Experiences of War and Nationality in Denmark-Norway, 1807-1815

Manuskriptet er fordelt på følgende kapitler: Prologue: Denmark-Norway and the Ideology of Patriotism Chapter 1: The Bombardment of Copenhagen Chapter 2: Denmark-Norway's War with Sweden Chapter 3: Naval and Economic Warfare Chapter 4: Internal Changes an d External Threats Chapter 5: End Games Chapter 6: Postlude. Freedom and Suppression Epilogue: Denmark and Norway after Denmark-Norway The wars of 1807-14 had profound impact on the development of Danish and Norwegian national identities, although the de velopment of these was not predetermined. As the wars contributed to the development of separate Danish and, in particular, Norwegian national identities, they broke down identities and loyalties to the Danish-Norwegian unitary state as a common fatherlan d. Thus, many Norwegians were quite surprised to find themselves fighting for national independence in 1814. Indeed, events could have taken a whole other course during the war years, especially in 1809-10. The development of Danish and Norwegian national identities during the wars progressed unevenly in the different layers of society. Whereas the elites developed national identities touching upon modern varities of nationalism, common people were still far from regarding the nation as a fulcrum for thei r loyalty, allegiance and duty. Though the elites certainly made attempts to educate the popular classes in the new national ideology, the populace did not perceive of their lives as taking place within the framework of a nation. This caused consternatio n and incomprehension among the elites, who expected their own mental worlds to resonate with the populace. There were also several parallels to contemporary developments elsewhere in Napoleonic Europe, which will also be explored. What was more, the Napo leonic wars in Scandinavia were calamities and were perceived as such, giving way to economic downfall, much suffering and dissatisfaction and, crucially, new ideas culminating with the events in 1814.