[POTN] 3.4 - Norway's March of Suffering

Rallying behind Prince Christian, the Norwegians enjoyed a period of high morale following the restoration of the Storting. Many Norwegian patriots chanted for Prince Christian everywhere, some almost viewing him as their actual monarch instead of the King in Copenhagen.

Yet, Christian's government faced a grave problem. The outrageously high taxes imposed on Norway to pay off the reparations he owed Sweden had drained the Norwegian treasury, leaving the Norwegians without any capital to rebuild the landscapes devastated by the Swedish invasion. In fact, Prince Christian had no choice but to impose higher taxes on most Norwegians, so to gather enough cash for his government and the Storting to continue functioning.

Reality soon caught up with the patriotic Norwegians, and many soon realised than life in a semi-independent Norway might not be better than previously in Denmark-Norway. With subsidies from Copenhagen practically cut entirely due to King Frederik's dismay, the Norwegians had no means to rebuild their military force. The Danes, under Frederik's command, had largely withdrawn from Norway, and many units were outright disbanded under the tight budget. The Danish military, pressured by Frederik, also announced that they would no longer guard Norway with their "independent tendencies".

All of these left Norway without a credible military in the event of a Swedish invasion. While the Swedes also did not have a very stable budget to support their massive military in the long term, the enormous reparations they received meant that they could very well maintain their military for the time being.

Prince Christian's government attempted to borrow money from overseas, from their supposed Dutch allies, and also French merchants. Yet, few would lend much to a government undergoing an apparent financial crisis, especially given how even Copenhagen had not been repaying their debts on time. Christian was forced to abandon his plans for a Norwegian Navy in 1662, focusing solely to amass an Army, compromising of loyal, patriotic officers, young volunteers, and conscripts who could be paid very low wages.

Still, even that army was very limited in size, as the Norwegian government was ridden with debts, and Christian basically had no choice but to continue borrowing from different merchants and bankers in order to keep the government and the Storting functioning. King Frederik in Copenhagen was also facing a fairly similar financial crisis. Nonetheless, his treaty with the French meant that he could pay off some debts with French subsidies, while also rebuilding his military with French support, in exchange for allying with the French.

In mid-1662, several military commanders complained to Christian that the newly-amassed Norwegian army would stand no chance in a battle against the Swedes, trying to convince him to increase the military spending to prevent a Swedish attack. Despite Christian's wish to improve the army, the severe lack of capital meant that he had no choice but to keep the military expenditure low. Later that year, with another round of taxes for Denmark due, Christian even had to reduce the military spending, causing a delay in wages for soldiers.

In November 1662, under the winter weather, the garrisons guarding Norway's border with Sweden was severely ill-supplied. Bergen, devoid of capital, did not even reply to the units' plea for food. The units by the border mostly consisted of once hot-headed patriotic volunteers, and also young conscripted boys from different parts of Norway. With the lack of food, the young men's morale dropped to record low, and many began to desert the military at night.

Even though some fled to Sweden while others went home, the officers largely let them desert, pretending not to see them at all - many of them were also frustrated by the lack of food and were thinking of defection to Sweden themselves.

Prince Christian gave a speech on New Year's Day, 1663, in Bergen, and did successfully rally the populace of the city for the time being. Donations from different merchants spiked, and in Bergen, it seemed like the government really could get out of the mess. Yet, in rural parts of Norway, it was a different story entirely. With such financial trouble, Christian's government had no choice but to raise taxes. Coupled with the corrupted nature of parts of the civil servant system left over by Denmark, the rural population often had to give up a significant part of their already meager income.

Small-scale famines occurred in different parts of Norway, killing hundreds. When the news reached Bergen, many in the Storting were extremely shocked, and began demanding Christian to do something to stop the food shortage in the rural lands.

In February 1663, Christian and the Storting sent a letter to King Frederik, unusually politely pleading for him to lower the taxes Copenhagen demanded from Bergen. Yet, Frederik, upon receiving the letter, merely laughed and tossed it into the fire, not really caring for Norway's survival at all.

