Section I.

Scandinavia’s greatest Memorials.—Those of Denmark and Norway at Sea.—Of Sweden on Land.—The Influence of Climate.

The greatest, and for general history the most important, memorials of the Scandinavian people are connected, as is well known, with the expeditions of the Normans, and with the Thirty Years’ War.

In the Norman expeditions the North, mighty in its heathenism, poured forth towards the east, the west, and the south, its numerous warriors and shrewd men, who subverted old kingdoms, and founded new and powerful ones in their place. It was by Danish and Norwegian fleets that Normandy and England were then conquered, and kingdoms won in Scotland, Ireland, and North Holland; whilst Norwegians settled on the Faroe Islands (Dan., FarÖerne), and discovered and colonized Iceland. Hence their descendants, having afterwards passed over to Greenland, discovered America, and were in the habit of navigating the Atlantic Ocean centuries before other European nations.

In all these voyages proportionally few Swedes took part. Inscriptions on runic stones in Sweden sometimes speak, indeed, of men who had settled or met their death in the west over in England (Anklant or Inklant). But on the whole the views of the Swedes were at that time, as well as at a later period, mostly directed towards the east. Swedish Vikings, or pirates, harried and established themselves upon the coasts of Finland and of the countries now belonging to Russia; and a tribe of them, the VarÆger, even made themselves there the reigning people. Partly in consequence of this, Sweden—and particularly the Island of Gothland, or Gulland—became the centre of the active trade which in ancient times (that is, from the eighth to the twelfth century,) was carried on, through Russia, between Scandinavia and the countries around the Black and Caspian Seas, as well as Arabia.

The Swedes, however, do not appear very prominently either in ancient times or in the early part of the middle ages. They were prevented from playing any considerable part in the distant lands towards the West by the sanguinary intestine disputes which took place between them and the Goths; and it was not till the fifteenth century, and after these disputes were adjusted, that they could appear upon the theatre of the world as a nation. The Swedish Charleses and Gustavuses, by means of the sword, subsequently caused the Swedish name to be feared and honoured; not, however, at sea, but on land, on the plains of Russia, Poland, and Germany. Gustavus Adolphus, in the Thirty Years’ War, after the disaster of the Danish-Norwegian king Christian IV., powerfully contributed to uphold Lutheranism, and by that means to establish liberty of conscience for Germany and the rest of Europe.

It was, then, principally at sea that the Danes and Norwegians formerly won a name in the history of the world, whilst the Swedes obtained theirs on land. Indeed, the peculiar nature and situation of the different Scandinavian countries must have necessarily caused the strength and courage which were the common attributes of the Scandinavian race, to be exerted from the first in different directions. Sweden, which towards the west is separated from Denmark only by the Sound and Cattegat, is in like manner towards the east separated from the vast plains of northern Europe by a confined and narrow sea. When, therefore, the thirst of glory and conquest urged the Swedish warriors from their homes, it was only necessary for them to cross over to the opposite shores, or at most to sail along the coasts of the Baltic. In Sweden, forests, valleys, and rivers, are the most prominent natural features, whilst the sea is but a subordinate one. It is scarcely to be expected that such a country should produce good seamen. But in Denmark and Norway the case is altogether different.

Denmark is surrounded on all sides by the sea, which has indented the land with numberless bays and firths, and cut it up into small portions. Nor is it washed only by a confined sea like the Baltic, but also by the more open German Ocean. From the earliest times, therefore, necessity obliged the Dane to put to sea in order to keep up his connections with his friends on the surrounding coasts and islands. Subsequently—when commerce, and more especially when military honour, required it—he was compelled to learn how to navigate the open sea, to struggle with the foaming waves and rapid currents, and to defy the surf—which is still the constant terror of seamen—on the coasts of north and west Jutland.

Thus the Dane early became a bold and daring Viking, and the Norwegian distinguished himself in the same manner. Norway turns her broad and rocky bosom towards the ocean. Her wild and broken coasts, split into deep fiords, or gulfs, bear witness to the never-ceasing and violent attacks of the Atlantic. Towards the east, Norway is separated from Sweden by rocks, forests, and large desert plains. The interior of the country is partly filled with mountains and immense forests, which anciently were still more extensive. The valleys alone, along the banks of rivers, are productive, and capable of cultivation. The greater part of the inhabitants settled therefore originally on the fiords, or in the neighbourhood of the sea, where the pasture land was neither so over grown with wood, nor so sequestered as in the interior, and where also the sea air rendered the climate considerably milder. The weather, however, was variable enough, and the products of the earth being, partly on that account, but scanty, fishing and the chase became important sources of maintenance for the continually-increasing population. The forests supplied them with abundance of timber, the soil was rich in iron; nor were the people wanting in a daring and enterprising spirit. Ships were soon built, capable not only of navigating the fiords, but of venturing beyond their mouths. The first voyages were coasting ones, but subsequently they were extended from the southern part of Norway to the Danish and Swedish shores.

