Vang is a former municipality in the old

Hedmark Hedmark () was a Counties of Norway, county in Norway from 1 January 1919 to 31 December 2019, bordering Trøndelag to the north, Oppland to the west, Akershus to the south, and Sweden to the east. The county administration is in Hamar. Hedmar ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1992 when it became part of

Hamar Municipality Hamar Municipality (; ) is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Hedemarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is th ...

. The

administrative centre An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

of the municipality was at Fredvang. This site, however became part of the town of

Hamar Hamar is a List of cities in Norway, town in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet Counties of Norway, county, Norway. Hamar is the administrative centre of Hamar Municipality. It is located in the Districts of Norway, traditional region of Hedmarken. ...

in 1946, so after that time, the municipal administration was actually located outside the municipal borders in the neighboring municipality. The main church for the municipality was Vang Church in the village of Ridabu. Gåsbu Ski Center lies in Vang Almenning, and has served as the backup venue for the ''Holmenkollrennene''. This arena has been described as the cradle of all Nordic ski competition, with more than 112 years of international ski competition. The national cross-country skiing championship was last held here in 2002.

General information

The historic

prestegjeld A ''prestegjeld'' was a geographic and administrative area within the Church of Norway (''Den Norske Kirke'') roughly equivalent to a parish. This traditional designation was in use for centuries to divide the kingdom into ecclesiastical areas tha ...

of Vang was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see

formannskapsdistrikt () was the name of a Norwegian self-governing municipality. The name was used from the establishment these municipalities in 1838 until the name fell out of use in 1863. The municipalities had their legal basis from two laws enacted on 14 Jan ...

law). In 1848, the village of

was granted

kjøpstad A (historically ''kjøbstad'', ''kjöbstad'', or ''kaupstad'', from ) is an old Scandinavian term for a "market town" in Denmark–Norway for several hundred years. Kjøpstads were places of trade and exporting materials (e.g. timber, flour, iron ...

status for a land area of about . This newly designated "town" (population: 1,025) was separated from Vang to become a separate municipality in 1849. This left Vang with 7,820 residents. On 1 January 1878, the town of

was enlarged by annexing about of land and 138 people from Vang to Hamar. In 1891, the western district of Vang (population: 3,790) was separated from Vang to become the new municipality of Furnes. This left Vang with 5,703 residents. In 1946, a large area in Vang that surrounded the town of Hamar (population: 4,087) was transferred out of Vang and into Hamar. On 13 July 1956, the parts of Vang located south of the Åkersvika bay (population: 24) were transferred to

Stange Municipality is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Hedemarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Stangebyen. Other villages include Bekkelaget, Espa, Bottenfjellet, Il ...

. On 1 January 1964, the Hamarsberget and Vikersødegården

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

areas of Vang (population: 34) were transferred to the neighboring

Ringsaker Municipality Ringsaker () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Br ...

. On 1 January 1967 there was a municipal land swap between Vang and Ringsaker. The Stav, Valsigsvea, and Arnkvern Nedre areas of Vang (population: 50) was transferred to Ringsaker Municipality and the Stensby and Holmlund areas of Ringsaker (population: 114) was transferred to Vang. On 1 January 1992, the municipality of Vang (population: 9,103) was merged with the town of

(population: 16,351) and parts of the Stensby, Hanstad, Viker, and Stammerud areas of

Ringsaker Ringsaker () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Hedmarken. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Br ...

(population: 224) to form the new

Name

The municipality (originally the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

) is named after the old ''Vang'' farm () since the first Vang Church was built there. The name is identical to the word which means "

meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable con ...

" or "field". Since the municipal consolidation in 1992, the name ''Øvre Vang'' (meaning "upper Vang") is used locally as the common name for the area outside the town of Hamar that was once part of the old municipality of Vang.

Churches

The

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

had one parish () within the municipality of Vang. It is part of the

Hamar domprosti The list of churches in Hamar is a list of the Church of Norway churches in the Diocese of Hamar in Norway. It includes all of the parishes in Innlandet county plus the parishes in Lunner Municipality in Akershus county. The diocese is based at th ...

(arch-

deanery A deanery (or decanate) is an ecclesiastical entity in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Anglican Communion, the Evangelical Church in Germany, and the Church of Norway. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of ...

) in the

Diocese of Hamar The Diocese of Hamar () is a diocese within the Church of Norway. The Diocese of Hamar includes all of the churches in Innlandet county plus the churches in Lunner Municipality in Akershus county. Administratively, the diocese is divided into 1 ...