Frederik's lack of reply was announced in public by Christian in late March, rallying the citizens of Bergen against the King, who apparently worked against Norwegian interests. For the time being, opposition against Prince Christian was seemingly pacified, with anger redirected against the King.

Still, the deserting tendencies in Norway's Army did not cease, and many continued to defeat to Denmark and Sweden, seeking a fair, stable income as a soldier. By June 1663, almost the entire Norwegian Army was demoralised, without any real capability to battle should any enemies invade.

In July 1663, under extreme pressure from the Storting, Christian had no choice but to announce an end of support for the Army, and that the Norwegian Army would be, in theory, disbanded entirely. The money saved from supporting the military would be redirected to help starving peasants in the rural lands, while tax rates were immediately lowered. The decision brought a long-awaited halt to the food crisis unfolding in rural Norway since October 1662. Still, the government's fiscal reality remained hopeless, with many Dutch and Danish merchants and bankers gathered in Bergen, protesting for the Norwegians to repay their debts.

Prince Christian tried to communicate with the creditors, but was silenced by their angry, uncompromising stance. Many Dutch merchants even threatened to report the incident back to the Hague and plead for the Dutch Republic to force Norway to repay their debts.

Meanwhile, with the Army disbanded, officers loyal to Christian were asked to return to Bergen with their loyal soldiers. A modest garrison was formed in August 1663, tasked to guard the capital against any unexpected revolts or invasions.

The garrisons consisted largely of noble officers and volunteers, who asked for little in payment compared to the conscripts, Thus, even with a crippling economy, a few garrisons of around 1500 men in total were kept, guarding Norway's most important cities, especially Bergen and Christiania.

Some members of the Storting were worried about a possible invasion, but the reality in Stockholm at the moment meant that King Gustav was not interested in a war, which came as a relief for many Norwegians.

In October 1663, Prince Christian decided to downsize the government, cutting the governmental expense even further. After this change, the expenses of the government and the Storting became more manageable, even with just the tax money collected every year. By the end of the year, the Norwegian finances became sustainable if the debts were not taken into account. While that did not mean that the strain on the Norwegian treasury was lifted, many in the Storting still saw it as positive progress, bringing the nation back on the right track.

Meanwhile, Christian also began negotiating with the creditors, offering them various advantages in Norway for them to forgive part of the loans. A diplomatic mission was also sent to the Dutch Republic in early 1664, attempting to negotiate with some of the larger creditors, perhaps even the Dutch government, to settle the crisis. While the Dutch government, under the leadership of Johan de Witt, did not directly intervene, they still encouraged the creditors concerned to make a deal with the Norwegian government, so to keep the two nations' relations stable while also opening a new market for the merchants.

By March 1664, an agreement had been reached between Christian's administration and many Dutch creditors. By allowing them and their companies free passage into Norway, free trading without tariffs, among other beneficial policies, the Norwegians managed to get the Dutch merchants to forgive almost half of their debts.

While the Danish bankers remained less compromising, the deal with the Dutch meant that the Bergen administration could stop worrying about debts for the time being. After all, trades between Norway and Denmark had diminished significantly after Norway's war against Sweden and King Frederik's apparent unfriendly stance against Norway.

On 29th May, 1664, Prince Christian gave a speech to all Bergen on his 36th birthday. In the speech, he promised that Norway would be a nation for trade, not for war, a people for prosperity, not for conflict. All Norwegian trading ports were opened to foreign merchants, excluding those related to the administration in Copenhagen. Taxes on local merchants would be lowered, allowing economic growth in the war-torn nation.

Still, Christian reaffirmed that King Frederik III was the rightful and legitimate King of Norway, pledging his allegiance to him, and promising that Norway had no intent to overthrow his rule as long as he stayed a "responsible" monarch for the Norwegians. That calmed down a number of foreign merchants, who were afraid a sudden declaration of independence on the Norwegian side would put them in danger.

By focusing the budget on trading activities, the Norwegian economy managed to benefit from the new policies, starting to grow back to its pre-war levels. Prince Christian was also able to form volunteer regiments in both Bergen and Christiania, guarding the crucial settlements against any external threats.