May 17th is a day that gathers most of the inhabitants of Norway for various events.
The most famous celebration tradition is "barnetoget", during which children from schools and kindergartens march through the streets with music, flags.
. History
The Norwegian National Day is celebrated in memory of the Constitution adopted in Eidsvoll on May 17, 1814. Prior to this date, Norway was under the rule of the Danish king.
The constitution of 1814 was written by people who wanted to separate Norway from the Danish monarchy. Big politics wanted it differently and at the end of the same year Norway was forced into a union with Sweden. The constitution was retained but slightly changed to accommodate the new union with Sweden. The most important principles of the Constitution, which laid the foundations for the dissolution of the union in 1905 and the development of Norwegian democracy, were also preserved.
On the day the Constitution was signed, Christian Frederik was elected as the new king of Norway. Unfortunately, his reign lasted only a few months, because on October 10, 1814, he had to hand over the throne to the Swedish king Charles Johan.
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The first children's parade in Christiania
After the adoption of the Constitution, almost a hundred years passed before Norway became completely independent from Sweden. Only in 1905 was the union with Sweden dissolved, which allowed Norway to celebrate its 17th anniversary maja as a free country.
In 1870, the first children's parade took place in Christiania. This procession, called the "barnetoget", set out from the Akershus fortress through the Storting to the royal palace and consisted of about 1200 boys. The initiator and organizer of "barnetoget" was Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson. In 1889, girls also joined the procession. Since then, the children's parade has become an important tradition and is still the main symbol of May 17 celebrations.
From May 17, 1906, Norwegian royalty she started going out to the balcony of Oslo Castle to greet school students. Only in 1910, when the funeral of King Edward VIII, Queen Maud's father, took place, and during the war of 1940-1945, this tradition was not continued.
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson was not only the originator of the children's parade, but also the author of the Norwegian national anthem "Ja, vi elsker". He wrote it for the 50th anniversary on May 17, 1864.
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