution called the [[vistarband]] developed, in which peasants were bound to landowners for a year at a time.

It became more difficult to raise [[barley]], the primary cereal crop, and livestock required additional fodder to survive longer and colder winters. Icelanders began to trade for grain from continental Europe, which was an expensive proposition. Church fast days increased demand for [[stockfish|dried codfish]], which was easily caught and prepared for export, and the [[Cod#Cod trade/history|cod trade]] became an important part of the economy.<ref name="gestgjafinn.is" />

===Kalmar Union===
{{See also|Kalmar Union}}

Iceland remained under Norwegian kingship until 1380, when the death of [[Olaf II of Denmark]] extinguished the Norwegian male royal line. Norway (and thus Iceland) then became part of the [[Kalmar Union]], along with Sweden and [[Denmark]], with Denmark as the dominant power. Unlike Norway, Denmark did not need Iceland's fish and homespun wool. This created a dramatic deficit in Iceland's trade. The [[Eastern Settlement|small Greenland colony]], established in the late 10th century, died out completely before 1500.

[[File:Christian III of Denmark.jpg|thumb|150px|[[Christian III of Denmark]]]]With the introduction of [[absolute monarchy]] in [[Denmark–Norway]] in 1660 under [[Frederick III of Denmark]], the Icelanders relinquished their autonomy to the crown, including the right to initiate and consent to legislation.  Denmark, however, did not provide much protection to Iceland,{{Citation needed|date=August 2009}} which was raided in 1627 by a [[Barbary pirates|Barbary pirate fleet]] that abducted almost 300 Icelanders into [[slavery]], in an episode known as the [[Turkish Abductions]].

After the end of the Kalmar Union, the royal government asserted greater control of Iceland.<ref name=":16" /> In particular, it took stronger actions to stop the involvement of English traders with Iceland.<ref name=":16" />

=== Foreign merchants and fishermen ===
English and German merchants became more prominent in Iceland at the start of the 15th century.<ref name=":16" /> Some historians refer to the 15th century as the "English Age" in Iceland's history, due to the prominence of English traders and fishing fleets.<ref name=":13">{{Cite book|title=Northern Seas Yearbook 1995|publisher=Association for the History of the Northern Seas|year=1995|pages=11–32, 77–108}}</ref><ref name=":14">{{Cite journal|last1=Þórhallsson|first1=Baldur|last2=Kristinsson|first2=Þorsteinn|date=15 June 2013|title=Iceland's External Affairs from 1400 to the Reformation: Anglo-German Economic and Societal Shelter in a Danish Political Vacuum|journal=Icelandic Review of Politics & Administration|language=en|volume=9|issue=1|pages=113–37|doi=10.13177/irpa.a.2013.9.1.6|issn=1670-679X|doi-access=free|hdl=1946/16039|hdl-access=free}}</ref> What drew foreigners to Iceland was primarily fishing in the fruitful waters off the coast of Iceland.<ref name=":13" /> The Icelandic trade was important to some British ports; for example, in Hull, the Icelandic trade accounted for more than ten percent of Hull's total trade.<ref name=":13" /> The trade has been credited with raising Icelandic living standards.<ref name=":14" /><ref name=":13" />

The 16th century has been referred to as the "German Age" by Icelandic historians due to the prominence of German traders.<ref name=":13" /> The Germans did not engage in much fishing themselves, but they owned fishing boats, rented them to Icelanders and then bought the fish from Icelandic fishermen to export to the European Continent.<ref name=":13" />

An illicit trade continued with foreigners after the Danes implemented a trade monopoly.<ref name=":13" /> Dutch and French traders became more prominent in the mid-17th century.<ref name=":13" />

===Reformation and Danish trade monopoly===
{{See also|Icelandic Reformation|Danish–Icelandic Trade Monopoly}}

By the middle of the 16th century, [[Christian III of Denmark]] began to impose [[Lutheranism]] on his subjects. [[Jón Arason]] and [[Ögmundur Pálsson]], the Catholic bishops of Skálholt and Hólar respectively, opposed Christian's efforts at promoting the [[Protestant Reformation]] in Iceland. Ögmundur was deported by Danish officials in 1541, but Jón Arason put up a fight.

Opposition to the reformation ended in 1550 when Jón Arason was captured after being defeated in the [[Battle of Sauðafell]] by loyalist forces under the leadership of [[Daði Guðmundsson]]. Jón Arason and his two sons were subsequently beheaded in Skálholt. Following this, the Icelanders became Lutherans and remain largely so to this day.