The Norwegian, who had now become skilled in navigating his ship through the mountain waves of the Atlantic and the far more dangerous surfs on the rocks of Norway, no longer dreaded the open sea. When the population had increased to such an extent that the Norwegian rocks could barely afford it a sufficient maintenance; when the reports concerning the rich lands beyond the sea, and their defenceless condition, promised at once renown and booty; and when, lastly, Harald Haarfager’s conquests threatened the Norwegians with the loss of their freedom—then thousands of vessels shot out from the fiords of Norway, and steered dauntlessly for the neighbouring western islands. A northern life, and the severe winter’s cold, had not only braced the body of the Viking to endure all kinds of hardships, and given him strength to wield the sword with effect; it had also steeled his courage, and taught him fearlessly to face all manner of danger. The clear starry firmament of the North enabled him to observe the course and relative situation of the stars, which were then the only compass by which he steered his ship towards foreign and unknown shores.

Norway must naturally be better calculated to form hardy persevering sailors than Denmark. With the exception of the west coast of Jutland, where there is not a good harbour to be found, and where, consequently, navigation must, in ancient times, have been very limited, Denmark is washed by an enclosed sea with flat coasts. The ocean, on the contrary, washes almost the whole of Norway’s rocky shores; where the numerous and deeply-indented fiords resemble so many harbours. There are sufficient indications that anciently the Danes were accustomed to visit only the comparatively neighbouring countries of England, Holland, and France; whilst the Norwegians sailed also towards the north on the wide Atlantic, whose storms and dangers did not prevent them from constantly visiting the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, and even America. The discovery and first colonization of these countries are, with just reason, the pride of the Norwegians and of their descendants the Icelanders.

A comparison with other European nations will more clearly show how great an influence the climate of the North, and especially the Northern Sea, must have had on the development of navigation among the Danes and Norwegians, and on their whole maritime life. With the exception of England, which, in a still higher degree than Scandinavia, swims in the open sea, and of Holland, which lies as it were half under water, no country in Europe has produced a seafaring people which can be at all compared to the Northmen; and this notwithstanding that Germany, France, and the Spanish Peninsula, have all a very considerable extent of coast. The reason undoubtedly is, that the coasts of those countries are washed by enclosed seas, which naturally cannot be compared with the ocean; whilst the countries themselves, especially Germany and France—and the latter even in spite of its extent of coast towards the Atlantic—have an unmistakeable continental character. It is clear, moreover, that the ocean, as well as the smaller and enclosed seas, have, according to the difference of latitude, an entirely different influence on the people who inhabit their shores. The Mediterranean, surrounded by rich and fruitful, but enervating, countries, has not shown itself capable of producing such seamen as the Baltic, where the climate is more severe, and the gifts of Nature incomparably more sparing. Spain and Portugal, it is true, have a great extent of coast towards the Atlantic, which may almost be compared with the west coast of Norway. But both those countries possess a fruitful soil and a glorious southern climate. Their inhabitants were not, like the Northmen of old, forced to visit foreign shores in order to procure subsistence, and to struggle continually with a raw and severe climate. They preferred to stay at home and enjoy the blessings of their own country; and thus the calm energy and the proud self-reliance which are engendered by a ceaseless struggle with an ungrateful soil and climate, and which are indispensable to a hardy seaman, were not developed in them as in the Norwegians and other inhabitants of the North. This may have been one of the causes why the Spaniards and Portuguese were unable to retain, in later times, their mastery over the new world. They were displaced by the English, a northern seafaring people, who were more at home on the sea.

It was the same quiet energy which, even amid the excitement of passion, so strongly distinguished the northern from the southern races. The inhabitant of the South was more governed, as he now is, by his passions. A torrent of words, an animated play of the features, or even perhaps a violent assault, betrayed the fire that raged within him. The northern man, on the contrary, was of few words. His anger was under the dominion of his cooler reason, and he was capable of concealing the emotions of his soul. But he had a good memory. Years would pass before he revenged himself; and he felt a sort of pleasure in making his preparations, and waiting for the proper opportunity. The revenge of blood, therefore, took place in the cold North, as well as in the fiery South: but in the totally different manner in which it manifested itself we can hardly fail to recognise the influence of Nature.

It must, however, be borne in mind that in every nation, except those situated at the Poles or under the Line, where Nature exerts an almost irresistible and overwhelming force, this influence manifests itself very differently, according to their different degrees of development. In the infancy of a people, and so long as their immediate wants render them entirely dependent on Nature, whose unexplained phenomena appear to them as those of some foreign and unknown power, her influence on their life is naturally strongest. The effect is the same as that which education and the companions with whom he associates produce on an individual. But as nations gradually become more enlightened and refined, they obtain a mastery over Nature, whose influence thus grows weaker and weaker, and at last almost vanishes. It is, indeed, one of the most marked steps in the progress of human development, when man becomes Nature’s master, and makes her obedient to his power. Thus when Englishmen, Frenchmen, and others who belong to a people of defined character and perfectly-developed nationality, settle in foreign parts, the influence of Nature, even at the Poles, or under the Line, is scarcely strong enough to produce any great change in their character. And upon the whole, to whatever degree civilization may be carried, most nations will never entirely lose that character which Nature has impressed upon them in the lands which gave them birth.

