Swedish History Research Articles

Rally around the flag? Explaining changes in Swedish public opinion toward NATO membership after Russia's invasion of Ukraine

After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Sweden changed its historic position of non-alignment and applied for membership in the NATO military alliance. This decision coincided with a shift in public opinion in favor of NATO membership, in what has been described as the largest and fastest shift in public opinion that has ever been measured in Swedish history. We examine two aspects of this “rally around the flag effect” to explain this change, the effect of the crisis event itself and the effect of political elite influence by analyzing within-individual changes of a Swedish university student population at three different time points. We find that after the Russian invasion but before the decision was made to join NATO, public opinion was still split with roughly 40% still opposed. However, after the decision was made to apply for membership to the alliance many people changed their position (32%), either making up their minds or switching position entirely. We show that these changes were likely in response to the decision to join, and that they were moderated by individuals’ previously established political preferences.

Hertigar i läder och siden: Resultaten från en undersökning av tillvarataget material ur Erik och Valdemar Magnussons grav i Uppsala domkyrka

In this article, a collection of textile fragments kept in the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm is presented for the first time. The objects were found in 1906 in a partially emptied medieval grave close to the main altar in Uppsala Cathedral. Judging from the written sources, this grave originally contained the remains of the dukes Erik and Valdemar Magnusson who died imprisoned at Nyköpingshus Castle in 1318. A donation to their tomb is mentioned in a document from the 1320s. In 1729, the grave was rediscovered and obviously emptied of some of its contents. The material kept in the Swedish History Museum consists of pieces of leather, satin, silk and wool along with several fragments of wood and metal. These objects had apparently been put back into the grave after it was examined in 1729. In 2022 some of the textile and leather fragments were carbon-14 dated to the early 14th century. This time fixing supports the idea that they originate from the ducal grave. The leather was most likely used as a cover for the coffins, while some of the satin pieces may have formed a part of one or two burial cushions that were also decorated with silk tassels. Unfortunately, not enough material is preserved to determine whether the dukes’ corpses were covered with winding sheets or if they wore clothes and shoes. Despite this, the collection of fragments at the Swedish History Museum provides valuable information about the royal burial customs in early 14th century Sweden. Especially the satin cushions with silk tassels may be seen as a significant addition to our knowledge of high medieval material culture.

Wildfire impacts on the carbon budget of a managed Nordic boreal forest

Wildfire is one of the most important disturbances affecting boreal forests. Most previous research on boreal forest fires has occurred in North American forests which have different fire regimes, tree species and are less intensively managed than their Eurasian counterparts. Recent extreme fire years have highlighted the vulnerability of the Nordic boreal forest to climatic shifts that are increasing forest fire frequency and severity. The Ljusdal fire (2018) was one of the largest wildfires in recorded history in Sweden. We established eddy covariance flux towers to track the impacts of this fire on the carbon balance of two Pinus sylvestris sites subject to different fire severities and forest management strategies 1–4 years post-fire. The ‘SLM’ site was a mature stand that experienced low-severity fire (trees survived) followed by salvage-logging and reseeding, whilst the ‘HY’ site was 10 years old when it experienced high-severity fire (all trees killed) then was replanted with seedlings. During the study period, both sites were net carbon sources at the annual scale. It took up to 4 years after the fire until the first day of net CO2 uptake was recorded at each site. We estimated that it will take 13 years (8, 21; mean ± 95 % confidence intervals) after the fire until the sites reach a neutral annual carbon balance. It will take up to 32 years (19, 53) at HY and 46 years (31, 70) at SLM to offset the carbon lost during and after the fire and salvage-logging. In addition, our measurements showed that more carbon was emitted in the first 4 years after the fire compared to the carbon lost from combustion during the fire. Quantifying carbon fluxes during the initial years after fire is therefore crucial for estimating the net impact of wildfire on the carbon budget of boreal forests.

