The Union Dissolution Day, observed in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, 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 ...

on 7 June (though not a public holiday), is marked in remembrance 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 ...

's 1905 declaration of dissolution of the union with Sweden, a

personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interli ...

which had existed since 1814. The day is celebrated in Norway as the Independence Day and is an official flag flying day, and is observed with ordinary salute at

Akershus Fortress Akershus Fortress ( no, Akershus Festning, ) or Akershus Castle ( no, Akershus slott ) is a medieval castle in the Norwegian capital Oslo that was built to protect and provide a royal residence for the city. Since the Middle Ages the fortress ...

. The Independence Day, however, has few traditions of celebration beyond that.

Royal return after World War II

By historical coincidence, 7 June was also the date in 1940 when

King Haakon VII of Norway Haakon VII (; born Prince Carl of Denmark; 3 August 187221 September 1957) was the King of Norway from November 1905 until his death in September 1957. Originally a Danish prince, he was born in Copenhagen as the son of the future Frederick V ...

and the royal family, along with the Norwegian cabinet and parliament, had to leave the country after escaping the German forces during the World War II invasion of Norway; and it is also the date in 1945 on which the King returned after 5 years of

exile Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Gallery

Rene flagget heises Akershus DEX W 00026

References

External links

Norway 1905–2005
– Newspaper ''

Aftenposten ( in the masthead; ; Norwegian for "The Evening Post") is Norway's largest printed newspaper by circulation. It is based in Oslo. It sold 211,769 copies in 2015 (172,029 printed copies according to University of Bergen) and estimated 1.2 million ...

'' 's Union Dissolution Centennial feature
Withdrawal from the union
The Royal Court of Norway

www.norgeshistorie.no

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

Homecoming, 7 June 1945
The Royal Court of Norway by the 75th anniversary in 2020
Norwegians recall the 7th of June
{{in lang, en Public holidays in Norway June observances 1905 establishments in Norway Norwegian flag flying days