In 1602, Iceland was forbidden to trade with countries other than Denmark, by order of the Danish government, which at this time pursued [[mercantilism|mercantilist]] policies. The [[Danish–Icelandic Trade Monopoly]] remained in effect until 1786.

===The eruption of Laki===
{{Further|Laki#Consequences in Iceland}}
In the 18th century, climatic conditions in Iceland reached an all-time low since the original settlement.  On top of this, [[Laki#Consequences in Iceland|Laki]] erupted in 1783, spitting out {{convert|12.5|km3}} of lava. Floods, ash, and fumes killed 9,000 people and 80% of the livestock. The ensuing starvation killed a quarter of Iceland's population.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1511/is_10_21/ai_65368918/pg_3 |title=Discover: Twenty ways the world could end suddenly |website=www.findarticles.com |access-date=13 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060409131805/http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1511/is_10_21/ai_65368918/pg_3 |archive-date=9 April 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> This period is known as the ''Móðuharðindin'' or "[[Mist Hardships]]".

===Danish Iceland in the beginning of the 19th century===
In 1809 Danish adventurer [[Jørgen Jørgensen]] arrived in Iceland, declared the country independent from [[Denmark–Norway]] and pronounced himself its ruler. However, with the arrival of [[HMS Talbot (1807)|HMS ''Talbot'']] two months later, Danish rule in Iceland was restored and Jørgensen was arrested.

When the two kingdoms of Denmark and Norway were separated by the [[Treaty of Kiel]] in 1814 following the [[Napoleonic Wars]], Denmark kept Iceland, as well as [[Faroe Islands|Faroe]] and [[Greenland]], as dependencies.

===Independence movement===
{{Further|Icelandic Independence Movement}}
[[File:Sjómannsbýli í Reykjavík 1836.jpg|thumb|Fisherman's hut in Iceland]][[File:Jón Sigurðsson.jpg|thumb|Jón Sigurðsson.]]
Throughout the 19th century, the country's climate continued to grow worse, resulting in mass emigration to the [[New World]], particularly [[Manitoba]] in Canada. However, a new national consciousness was revived in Iceland, inspired by [[romantic nationalism|romantic nationalist]] ideas from [[continental Europe]]. This revival was spearheaded by the ''[[Fjölnismenn]]'', a group of Danish-educated Icelandic intellectuals.

An independence movement developed under the leadership of a lawyer named [[Jón Sigurðsson]]. In 1843, a new Althing was founded as a consultative assembly.  It claimed continuity with the Althing of the Icelandic Commonwealth, which had remained for centuries as a judicial body and had been abolished in 1800.

===Home rule and sovereignty===
{{Further|Danish–Icelandic Act of Union}}

[[File:Kbh Hannes Hafsteinn.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Hannes Hafstein]], first [[Prime Minister of Iceland]] and the first Icelander to be appointed to the [[Cabinets of Denmark|Danish Cabinet]] as the [[Minister for Iceland]]]]

In 1874, a thousand years after the first acknowledged settlement, Denmark granted Iceland a constitution and limited home rule over domestic matters, which was expanded in 1904. The constitution was revised in 1903, and a minister for Icelandic affairs, residing in [[Reykjavík]], was made responsible to the Althing, the first of whom was [[Hannes Hafstein]].

Iceland and Denmark signed the [[Danish–Icelandic Act of Union]] on 1 December 1918, recognizing the [[Kingdom of Iceland]] as a fully sovereign state joined with Denmark in a [[personal union]] with the Danish king.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Hálfdanarson|first=Guðmundur|date=1 June 2000|title=Iceland: A Peaceful Secession|journal=Scandinavian Journal of History|volume=25|issue=1–2|pages=87–100|doi=10.1080/03468750050115609|s2cid=143707310|issn=0346-8755}}</ref> Iceland established its own flag. Denmark was to represent its foreign affairs and defense interests.  Iceland had no military or naval forces, and Denmark was to give notice to other countries that it was permanently neutral. The act would be up for revision in 1940 and could be revoked three years later if agreement was not reached.  By the 1930s the consensus in Iceland was to seek complete independence by 1944 at the latest.<ref>Solrun B. Jensdottir Hardarson, "The 'Republic of Iceland' 1940–44: Anglo-American Attitudes and Influences," ''Journal of Contemporary History'' (1974) 9#4 pp. 27–56 [https://www.jstor.org/stable/260290 in JSTOR]</ref>