An American Dilemma? It's Happening in Detroit, or the Swedish History of Finally Got the News (1970)

Abstract: This paper presents the Swedish history of the legendary documentary Finally Got the News (1970), a collaboration between Newsreel and the League of Revolutionary Black Workers in Detroit. Through an analysis of the re-edited print made by Swedish TV in 1971 and archival research on the League member Glanton Dowdell, who distributed the film in Sweden, the paper sets out to both correct some of the previous research and reveal how racism was a blind spot in Sweden, which at that time appeared to be the model of a politically progressive country that engaged with the American Black Power movement.

How Deep are the Roots of Swedish Egalitarianism? A multidimensional approach

When did Sweden become equal? This question has far-reaching implications for our understanding of Swedish history, as well as for theories about inequality, institutions, and politics more broadly. In this article, we present the first multidimensional comparative analysis of the development of inequality in Sweden. Unlike most other studies, we combine a variety of measures to provide a more comprehensive view of inequality. Our findings reveal that, although the share of income and wealth accruing to the absolute top was very high at the beginning of the 20th century, Sweden was more equal than many other countries when focusing on the lower parts of the income distribution. Additionally, several indicators suggest that the decline in inequality began in the decades before the turn of the 19th century. These results imply that the development of the Swedish welfare state was both a cause and a consequence of decreasing inequality. We emphasize the importance of widespread access to education as a key factor in shaping distributional outcomes.

Historical thinking in a digital environment: Swedish history teaching analysed through a TPACK lens

This paper presents results from a large-scale study of history teachers in Swedish secondary schools. The study examines perceptions of history, content being taught, teaching methods and use of digital technology. The study uses the Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework to analyse the results together with narrative theory. The main results indicate that knowledge of the past and contemporary perspectives from a canonical tradition are prioritised, together with a content-based lecture-style pedagogy. The use of digital technology does not seem to challenge methods or bring new perspectives to history teaching. However, to fully understand history teaching with technology, a framework that emphasises all parts of history education is needed. This calls for further development of the TPACK model, which is further discussed in this article.

What Is a Lesbian Document? Platforming Archival Description, Documents, and History in Sweden

As Joanna Drucker (2014) convincingly argues, “Most information visualizations are acts of interpretation masquerading as presentation" (p. 10). This article investigates the visuality and built-in argumentations of the Alvin interface for digitized Swedish cultural heritage, focusing on how the platform defines a document and the effects this definition has on the accessibility and interconnectedness of documents related to lesbian and feminist histories. This paper addresses how (failed) systematization and an emphasis on large quantities of documents and metadata breathes new life into outdated historiographies and renders documents and information related to feminist and lesbian histories and connections between these histories invisible. In doing so, platforms reinstitute divisions and stereotypes about feminist and lesbian history criticized by Adrienne Rich in her seminal essay “Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence.” Platform designers must begin to take seriously queer and feminist researchers' emphasis on context and the need to build flexibility, interconnectivity across private/public boundaries, fuzziness, and incompleteness into cultural heritage platforms from the outset.

Islandskie sagi kak «neistoricheskij» istochnik po istorii Rusi

This article presents the illegality of the usage of Icelandic sagas by an archaeologist D.A. Machinsky with the tendentious purpose of glorifying Swedish history and including Russian history in it.

The Why, what, and How, of History Education in Norwegian and Swedish History Curricula for Upper secondary schools (approximately 1920–1960)

ABSTRACT History curricula are shaped by factors such as historiography, pedagogical ideals, political goals, international initiatives, and broader societal conditions and processes. This article examines ideas about purposes, content, and methods, of history education, in history curricula that were used in Swedish and Norwegian theoretical upper secondary schools between 1920 and 1960. These schools aimed at preparing students for university studies and providing general education (Bildung). While having close connections to academic disciplines, these schools were also influenced by political goals of democratization and ideas of progressive pedagogy. There are tensions in the curricula between material aspects of Bildung, focusing on content, and formal aspects of Bildung, focusing on students’ development. Although material aspects remain essential, formal aspects are increasingly emphasized through individual projects, student interaction, more active use of historical sources, and, in the latest Swedish documents, critical thinking. Limitations of progressive methods are also acknowledged. The Norwegian and Swedish curricula differ in attitudes to nationalism and the state. These differences can be explained by different starting points for nation-building and differences between Norwegian and Swedish historiography. There is a more dramatic shift in the Norwegian curricula, from a highly teacher/material-centred approach, to an ideal of active and independent students.

