[POTN] 2.7 - A Cold Morning in Bergen

Following the introduction of the new Norwegian orthography by Christian, the Copenhagen became very wary of a potential Norwegian uprising. In April 1653, King Frederik sent hundreds of Danish soldiers to Christiania in order to root out any opposition. Dozens of Norwegian intellectuals were detained for treason suspicions, and were sent back to Copenhagen for imprisonment.

While Frederik did not execute any of them and most of them were released after a few months of imprisonment in bad conditions, most of them were terrified of Frederik's rule, and opted to leave his realms entirely, many settling in the north of the Empire. Christian initially intended to visit Christiania in the summer with his family to promote his new orthography proposal. Nonetheless, following Frederik's persecution, Christian was warned by many compatriots against the trip, and eventually he relented, choosing to stay with his family in the safety of Bergen instead.

During the summer, Maren appeared to be pregnant yet again. This time, however, Maren was feeling pretty unwell, with various symptoms like last time.

As winter came, Maren's pregnancy was not going well. One night, she suddenly suffered from severe pain, despite the pregnancy nowhere near the expected due date. A quick miscarriage occurred in early morning, under the care of nurses always present in Christian's residence. Maren was largely unharmed in the process, but the miscarriage proved to be an unexpected experience for the couple.

While Maren was fairly shocked by the experience, it was soon forgotten with her children messing around in the household. Now aged between one and four, the children were in a very energetic stage, causing chaos everywhere they were. Still, Christian became more cautious after the miscarriage. While the couple was still energetic in bed, their encounters became less frequent than a couple of years ago, as Christian wished to give Maren some time of recovery before trying for a child again.

By 1654, Christian's brother, Valdemar, had already become an officer in the Swedish army after swearing allegiances to King Gustav in public. King Frederik officially declared Valdemar a traitor in May 1654, stripping him of his princely honour in Denmark-Norway. Still, he did not revoke the treaty that made Valdemar the heir to Oldenburg, as Frederik hoped that the death of the elderly Count of Oldenburg would force Valdemar into the County, away from assisting Sweden.

Christian, meanwhile, was commanded to swear allegiances to Frederik in public. He did so before the public in Bergen in July 1654, but refused to travel to Copenhagen in person, citing security concerns.

The winter of 1654 was harsher than most winters, especially in Bergen. From October, snowfall became common, and the townsfolk began staying home more and more frequently amidst the dropping temperature. Maren, for the first time in the marriage, did not get pregnant for over a year. Christian became far more restrained following the miscarriage, unwilling to bring lasting harm to his beloved wife. Under the chilling weather, however, Christian and Maren were staying in bed together whenever they weren't taking care of their growing children, and the frequency of their intimacy soon returned to the level they had prior to the miscarriage.

With such frequent encounters, Maren soon seemed pregnant again by the turn of the year. Christian, of course, was joyful as always.

Unlike the previous two pregnancies, this one was far easier for Maren. The harsh symptoms did not appear again, and Maren, now almost 31, handled the pregnancy very well. By spring, Maren became heavily pregnant. This time, however, the pain was not severe, and Maren largely kept taking care of the children during most of her pregnancy.

As the summer heat finally came for Bergen in this particular cold year of 1655, tensions also rose throughout Europe. Christian, meanwhile, was largely oblivious, remaining devoted to his pregnant wife's well-being and also taking care of their children during Maren's late pregnancy.

On 4th August, 1655, Maren gave birth to a small girl, in a delivery so smooth not seen since the family's last girl four years ago. The little girl did not seem too energetic initially, but the condition increased through the night. By the next day, the midwives could be certain that the girl would survive the coming days, and the girl was named Louise Amalie.

The baptism of the girl took place in Bergen in a rather private setting in late August, as King Frederik was reportedly paranoid about any Norwegian insurgencies amidst the emerging conflicts in the Commonwealth. Still, Frederik refused to order general mobilisation, as he believed that the Swedes concentrating their efforts in the Commonwealth meant temporary safety for Denmark-Norway.

Frederik also did not spend much on fortifying important fortresses across Denmark-Norway, as he believed that Gustav was a cautious military leader, and would not risk losing the momentum in the Commonwealth by attacking Denmark-Norway.