=== World War I ===
In the quarter of a century preceding the war, Iceland had prospered. However, Iceland became more isolated during [[World War I]] and suffered a significant decline in living standards.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|page = 16}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite book|title = Hagvöxtur og iðnvæðing. Þjóðarframleiðsla á Íslandi 1870–1945|last = Jónsson|first = Guðmundur|year = 1999}}</ref> The treasury became highly indebted, and there was a shortage of food and fears over an imminent famine.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|chapter = Ch. 12}}</ref>

Iceland was part of neutral Denmark during the war. Icelanders were, in general, sympathetic to the cause of the Allies. Iceland also traded significantly with the United Kingdom during the war, as Iceland found itself within its sphere of influence.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|page = 148}}</ref><ref name=":6">{{Cite book|title = Ísland á bresku valdssvæði 1914–1918|last = Jensdóttir|first = Sólrún|year = 1980}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Thorhallsson|first1=Baldur|last2=Joensen|first2=Tómas|date=15 December 2015|title=Iceland's External Affairs from the Napoleonic Era to the occupation of Denmark: Danish and British Shelter|journal=Icelandic Review of Politics & Administration|language=en|volume=11|issue=2|pages=187–206|issn=1670-679X|doi=10.13177/irpa.a.2015.11.2.4|doi-access=free|hdl=1946/23454|hdl-access=free}}</ref> In their attempts to stop the Icelanders from trading with the Germans indirectly, the British imposed costly and time-consuming constraints on Icelandic exports going to the Nordic countries.<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|pages = 173–75}}</ref> There is no evidence of any German plans to invade Iceland during the war.<ref name=":6" />

1,245 Icelanders, Icelandic Americans, and Icelandic Canadians were registered as soldiers during World War I. 989 fought for Canada, whereas 256 fought for the United States. 391 of the combatants were born in Iceland, the rest were of Icelandic descent. 10 women of Icelandic descent and 4 women born in Iceland served as nurses for the Allies during World War I. At least 144 of the combatants died during World War I (96 in combat, 19 from wounds suffered during combat, 2 from accidents, and 27 from disease), 61 of them were Iceland-born. Ten men were taken as prisoners of war by the Germans.<ref>{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|pages = 236–38, 288–89}}</ref>

The war had a lasting impact on Icelandic society and Iceland's external relations. It led to major government interference in the marketplace that lasted until the post-World War II period.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|page = 15}}</ref> Iceland's competent governance of internal affairs and relations with other states—while relations with Denmark were interrupted during the war—showed that Iceland was capable of acquiring further powers, which resulted in Denmark recognizing Iceland as a fully sovereign state in 1918.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite book|title = History of Iceland|last = Karlsson|first = Gunnar|year = 2000|pages = 283–84}}</ref> It has been argued that the thirst for news of the war helped ''[[Morgunblaðið]]'' to gain a dominant position among [[List of newspapers in Iceland|Icelandic newspapers]].<ref>{{Cite book|title = Þegar siðmenningin fór til fjandans. Íslendingar og stríðið mikla 1914–1918|last = Bjarnason|first = Gunnar Þór|year = 2015|pages = 141–42}}</ref>

=== The Great Depression ===
Icelandic post-World War I prosperity ended with the outbreak of the [[Great Depression]], a severe worldwide economic crash. The depression hit Iceland hard as the value of exports plummeted. The total value of Icelandic exports fell from 74 million [[Icelandic króna|kronur]] in 1929 to 48 million kronur in 1932, and did not rise again to the pre-1930 level until after 1939.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title = History of Iceland|last = Karlsson|first = Gunnar|year = 2000|pages = 308–12}}</ref> Government involvement in the economy increased: "Imports were regulated, trade with foreign currency was monopolized by state-owned banks, and loan capital was largely distributed by state-regulated funds".<ref name=":3" /> The outbreak of the [[Spanish Civil War]] cut Iceland's exports of saltfish by half, and the depression lasted in Iceland until the outbreak of World War II, when prices for fish exports soared.<ref name=":3" />

===World War II===
{{Further|Invasion of Iceland|Iceland during World War II|Ástandið}}

[[File:HMS Berwick (65).jpg|left|thumb|{{HMS|Berwick|65|6}} led the British [[invasion of Iceland]].]]

