''Morgenposten'' is a former Norwegian

newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports a ...

, issued in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

from 1861 to 1971. It was the largest newspaper in Norway from the 1870s until the early 1900s, when its name was ''Christiania Nyheds- og Avertissements-Blad'', also nicknamed ''Sværta''.

Foundation and first years

The newspaper was founded in 1861 by

William Nisson William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

, under the name ''Christiania Avertissements-Blad'', and from 1865 it was called ''Christiania Nyheds- og Avertissements-Blad''. The title ''Morgenposten'' was a subtitle from 1866, and the main title of the newspaper from 1943.

Thoralf Pryser Thoralf Pryser (10 August 1885 – 8 July 1970) was a Norwegian journalist and newspaper editor. Personal life Pryser was born in Drammen, a son of Gustav Fredrik Pryser and Caroline Johanne Grimlund. He married Laila Meyer in 1912. His wi ...

edited the newspaper from 1918 to 1946, with exception from the last period of the German occupation of Norway, when he was replaced by the Nazi editor Olav Botolv Feiring from 1943. During the interwar period, the newspaper was Norway's third-largest newspaper, after ''Aftenposten'' and ''Arbeiderbladet''.

Second World War

During the

occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until the ...

''Morgenposten'' became the second largest newspaper in Norway after ''

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 ...

''. In 1946 a trial, the so-called "prøvesaken", was held, in order to decide the questions of possible confiscation of profits during the war years. The trial was an important part of the legal actions against the press that followed

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, as it had implications also for the treatment of other newspapers that had cooperated with the Nazi authorities. The

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

decision from 1948 resulted in a confiscation of NOK 170,000.

Post war

Per Voksø Per Voksø (23 June 1923 – 28 December 2002) was a Norwegian newspaper editor and Christian leader. He was born in Bergen as the son of Julius Peder Voksø (1888–1937) and Gudrun Larssen (1891–1972). He took commerce school in 1941 and exam ...

was editor-in-chief from 1964 to 1967. In 1967 the controversial industrialist

Sverre Munck Sverre Munthe-Kaas Munck (5 July 1898 – 26 January 1970) was a Norwegian businessperson. Early life and career He was born in Høvik as the son of dean Oskar Albert Munck (1868–1956) and Mathilde Munthe-Kaas (1871–1906). He was also a great ...

bought the newspaper. Following this one third of the journalists, including the editor, resigned. Munck himself served as editor-in-chief until 1969.

Leif Husebye Leif Husebye (29 April 1926 – 9 August 2009) was a Norwegian sailor, sports journalist and newspaper editor. In his younger days he was an active sport sailor. He competed in the snipe class, and a bronze medal in the European Championships ...

was editor-in-chief from 1969. ''Morgenposten'' went defunct in 1971.

References

;Further reading *{{cite book, author=Yngvar Holm, title=Sværta: Morgenposten - en gang Norges største avis , publisher=Tiden, location=Oslo, year=1999, language=Norwegian 1861 establishments in Norway 1971 disestablishments in Norway Defunct newspapers published in Norway Newspapers established in 1861 Newspapers published in Oslo Norwegian-language newspapers Publications disestablished in 1971