The influence of Nature upon the Scandinavian people may be traced throughout their history, even down to the present times. In their sanguinary internal wars, the Danes and Norwegians generally gained the victory over the Swedes at sea. Under able leaders they have sometimes been victorious on land also; but here the Swedes have in general been superior. Christian IV. made no progress in the Thirty Years’ War. On that occasion he proved himself inferior to Gustavus Adolphus, who, when fighting on land, was in his true element. At sea, on the other hand, Christian IV. signally defeated the Swedish fleet. The chief heroes of the Swedish nation, and those who live most in the memory of the people, are, Gustavus Adolphus, Charles X., and particularly Charles XII.; although that monarch, by his rash wars in Russia, Poland, and Germany, inflicted deep wounds upon Sweden, which took a long time to heal. But the favourite heroes of the Danes and Norwegians are seamen; as Christian IV., Niels Juel, Hvitfeld, and especially Tordenskjold, who, singularly enough, was contemporary with Charles XII. The difference between the people is clearly expressed in the opening lines of two of the most favourite national songs. The Danish—formerly the Norwegian also—runs thus:

(“King Christian stood by the high mast, enveloped in mist and smoke”), where there is an allusion to a fight at sea. But the Swedish lines,

(“King Charles the young hero, stood in smoke and dust”), allude to battle and victory on land. Even to the present day it may with good reason be asserted that the Danes and Norwegians feel more inclination than the Swedes for a seafaring life. But as the battle in Copenhagen Roads (April 2, 1801) maintained the ancient reputation of the Danes at sea, so also recent events have shown, that both the Danes and Norwegians of the present day can fight on land with distinguished bravery.

Section II.

Russia, Poland, and particularly Germany, were, as we have seen, the theatre of the greatest victories of Sweden. The glory of Denmark and Norway, on the contrary, was founded in the West, over the sea, in America, Iceland, the British Isles, and France. Denmark’s conquests of the southern and eastern coasts of the Baltic in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, under the Waldemars, terminate, however, the times of the Vikings. The victories of Sweden are of a modern date, and since the last two centuries; but those of Denmark are of the ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth centuries. The remembrance of the Swedish sabre-cut yet remains fresh among the Russians, Poles, and Germans; nay, in some places, the Swedish name is still a terror to the common people.

It is often made a subject of complaint against the great achievements of Denmark and Norway that they are of such remote antiquity; and that, instead of promoting the freedom and spiritual advancement of mankind, like Sweden’s struggles in the Thirty Years’ War, they rather caused an immense retrograde step in civilization, since the heathen Vikings acted with unbridled ferocity, burnt and destroyed churches and convents, and rudely trampled upon everything that bore the mark of a higher intellectual development. Thus foreigners, and particularly the German historians, usually assert, for instance, that the Danish and Norwegian Vikings brought nothing but misfortune upon the British Isles; whilst, on the contrary, everything great and good in England is mainly attributable to the Saxons, or Germans. This, however, is not to be wondered at, since these critics were obliged to judge of situations for whose right estimation they were entirely without the necessary knowledge, namely, that of the more ancient history of the North.

It would certainly not be gratifying to the national feelings of the Danes and Norwegians if the progress and settlements of the Vikings in foreign lands were marked only by acts of violence, murder, and incendiarism. Nor would it be a whit more pleasing or refreshing if it were necessary to dig up as it were out of the earth the memorials of those deeds, after they had lain for centuries in oblivion, or if we were obliged carefully to revive them and procure their acknowledgment in the countries which were once compelled to bow before the power of the northern warriors.

But what if the Danish name, and the remembrance of the exploits of the Danes and Norwegians, in spite of the many centuries that have passed since they were performed, still live as fresh in the memory of the people of the western lands as the Swedish name in Germany, nay, perhaps even fresher? What if we found that, by means of monuments, the popular character, public institutions, and other traits, a constant powerful and beneficial influence could be traced from the expeditions of the Vikings or Northmen, so that the natives of the lands which they subdued accounted it an honour to descend from the bold natives of the North? Would not the Northman in that case have a double right to be proud of his forefathers? Or would he, upon the whole, any longer have reason to complain?

It is the object of the following pages to convey, partly in the form of travelling impressions, a picture of the memorials of the Danes and Norwegians, as they exist in the monuments and among the people of those countries which in former times most frequently witnessed the victories of the Danes and Normans—namely, the British Islands. It is, however, by no means the exclusive, or even special, design of them, to present to scholars and persons of science detailed and critical observations on every individual ancient monument in those islands, which may be said to be of Danish or Norwegian origin. Their aim rather is to describe the more general, and consequently more appreciable, features of actually existing Scandinavian monuments; in doing which a distinction will, as far as possible, be drawn between the Danish and the Norwegian memorials; and in general between the influence of the Danes in England, and of the Norwegians in Scotland and Ireland.