first king of iceland

Despite the incredibly beneficial economic impact, this action proved to be highly controversial to much of the Icelandic population, who continued to protest their neutrality, all the while cooperating with Allied troops. Equally controversial was the impact that foreign troops had on Icelandic society. The Kingdom of Denmark (1814-1979) The Home Rule of Greenland (since 1979) Part of the Kingdom of Norway, from 1261 to 1814 [ edit] Greenland as an integral part of Norway under the Monarchy of Norway From the 1260s, the Norse colony on Greenland recognised the King of Norway as their overlord. Reykjavik responded by confirming their neutrality. Having recovered financially and outmatched the GDP of previous years, Icelands future has never looked brighter. The country proved to be well suited for sheep and cattle, and both were raised for meat and milk. Laws were not written down but were instead memorized by an elected Lawspeaker (lgsgumar). Until the 14th century, traditional Viking longhouses were built by the first inhabitants of Iceland. He was later killed by his slaves after settling at Mount Hjorleifshofoi, just east of modern-day Vik. It is also believed that the western fjords of Norway were simply overcrowded in this period. The latter, concluded in 1297, saw a significant shift of wealth and power from the aristocracy to the Church, which was increasingly independent of secular influence. [55] Halldr sgrmsson, leader of the Progressive Party, took over as prime minister from 2004 to 2006,[56] followed by Geir H. Haarde, Dav Oddsson's successor as leader of the Independence Party.[57]. The Landnamabok refers to Irish monks, known as the Papar, as the first inhabitants of Iceland, having left behind books, crosses, and bells for the Norse to later discover. Photo fromWikimedia,Creative Commons, byHaukurth. In March 2006, the United States announced that it intended to withdraw the greater part of the Icelandic Defence Force. According to the Landnmabk, Iceland was discovered by Naddodd, one of the first settlers in the Faroe Islands, who was sailing from Norway to the Faroes but lost his way and drifted to the east coast of Iceland. On the other hand, there was no central authority to ensure that the farmers would be able to exercise their right in a democratic way. By that time about 10 powerful godar, belonging to some five families, held almost all the chieftaincies in Iceland, and by mid-century these chieftaincies were engaged in a bloody struggle for power. Archeological findings in Reykjavk are consistent with the date given there: there was a settlement in Reykjavk around 870. Friedrich Wilhelm, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glcksburg, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_rulers_of_Iceland&oldid=1143550538, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from September 2019, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 8 March 2023, at 12:51. The Icelandic language testifies to the same origin; Icelandic is a Nordic language and is most closely related to the dialects of western Norway. Still, the last King of Iceland, Kristjn X, sent a message of congratulations to the Icelandic people. [36] Parliament also elected a provisional governor, Sveinn Bjrnsson, who later became the Republic's first president. When the force finally did come, the British were surprised to find the Icelanders rather accommodating, even helping the soldiers unload supplies from their ship. Iceland enjoyed a mostly uninterrupted period of growth in its commonwealth years. This refers to Sturla rarson and his sons, Sighvatr Sturluson, and Snorri Sturluson, who were one of two main clans fighting for power over Iceland, causing havoc in a land inhabited almost entirely by farmers who could ill-afford to travel far from their farms, across the island to fight for their leaders. 1918: On 1 December, the Kingdom of Iceland achieves sovereignty from Denmark, with King Christian X of Denmark becoming King Kristjn X of Iceland. In the 1990s, the Independence Party set a drastic reform of Icelands economy into motion. In the year 1000, as a civil war between the religious groups seemed likely, the Alingi appointed one of the chieftains, Thorgeir Ljosvetningagodi, to decide the issue of religion by arbitration. 860 set out on a voyage from Denmark, where he had made his home, to the Hebrides, to claim some land his wife had inherited. The British had called upon the then neutral United States to take over control of Iceland as their forces were badly needed on other fronts. This ultimately unsuccessful meeting of mindsthe issues would, thankfully be resolved in the next yeartook place at Hofoi House, marking a new era. Dined and worked. Learn about the most famous waterfalls in Iceland, the best waterfalls to visit, and the stories behind them. The Alingi is sometimes said to be the world's oldest existing parliament. From left, Crown Princess Mary and Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark; Finland president Tarja Halonen; King Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden; Queen Sonja and King Harald of Norway; and First Lady of Iceland Dorrit Mousaieff and president of Iceland . The United States closed the Keflavk Air Base in September 2006. After being reminded that Denmark had also been a neutral country, the Consul was arrested. For a time, Icelanders held onto beliefs in Norse mythology, following an oral tradition back to the time of their ancestors in Scandinavia. When the two kingdoms of Denmark and Norway were separated by the Treaty of Kiel in 1814 following the Napoleonic Wars, Denmark kept Iceland, as well as Faroe and Greenland, as dependencies. It was then that various agencies in Iceland, including the government and tourist board, rallied around the concept of boosting the country as a must-see travel destination. It led to major government interference in the marketplace that lasted until the post-World War II period. Iceland was still uninhabited long after the rest of Western Europe had been settled. The First King was a legendary figure who lived during the Dawn Age. Hey Americans, do you want to move to Iceland? A layer of tephra (volcanic ash) that in many places coincides with the earliest remains of human habitation in Iceland has been identified in Greenland ice and dated to about 870. This is a list of rulers of Iceland, ruling from 1262 to 1944. Iceland first began to form approximately 70 million years ago. Harald Halfdansson (Old Norse: Haraldr Hlfdanarson; c. 850 - c. 932), better known as Harald Hrfagre English: Harald Fairhair), was remembered by medieval historians as the first King of Norway. Its origins are thought to lie over 6,500 feet (2,000 meters) inside the Earths mantle. [20] Iceland established its own flag. [29], The war