Towards the Kalmar Union
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S P E C I A L I Z E D A G E N C I E S TOWARDS THE KALMAR UNION Dear Delegates, Welcome to the 31st Annual North American Model United Nations 2016 at the University of Toronto! On behalf of all of the staff at NAMUN, we welcome you to the Specialized Agency branch of the conference. I, and the rest of the committee staff are thrilled to have you be a delegate in Scandinavia during the High Middle Ages, taking on this challenging yet fascinating topic on the futures of the three Scandinavian Kingdoms in a time of despair, poverty, dependence and competitiveness. This will truly be a new committee experience, as you must really delve into the history of these Kingdoms and figure out how to cooperate with each other without sending everyone into their demise. To begin, in the Towards the Kalmar Union Specialized Agency, delegates will represent influential characters from Denmark, Norway and Sweden, which include prominent knights, monarchs, nobles, and important religious figures who dominate the political, military and economic scenes of their respective Kingdoms. The impending issues that will be discussed at the meeting in Kalmar, Sweden include the future of the Danish and Norwegian crowns after the death of the sole heir to the thrones, Olaf II. Here, two distant relatives to Valdemar IV have a claim to the throne and delegates will need to decide who will succeed to the throne. The second order of business is to discuss the growing German presence in Sweden, especially in major economic cities. The Germans, many of which are brought in by King Albert of Mecklenburg, are generally seen as a threat to the Swedish people and sovereignty. Hopefully, a peaceful compromise will be the best option between the Swedish Council of the Realm and King Albert and his son. Thirdly, the idea of a coalition has been raised by the Danish in which all three Kingdoms, can act in the same manor concerning foreign and domestic policies, an idea that can single-handedly strengthen the Scandinavian Kingdoms’ power and presence in a crowded Europe. Finally, the question of the powerful Hanseatic League will also be in play throughout the committee and its devastating influence on the economies of the Baltic States and where their true alignment and prospects lie. This is the first Council meeting of its kind to involve the most prominent officials from all three Kingdoms, and is sure to be a time of great opportunity. Below you will find a Background Guide with more information on the committee, the parties involved and other essential information to help you familiarize yourself with this specialized agency. I very strongly suggest that you look up additional information on your own time, not only from online sources, which are very limited, but also in libraries where one can find an abundance of physical resources. With that, I and the committee staff welcome you to NAMUN 2016 and we look forward to meeting you all and working with you to give you a true NAMUN experience. Nickolas Shyshkin 2 History of the Committee Each of the Scandinavian Kingdoms of Norway, Denmark and Sweden have a Council of the Realm, also known as a Privy Council or Riksråd, which consists mostly of nobles, bishops and powerful magnates of the Kingdom. These councils worked closely and alongside the Monarch of the Kingdom on important decisions that would aid in each Kingdom’s survival including the rights of peasants, taxes and domestic and foreign policy. These councils were not only made to work with the Monarch to control the country, but also provided a check on the Monarch’s power. A monarch is usually selected through the royal line of succession, although when there is no one else to fulfill the position, the Council of the Realm will vote on an appropriate candidate, one who is usually recommended by the current monarch. The monarch by law, is always a male: a female can only rule as regent for a successor to the throne who is underage or not ready. The Church is a very important aspect in the Scandinavian society, so much so that is almost runs like a state-like authority in parallel with the monarchy and contributes greatly to each Kingdom’s society. The Church is very rich due to the collection of church taxes amongst the people and owns a great deal of land, as much as almost half of Denmark. Many bishops even act as political advisers and counsellors, thus explaining the position of many bishops in the Privy Councils. These bishops act as an inspiration to the peasantry through the word of God and inform them of the Kingdom’s decisions and policies. In addition, in the committees, the conversation on trade is frequently discussed, especially between the magnates, as Sweden, Denmark and Norway are all located in very