History

Early history

Archeological evidence provides ties between the

Vendel era In Scandinavian prehistory, sometimes specifically Swedish prehistory, the Vendel Period, or Vendel Age (; ) appears between the Migration Period and the Viking Age. The name is taken from the rich boat inhumation cemetery at Vendel parish c ...

culture in

Uppland Uppland is a historical province or ' on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. The name literally ...

and Vang in the period from 600 to 800 AD. Most notable is finding of a fine examples of a Vendel Culture style ''ring sword'' in Vang burial mounds; each sword's hilt is adorned with a heavy gold ring upon which oaths were sworn. The use of the ring sword is also mentioned in

Beowulf ''Beowulf'' (; ) is an Old English poetry, Old English poem, an Epic poetry, epic in the tradition of Germanic heroic legend consisting of 3,182 Alliterative verse, alliterative lines. It is one of the most important and List of translat ...

and the

Eddas "Edda" (; Old Norse ''Edda'', plural ''Eddur'') is an Old Norse term that has been applied by modern scholars to the collective of two Medieval Icelandic literary works: what is now known as the ''Prose Edda'' and an older collection of poems (w ...

Åker gård Åker is the Norwegian and Swedish word for a Field. It may also refer to: * Åker Ship District, an area in Uppland, Sweden * Jon Åker (1927–2013), Norwegian hospital director See also * Åkre (disambiguation) * Aker, Norway Aker was a ...

(Aaker farm) in Vang was the site of an ancient

Thing Thing or The Thing may refer to: Philosophy * An object * Broadly, an entity * Thing-in-itself (or ''noumenon''), the reality that underlies perceptions, a term coined by Immanuel Kant * Thing theory, a branch of critical theory that focuses ...

() place; it was there that King Magnus I agreed to share power with his uncle

Harald Hardråde Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' in the sagas, was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1046 to 1066. He unsuccessfully claimed the Monarchy of Denma ...

and the two became co-rulers. In the 11th century the Thing was moved to Eidsvol. Åker remained a king's farm during the Viking period, as well as a local headquarters for the military. At the end of the

Hannibal War The Torstenson War was fought between Sweden and Denmark–Norway from 1643 to 1645. The name derives from Swedish general Lennart Torstenson. Denmark-Norway had withdrawn from the Thirty Years' War in the 1629 Treaty of Lübeck. After its vic ...

, General Georg von Reichwein was granted Åker gård as his residence. During the following years it continued to be the residence of senior military officers.

Jørgen Otto Brockenhuus Jørgen Otto Brockenhuus (born 11 March 1664, in Storhammer in Hamar and died 1728 in Vang) was a Norwegian officer. Early life He was son of colonel Ove Brockenhuus and Sophie Spang. Military career In his youth he served as a second lieutena ...

, founder of the ''Brockenhuss –Schack'' family, resided there in the early 18th century.

19th-20th centuries

Vang municipality was established in 1837, when the municipality law came into effect. The municipality borders were those which had been established by a border commission in 1730. It was named after Vang church; since the early

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

the region had been known as Ridabu. In 1847, the executive council majority agreed that Hamar should be restored to

status, but the decision was controversial and some believed the basis for the decision was illogical. When Hamar achieved this status in 1849, about of land was reassigned to it from Vang. Vang gave up additional land to Hamar in 1878, 1946, 1947 and 1965. In 1891 the district of Furnes was separated from Vang to create a municipality of its own. The earliest village was Hjellum - a contraction of «''Hjellum-by`n''». It was there that the train station for the Rørosbanen line between

Elverum Elverum () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Elverum ( ...

and Hamar stopped. In the same place Sanderud asylum (now hospital) was located. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, especially after 1944, many resistance fighters hid in Vangsåsa. About 70 persons found refuge in the Norwegian resistance

Milorg Milorg (abbreviation of militær organisasjon – military organization) was the main Norwegian resistance movement during World War II. Resistance work included intelligence gathering, sabotage, supply-missions, raids, espionage, transport of ...

's district 77 rural huts. On 26 October,

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

troops assaulted one of the huts and two resistance fighters were killed. A third escaped miraculously. After 1947 the Østland District Commandos had their headquarters at ''Åker gård''. After the Second World War more villages developed: Ridabu,

Ingeberg Ingeberg is a village in Hamar Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The village is located about north of the village of Ridabu and about northeast of the town of Hamar. The first document mentioning the village is dated 1339 and is in th ...

, Vangli, and Wik.

Merger with Hamar

The government had been debating merging Vang and Hamar (and sometimes Løten) for several decades. There was strong local opposition in Vang — a referendum held 22 and 23 April 1990 showed 95% of the Vang residents opposed incorporation into Hamar, with a 64.7% turnout rate. Support in Hamar was stronger as Vang was a prosperous farming municipality, while Hamar suffered from urban decay. The

Storting The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The Unicameralism, unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list propo ...

forced the merger which took place on 1 January 1992. The sponsor for the consolidation was Odd Aspeli (of the

Arbeiderpartiet The Labour Party (; , A or Ap; ), formerly The Norwegian Labour Party (, DNA), is a social democratic political party in Norway. It is positioned on the centre-left of the political spectrum, and is led by Jonas Gahr Støre. It was the senior ...