had a lasting impact on Icelandic society and Iceland's external relations. Much of Harald's biography is uncertain. This magma pocket is known as the Iceland Plume. Another source mentioning the Papar is slendingabk, dating from between 1122 and 1133. There were no Icelandic speakers among the invasion force, and many of the maps being used had been drawn from memory. While covered in ice, Iceland's icefalls, fjords and valleys were formed. A trip to Iceland isn't complete wi See a selection of wonderful photographs that capture the magic of the Northern Lights throughout Iceland. It has been suggested that the land called Thule by the Greek geographer Pytheas (fourth century BC) was actually Iceland, although it seems highly unlikely considering Pytheas' description of it as an agricultural country with plenty of milk, honey, and fruit:[8] The name is more likely to have referred to Norway, or possibly the Faroe Islands or Shetland. Nonetheless, the Christian clergy had unique opportunities to accumulate wealth via the tithe, and power gradually shifted to ecclesiastical authorities as Iceland's two bishops in Sklholt and Hlar acquired land at the expense of the old chieftains. Is Iceland a good travel destination for queer people? Iceland was settled in the late 9th and early 10th centuries, principally by people of Norwegian and other Scandinavian origin. Contemporary Icelandic names are shared by Icelands first settlers, providing an intergenerational connection. Because of the country's dependence both on reliable fish catches and foreign demand for fish products, Iceland's economy remained unstable well into the 1990s, when the country's economy was greatly diversified[citation needed]. Danish King Christian X sent a message of congratulations to the Icelandic people. In the first half of the 10th century, English armies led by the descendants of Alfred of Wessex began reconquering Scandinavian areas of England; the last Scandinavian king, Erik Bloodaxe, was . Children fathered by foreign troops were known as astandsborn (children of the situation). The current King belongs to the House of . Flki settled for one winter at Barastrnd. The twelfth-century scholar Ari orgilsson's slendingabk reasserts that items including bells corresponding to those used by Irish monks were found by the settlers. Iceland's history has also been marked by a number of natural disasters. "[13] These people were primarily of Norwegian, Irish, and Scottish origin. In A.D. 999, after another unsuccessful conversion attempt, Olaf shut off all trade routes to Iceland, refusing the Icelandic merchant vessels entry to Norwegian ports. In contrast to the northern legend of the First King, some legends from the Reach claim that Garth . Next, dive headfirst into the world of Norse mythology, where you'll get to know the likes of Odin, Thor, Freya, Loki, and more. The parliament convened each summer at ingvellir, where representative chieftains (Goorsmenn or Goar) amended laws, settled disputes and appointed juries to judge lawsuits. [citation needed]. He then sailed along the coast until the pillars were found in the southwestern peninsula, now known as Reykjanesskagi. Settlements from that era have been found in southwest Greenland and eastern Canada, and sagas such as Saga of Erik the Red and Greenland saga speak of the settlers' exploits. Norwegian chieftains followed Ingolfur en masse through the next few decades to escape the heavy-handed King Harald of Norway, and in about 60 years, Iceland was fully settled. Quintessential Icelandic streets such as Laekjargata and Laugavegur no longer resemble anything they once were. Sverrir Jakobsson. [37], At the peak, the British had 25,000 troops stationed in Iceland,[35] all but eliminating unemployment in the Reykjavk area and other strategically important places. Icelands position in the middle of the Mid-Atlantic Rift makes it a hotbed for geothermal activity. Iceland demanded Britain allow it to trade with Germany, to no avail. This place eventually became the capital and the largest city of modern Iceland. )[38], Approximately 159 Icelanders' lives have been confirmed to have been lost in World War II hostilities. This is just one example of the level of detail found in these medieval sources. From an 18th century manuscript of an Icelandic saga about King Gylfi. Many have noted its a country still grappling with its place in the world, trying to figure out precisely what it is and how it got here. Only a few decades before that, it had become subject to the modernism that followed World War IIthe theaters, the restaurants, the museums, and the bars. As a dependency of Norway, Iceland came under the Danish-Norwegian Crown in 1380 and was in reality a Danish dependency from 1660. And this was done while customers were . The oldest stone specimens found in Iceland date back to c.16 million years ago. British cleric, Gilbert White, wrote of the period: All the time, the heat was so intense that butchers meat could hardly be eaten on the day after it was killed, and the flies swarmed so in the lanes and hedges that they rendered the horses half frantic, and riding irksome. [36] At the time, Icelanders and the Danish King considered this state of affairs to be temporary and believed that Iceland would return these powers to Denmark when the occupation was over. As hunger set in and the weather patterns began to take a life of their own, social order in Iceland broke down, and looting became frequent. Greek and Roman literature mentions the land of Thule, and some have speculated this may have referred to Iceland. Archaeological finds also support the documentary evidence and place Iceland among Norse Viking Age settlements of the late 9th or early 10th century. No one was vested with executive power over the country as a whole. And while it's simpler to consider these elemental forces as ancient Iceland history, something long forgotten, the truth is, Iceland is still very much experiencing growing pains. During the 11th and 12th centuries, the centralization of power had worn down the institutions of the commonwealth, as the former, notable independence of local farmers and chieftains gave way to the growing power of a handful of families and their leaders. By A.D. 930, it's thought that all arable land in the country had been settled. After deliberating for one day and one night under a fur blanket, Thorgeir finally concluded that Iceland should adopt a new faith. Photo byWikimedia,Creative Commons, by Olaus Magnus. The financial crisis gave rise to the Icesave dispute, where Iceland on the one hand and the United Kingdom and Netherlands on the other disputed whether Iceland was obligated to repay British and Dutch depositors who lost their savings when Icesave collapsed. 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