Events in the year 1814 in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

Incumbents

Monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power i ...

: Frederick VI (until February 7), then

Christian Frederick Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814. Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Frederic ...

(May 17 – October 10), then Charles II (since November 4)

Overview

1814 has historically been considered the most important year in the

history of Norway The history of Norway has been influenced to an extraordinary degree by the terrain and the climate of the region. About 10,000 BC, following the retreat inland of the great ice sheets, the earliest inhabitants migrated north into the territor ...

. Sovereignty was transferred from the King of Denmark to the

King of Sweden The monarchy of Sweden is the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parliamentary system: see the Instrument ...

. The Constitution of Norway was signed at

Eidsvoll Eidsvoll (; sometimes written as ''Eidsvold'') is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sundet. General information ...

on May 17, later to be designated and celebrated as

Norwegian Constitution Day Constitution Day is the national day of Norway and is an official public holiday observed on 17 May each year. Among Norwegians, the day is referred to as ''Syttende Mai'' ("Seventeenth of May"), ''Nasjonaldagen'' ("National Day"), or ''Grunnlo ...

. For a detailed account of the events surrounding the re-formation of the country in modern times, see the article

Kingdom of Norway (1814) In 1814, the Kingdom of Norway made a brief and ultimately unsuccessful attempt to regain its independence. While Norway had always legally been a separate kingdom, since the 16th century it had shared a monarch with Denmark; Norway was a subo ...

Events

*14 January – Frederick VI of Denmark-Norway ceded the Kingdom of Norway to

Charles XIII of Sweden Charles XIII, or Carl XIII ( sv, Karl XIII, 7 October 1748 – 5 February 1818), was King of Sweden from 1809 and King of Norway from 1814 to his death. He was the second son (and younger brother to King Gustav III) of King Adolf Frederick of S ...

in return for Swedish Pomerania. in exchange for

Western Pomerania Historical Western Pomerania, also called Cispomerania, Fore Pomerania, Front Pomerania or Hither Pomerania (german: Vorpommern), is the western extremity of the historic region of Pomerania forming the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, Weste ...

. Denmark also keeps the Norwegian overseas possessions:

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

and

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...

, as part of the

Treaty of Kiel The Treaty of Kiel ( da, Kieltraktaten) or Peace of Kiel ( Swedish and no, Kielfreden or ') was concluded between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Kingdom of Sweden on one side and the Kingdoms of Denmark and Norway on t ...

. *11 February –

's independence was proclaimed, marking the ultimate end of the Kalmar Union. *16 February – The meeting of notables took place at Eidsvoll verk. *10 April – The

Norwegian Constituent Assembly The Norwegian Constituent Assembly (in Norwegian ''Grunnlovsforsamlingen'', also known as ''Riksforsamlingen'') is the name given to the 1814 constitutional assembly at Eidsvoll in Norway, that adopted the Norwegian Constitution and formalised t ...

convened at

. *12 April – The

Royal Norwegian Navy The Royal Norwegian Navy ( no, Sjøforsvaret, , Sea defence) is the branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces responsible for naval operations of Norway. , the Royal Norwegian Navy consists of approximately 3,700 personnel (9,450 in mobilized state, ...

was re-established. *16 May – The Constitution of Norway was adopted by the Constituent Assembly. *17 May – The Constitution of Norway was signed and the

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wi ...

Christian Frederik Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814. Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Frederic ...

was elected

King of Norway The Norwegian monarch is the head of state of Norway, which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system. The Norwegian monarchy can trace its line back to the reign of Harald Fairhair and the previous petty kingd ...

by the

Constituent Assembly A constituent assembly (also known as a constitutional convention, constitutional congress, or constitutional assembly) is a body assembled for the purpose of drafting or revising a constitution. Members of a constituent assembly may be elected b ...

. *20 May – The last day in session for the Constituent Assembly. *26 July – The Swedish campaign against Norway started. *14 August – The Convention of Moss was signed, ending the Swedish campaign against Norway with a Swedish victory. *4 November – The first session of the

Norwegian Parliament The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...

elected Charles II as King in a personal union between Sweden and Norway.

Arts and literature

Births

*1 April –

Søren Jaabæk Søren Pedersen Jaabæk (1 April 1814 – 7 January 1894) was a Norwegian politician and farmer. Jaabæk is the longest-serving member of the Norwegian Parliament in the history of Norway, and was one of the founders of the Liberal Party of No ...

, politician and farmer (died

1894 Events January–March * January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire. * January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...

) *7 May –

Henriette Hansen Henriette Hansen may refer to: * Henriette Hansen (actress) (1814–1892), Norwegian stage actress, opera singer and ballet dancer * Henriette Hansen (cricketer), Danish cricketer * Henriette Hansen (handballer) (born 1998), Danish handball player ...

, ballerina (died

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies fo ...

) *27 May – Harald Nicolai Storm Wergeland, military officer, politician, Minister and mountaineer (died

1893 Events January–March * January 2 – Webb C. Ball introduces railroad chronometers, which become the general railroad timepiece standards in North America. * Mark Twain started writing Puddn'head Wilson. * January 6 – Th ...

)

Full date unknown

Peder Krabbe Gaarder Peder Krabbe Gaarder (23 April 1814 – 5 August 1883) was a Norwegian jurist and political theorist. He was born at Alstahaug in Nordland, Norway. He studied law at the University of Christiania (now University of Oslo), graduating in 1838. He wa ...

, jurist and political theorist (died

1883 Events January–March * January 4 – ''Life'' magazine is founded in Los Angeles, California, United States. * January 10 – A fire at the Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kills 73 people. * Ja ...

) *

Ketil Motzfeldt Ketil Melsted Johnsen Motzfeldt (10 August 1814 - 17 November 1889) was Norwegian Naval Officer and Government Official. Background Motzfeldt was born in Bergen, Norway. His parents were government minister Peter Motzfeldt (1777-1854) and Ernest ...

, politician and Minister (died

1889 Events January–March * January 1 ** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada. ** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in t ...

) * Nils Fredrik Severin Thambs, politician (died 1885)

Deaths

*28 August – Erik Must Angell, jurist and politician (born

1744 Events January–March * January 6 – The Royal Navy ship ''Bacchus'' engages the Spanish Navy privateer ''Begona'', and sinks it; 90 of the 120 Spanish sailors die, but 30 of the crew are rescued. * January 24 – The Dag ...

) *9 September – Niels Andreas Vibe, military officer (born

1759 In Great Britain, this year was known as the ''Annus Mirabilis'', because of British victories in the Seven Years' War. Events January–March * January 6 – George Washington marries Martha Dandridge Custis. * January 11 &nda ...

). *17 December – Christian Colbjørnsen, chief justice (born

1749 Events January–March * January 3 ** Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont. ** The first issue of ''Berlingske'', Denmark's oldest continually operating newspaper, ...

)

References

{{Years in Norway during the union with Denmark nav