Union with Sweden

In Sept. 1872, Charles XV. was succeeded by his brother, Oscar II. In the following year the king sanctioned the abolition of the office of viceroy, and the president of the ministry was afterwards recognized as the prime minister. Stang was the first to fill this office. In the same year Norway celebrated its mil lenary with great festivities.

Struggle Between the King and the Storting.

In 1874 the government, in order to show the people their goodwill, laid before the storting a royal proposition for the admittance of the ministers to the national assembly. But this was to be accom panied by certain other constitutional changes, such as the royal right of dissolving the storting, and providing fixed pensions for ex-ministers, as a guarantee against the majority misusing its new power. The bill was unanimously rejected by the storting, who in the same year, and again in 1877, passed a modified version of the bill of 1872. On both occasions the king refused his sanc tion. The storting accordingly resorted to the procedure provided by the constitution to carry out the people's will. In 188o the bill was passed for the third time, by 93 votes out of 113. To the general surprise, the king again refused his sanction, declaring that his right to the absolute veto was "above all doubt." Sver drup, the Liberal leader and president of the storting, therefore proposed that the bill, which had been passed three times, should be declared to be the law of the land. This was carried by a large majority on June g, 188o, but the king and his ministers de clared the resolution invalid. The faculty of law at the Christiania (Oslo) university with one dissentient upheld the king's right to the absolute veto in questions concerning amendments of the consti tution, although they could not find that it was expressly stated in the fundamental law of the country. The ministry also advised the king to claim a veto in questions of supply, which still further increased the ill-feeling in the country against them.

The prime minister, Stang, now resigned, and C. A. Selmer (1816-89) became his successor—an appointment which indi cated that the conflict was to be continued. In June 1882 the king came to dissolve the storting, and astonished the people by censuring their representatives in a speech from the throne. Sverdrup and Bjornstjerne Bjornson, the popular poet and dram atist, called upon the people to support the storting in upholding the resolution of June 9. In the elections the Liberals won 83 seats to the Conservatives' 31. The ministry, however, showed no sign of yielding, and, when the new storting met in Feb. 1883, the Odelsting (the lower division of the national assembly) de cided to impeach the whole of the ministry. They were charged with having acted contrary to the interests of the country by advising the king to refuse his sanction—first, to the amendment of the law for admitting the ministers to the storting; secondly, to a bill involving supply; and thirdly, to a bill by which the storting could appoint additional directors on the state railways.

After ten months' trial, the Rigsret sentenced Selmer and seven of his ministers to be deprived of their offices; while three, who had either recommended the king to sanction the bill for admit ting the ministers to the storting, or had entered the cabinet at a later date, were heavily fined. The excitement in the country

rose to fever-height. It was generally believed that the king would attempt a coup d'etat. Fortunately, after some hesitation, he is sued (March 11, 1884) an order in council announcing that the judgment would be carried into effect. King Oscar, however, in his declaration upheld the constitutional prerogative of the crown, and in April asked Schweigaard, one of the ministers who had been fined, to form a ministry. His "April ministry" sent in its resignation in the following month; a similar nomination failed, and the king was at last compelled to appoint Sverdrup. Thus the first Liberal ministry in Norway came into being (1884). The storting, to satisfy the king, passed a new resolution admit ting ministers, and this received formal sanction.

During the following years a series of important reforms was carried through. In 1887 the jury system in criminal matters was introduced after violent opposition from the Conservatives. A bill intended to give parishioners greater influence in church matters, however, was eventually rejected, the result being a break-up of the ministry and a disorganization of the Liberal Party. In June 1889 Sverdrup resigned, and a Conservative min istry was formed by Emil Stang. After two fruitful years this was wrecked on the diplomatic question. In 1814 nothing had been settled about the conduct of diplomatic affairs; in 1835 a resolution was issued which in effect gave Norway a right of in spection of business transacted on her behalf by the Swedish foreign minister with the king. The Swedes were willing to grant equal representation in a joint council, but on the assumption that the minister of foreign affairs should continue to be a Swede, and this the Norwegians would not accept. In 1891, after a dead lock, the Stang ministry resigned, and a Liberal ministry under Sverdrup's successor, Steen, was appointed.

A new deadlock was produced by the resolve of the storting in 1892 to establish a separate consular service for Norway, which provoked the king's veto and the resignation of the ministry. By a compromise, the ministry returned to office, on the understand ing that the question was postponed. In 1893 the storting again passed a resolution for the establishment of the proposed con sular service, but the king again refused his sanction. Upon this the Liberal ministry resigned (May 1893), and the king appointed a Conservative Government, with Stang as its chief. At the end of 1894, when the triennial elections took place, the majority de clared in favour of national independence on the great question then before the country. In 1895, after over four months with out a responsible Government, a coalition ministry was formed, with Professor G. F. Hagerup as prime minister. A new commit tee of Norwegians and Swedes spent over two years in fruitless labour on the question of separate diplomatic representation. At the elections in 1897, 79 Liberals and 35 Conservatives were returned, and in Feb. 1898 Hagerup was replaced by Steen. Soon afterwards the bill for the general adoption of the national or "pure" flag was carried for the third time, and became law with out the king's sanction. In 1898 universal political suffrage for men was passed by a large majority, but the proposal to include women received only 33 votes.