). He took over as Mayor in Hamar after consolidation and remained as Mayor until 1999. Another chief sponsor against consolidation, Einar Busterud, then assumed the position of Mayor.

Government

While it existed, this municipality was responsible for

primary education Primary education is the first stage of Education, formal education, coming after preschool/kindergarten and before secondary education. Primary education takes place in ''primary schools'', ''elementary schools'', or first schools and middle s ...

(through 10th grade), outpatient

health services Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the preventive healthcare, prevention, diagnosis, therapy, treatment, wikt:amelioration, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other disability, physic ...

senior citizen Old age is the range of ages for people nearing and surpassing life expectancy. People who are of old age are also referred to as: old people, elderly, elders, senior citizens, seniors or older adults. Old age is not a definite biological sta ...

services,

unemployment Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is the proportion of people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work du ...

social services Social services are a range of public services intended to provide support and assistance towards particular groups, which commonly include the disadvantaged. Also available amachine-converted HTML They may be provided by individuals, private and i ...

zoning In urban planning, zoning is a method in which a municipality or other tier of government divides land into land-use "zones", each of which has a set of regulations for new development that differs from other zones. Zones may be defined for ...

economic development In economics, economic development (or economic and social development) is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and object ...

, and municipal

road A road is a thoroughfare used primarily for movement of traffic. Roads differ from streets, whose primary use is local access. They also differ from stroads, which combine the features of streets and roads. Most modern roads are paved. Th ...

s. During its existence, this municipality was governed by a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...

of directly elected representatives. The

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

was

indirectly elected An indirect election or ''hierarchical voting,'' is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office ( direct voting system), but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. It is one of the o ...

by a vote of the municipal council.

Municipal council

The

of Vang was made up of 29 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a Hospitality, host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will oft ...

breakdown of the final municipal council was as follows:

Mayors

The

mayors In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of Vang: *1837–1839: Stenersen *1840–1842: Ole Nashaug *1843–1844: Ole Sæhlie *1845–1847: Henrik Christian Borchgrevink *1848–1848: C. Rabstad *1849–1850: Carl Krog *1851–1856: Ole Sæhlie *1857–1861: Even Vinsnes *1862–1862: Harald Heyerdahl *1863–1870:

Andreas Olsen Sæhlie Andreas Olsen Sæhlie (1 August 1832 – 27 August 1895) was a Norwegian farmer, distillery owner and politician. He was born in Vang, Hedmark, Vang, Hedmark. His daughter Christiane was married to Colonel Birger Eriksen. Sæhlie inherited ...

*1871–1874: Haagen Helstad *1875–1880: Ole Rømer Aagard Sandberg ( H) *1881–1888: Nils Dørum ( V) *1889–1894: Syver Aalstad ( H) *1895–1896: Martinus Imerslund *1897–1898: Ole Imerslund *1899–1900: Syver Aalstad *1900–1903: Ole Imerslund *1904–1913: Andreas Karset ( V) *1914–1916: Kristoffer Skraastad ( H) *1917–1918: Ole Holmen ( Ap) *1918–1922: Kristoffer Skraastad ( H) *1923–1928: Ole Sjetne *1929-1931: Arne Juland ( Ap) *1931-1965: Rudolf Hedemann ( Ap) *1943-1945: Aksel Røhr ( NS) *1965-1969: Arve Nysted ( Ap) *1969-1984: Kåre Storsveen ( Ap) *1984-1987: Ole Andreas Brodal ( Ap) *1988-1991: Odd Aspeli ( Ap)

Notable people

* Werner Hosewinckel Christie * Werner Christie * Mikkel Dobloug * Olga Imerslund *

Abraham Pihl Abraham Pihl (3 October 1756 – 20 May 1821) was a Norwegian clergyman, astronomer, and architect. Biography Abraham Pihl was born in Gausdal, Oppland County Municipality, Oppland County, Norway. He completed seminary at the University of ...

* Matthias Stoltenberg *

Ralph Engelstad Ralph Louis Engelstad (January 28, 1930 – November 26, 2002) was an American businessman who owned the Imperial Palace casino-hotels in Las Vegas and in Biloxi, Mississippi. He also owned the Kona Kai motel in Las Vegas, which later became the ...

(1930-2002), an American whose grandfather Peter emigrated from Vang to

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

References

{{use dmy dates, date=March 2022 Hamar Former municipalities of Norway 1838 establishments in Norway 1992 disestablishments in Norway Populated places established in 1838 Populated places disestablished in 1992