With war looming in the spring of 1939, Iceland realized its exposed position would be very dangerous in wartime. An all-party government was formed, and [[Deutsche Luft Hansa|Lufthansa]]'s request for civilian airplane landing rights was rejected. German ships were all about, however, until the British blockade of Germany put a stop to that when the war began in September. Iceland demanded Britain allow it to trade with Germany, to no avail.<ref>Hardarson, (1974) pp. 29–31</ref>

The [[occupation of Denmark]] by [[Nazi Germany]] began on 9 April 1940, severing communications between Iceland and Denmark.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title = History of Iceland|last = Karlsson|first = Gunnar|year = 2000|page = 314}}</ref> As a result, on 10 April, the Parliament of Iceland took temporary control of foreign affairs (setting up what would be the forerunner of the [[Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Iceland)|Ministry for Foreign Affairs]]) and the Coast Guard.<ref name=":11">{{Cite book|title=Fyrstu forsetarnir|last=Jóhannesson|first=Guðni Th.|year=2016|pages=35–36}}</ref> Parliament also elected a provisional governor, [[Sveinn Björnsson]], who later became the Republic's first president. Iceland became ''de facto'' fully sovereign with these actions.<ref name=":11" /> At the time, Icelanders and the Danish King considered this state of affairs to be temporary and believed that Iceland would return these powers to Denmark when the occupation was over.<ref name=":11" />

Iceland turned down British offers of protection after the occupation of Denmark, because that would violate Iceland's neutrality. Britain and the U.S. opened direct diplomatic relations, as did Sweden and Norway. The German takeover of Norway left Iceland highly exposed; Britain decided it could not risk a German takeover of Iceland.
On 10 May 1940, British military forces began an [[invasion of Iceland]] when they sailed into Reykjavík harbour in [[Operation Fork]].
There was no resistance, but the government protested against what it called a "flagrant violation" of Icelandic neutrality, though Prime Minister [[Hermann Jónasson]] called on Icelanders to treat the British troops with politeness, as if they were guests.<ref name=":4" /> They behaved accordingly, and there were no mishaps. The occupation of Iceland lasted throughout the war.<ref>Hardarson, (1974) pp. 32–33</ref>

[[File:Iceland, Sanskeid Range. 37mm sub-caliber mounted on a 75mm field howitzer, 19th and 21st Field Artillery Regiment.jpg|thumb|220px|US Army training in Iceland in June 1943.]]
At the peak, the British had 25,000 troops stationed in Iceland,<ref name=":4" /> all but eliminating unemployment in the Reykjavík area and other strategically important places. In July 1941, responsibility for Iceland's occupation and defence passed to the United States under a U.S.-Icelandic agreement which included a provision that the U.S. recognize Iceland's absolute independence. The British were replaced by up to 40,000 Americans, who outnumbered all adult Icelandic men. (At the time, Iceland had a population of around 120,000.)<ref>Hardarson, (1974) pp. 43–45</ref>

Approximately 159 Icelanders' lives have been confirmed to have been lost in World War II hostilities.<ref name=":7">{{Cite web
| url = http://www.visindavefur.is/svar.php?id=5057
| title = Hve margir Íslendingar dóu í seinni heimsstyrjöldinni?
| website = Vísindavefurinn
| access-date = 27 February 2016
}}</ref> Most were killed on cargo and fishing vessels sunk by German aircraft, U-boats or mines.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":5" /> An additional 70 Icelanders died at sea, but it has not been confirmed whether they lost their lives as a result of hostilities.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title = History of Iceland|last = Karlsson|first = Gunnar|year = 2000|page = 316}}</ref>

The occupation of Iceland by the British and the Americans proved to be an economic boom, as the occupiers injected money into the Icelandic economy and launched various projects. This eradicated unemployment in Iceland and raised wages considerably.<ref name=":15">{{Cite journal|last=Steinsson|first=Sverrir|title=A Theory of Shelter: Iceland's American Period (1941–2006)|url=https://www.academia.edu/34997567|journal=Scandinavian Journal of History|language=en|volume=43|issue=4|pages=539–63|doi=10.1080/03468755.2018.1467078|year=2018|s2cid=150053547}}</ref><ref name=":03">{{Cite web|url=https://www.routledge.com/Small-States-and-Shelter-Theory-Icelands-External-Affairs-1st-Edition/Thorhallsson/p/book/9781138615373|title=Small States and Shelter Theory: Iceland's External Affairs|date=2018|editor-last=Thorhallsson|editor-first=Baldur|publisher=Routledge}}</ref> According to one study, "by the end of World War II, Iceland had been transformed from one of Europe’s poorest countries to one of the world’s wealthiest."<ref name=":15" />