strategic locations in Northern Europe on the Baltic Sea. The German Hanseatic League has progressively gained greater control of the trading industry in Northern Europe, so much that it practically controls all trade in Sweden, and has infiltrated Denmark and Norway through the use of blockades to gain access into the markets. The growing Hansa presence is something that threatens each Kingdom and its ability to control its imports, exports, and their own territory. The committee that has been called in Kalmar, Sweden is a mix of bishops, monarchs and nobles from the three Scandinavian kingdoms. The most influential members of the Privy Councils from the different kingdoms are invited to Kalmar to discuss who will be the future heir to the Norwegian and Danish throne and how the three Kingdoms can collectively work together in order to be the true powerhouse of Europe. Discussions will also include tactics and 3 policies to counteract the Hanseatic League and their exploitation of the Baltic Sea Trade and the impact on the economies of Denmark, Norway and Sweden. Denmark hopes that all three can put the northern Germans back in their place through these discussions and cooperation. The move to elect a new King in Denmark will have to be a careful one as Sweden and Denmark are elective monarchies, where the heir must obtain the permission of the Council in order to rule the kingdom. Monarch and Nobility The three Scandinavian Kingdoms consist of what is known as the monarch, who is the King or Queen and also known as a sovereign or ruler, and then the nobility, an aristocrat social class who have a great deal of power and own large portions of land. The Monarch controls the Kingdom and takes charge of domestic and foreign affairs. He is an elected monarch in Denmark and Sweden, but is a hereditary monarch in Norway. Nobles can either have blood relations to the Monarch or be a person of high birth who has been given certain privileges, including rights over the peasantry. The nobility has great say in the Kingdom’s matters and a few nobles are found on the Privy Councils along with other influential persons of the Kingdom. The balance of power between the nobles and the Monarch is always in question. History of Denmark Sweyn II Estriden ruled Denmark from 1047-1074 as the King of Denmark during its transition into a feudal Christian society from a Norse religious one.1 Most of the decisions in the new Denmark were in the hands of local assemblies which were organized and consisted of freemen, who would legislate on many conflicts and issues as well. In 1147, Valdemar the Great was acknowledged as the monarch and eventually his son, Valdemar the Victorious, took control in 1202 and extended the Danish influence all across the Baltic by conquering large portions of northern Germany including Holstein, Mecklenburg, Vanden, Pomerania and Ditmarsken between 1185 and 1227 and northern Estonia from 1219 until 1346.2 After the defeat of Valdemar II by Count Henry I of Schwerin in 1227, many of the German footholds were surrendered by Denmark, a huge setback to the foreign policy of the Kingdom. A struggle for 1 “Scandinavian kingdoms: 9th-14th century,” historyworld.net, accessed October 9, 2015, http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?groupid=557&HistoryID=aa59>rack=pth c. 2 Peter Ravn Rasmussen, “A brief history of Denmark : Part 2 (800-1536),” scholiast.org, last updated August 18, 2005, http://scholiast.org/history/denmark/danhist2.html. 4 power ensued where King Erik IV and King Erik V were both murdered in 1250 and 1286 respectively and replaced by Erik VI3. Erik the V formally implemented a charter that limited the power of the King, in which he recognizde the power of the Danish lords in exchange for their support of the monarchy. The King was thus barred from imprisoning nobles and lords on pure suspicion and the charter called for an annual meeting of the hof4. The meetings resulted in the creation of the haandfaestning, which was viewed as Denmark’s first constitution. The constitution proved to be “a feudal, not a democratic one” and took away all power from the peasants.5 In addition, the kingdom driven into deep debt after a later king’s mismanagement. In 1340, Valdemar IV established power, married the sister of the Duke of South Jutland, and focused on the reunification of Denmark and getting the kingdom out of debt.6 The King sold Estonia in 1346, reclaimed areas of Denmark through either negotiations or use of force and conquered the Swedish Skåne and island of Gotland in 1360 and 1361 respectively.7 Moreover, the King collected extra taxes and replaced the haandfaestning with the Risgråd, or Council of the Realm, a national council of the archbishop, bishops, magnates and the nobility that quelled many revolts and protests by the public.