Erikus Olai: istochniki i metody shvedskogo istorika XV v.

The article is devoted to Ericus Olai, the 15th century theologian and historian, and his “Chronica regni Gothorum", the history of Sweden from primordial times to the second half of the 15th century. The author demonstrates that Ericus Olai, processing the information derived from ancient sources, wanted to praise Sweden and its spiritual center Uppsala. He attempted to stress the following: 1) the necessity of cooperation between the spiritual and the temporal authority; 2) the importance of Sweden's independence; 3) the need of taking care of the people; 4) the political role of aristocracy. The appendix contains the Russian translation of selected passages from “Chronica regni Gothorum" carried out by the author of the article.

Ongoing History Writing in History Textbooks

Abstract This article addresses the ways in which Swedish history textbooks for upper secondary schools published between 1994 and 2011 deal with the most recent past. The textbooks are chronologically organized and follow history into the textbook authors’ time, and each new edition of the textbooks includes the latest developments. The article inquires as to whether this gradual addition of events is to be regarded as historiography at all, or what the possible difference is between contemporary commentary and historiography. It examines which events and developments are selected, how they are presented, and how they can be interpreted with regard to periodization and the use of history.

Writing Sámi Memory and Trauma into Swedish History: Linnea Axelsson’s Ædnan. Epos (2018) and Elin Anna Labba’s Herrarna Satte Oss Hit. Om Tvångsförflyttningar i Sverige (2020)

After Sweden and Norway signed the reindeer grazing convention agreement in 1919, reindeer-herding Sámi families selected by the Swedish authorities were forced to migrate from the Karesuando area in Norway to more southern regions within the reindeer husbandry area in Sweden. These relocations at the beginning of the twentieth century are the source of memory and trauma in both Linnea Axelsson’s Ædnan. Epos (2018; Ædnan. An Epic) and Elin Anna Labba’s Herrarna satte oss hit. Om tvångsförflyttningar i Sverige (2020; The Masters Put Us Here. On Forced Relocations in Sweden). Furthermore, the two works contain paratextual fragments that express the desire to make the silenced past of the Sámi audible in Swedish history. Each text transmits memories and traumas from different genre perspectives: those of poetry and partly autobiographical non-fiction. The texts reveal processes of colonization and oppression within national borders, with scientific racism as an underlying ideology.In this contribution also a methodological issue will be discussed. How should we study texts that deal with writing about trauma and memory of a minority people such as the Sámi? An indigenous methodology, as presented by authors such as Jelena Porsanger in “An Essay about Indigenous Methodology” (2004), should be an important guide, as it concerns a respectful approach to the study of indigenous minority people.“

Statliga undervisningsideal och materiella ambitioner: Om skolbänkens svenska historia 1865–1981

Governmental Teaching Ideals and Material Ambitions: On the Swedish History of the School Desk 1865–1981. From 1865 up to 1981 Swedish national authorities issued regulations on design of school desks and furnishing of classrooms. This article investigates what teaching ideals that were expressed in these regulations and how they have changed over time. The article shows that the teaching ideal for the early decades of the study period where teacher centred, resulting in regulations aiming for school desks and classrooms where pupils could sit and listen for long periods of time. From the 1920’s up to the beginning of the 1960’s the regulations held on to teacher centred ideals while the desks used in schools were designed to facilitate variation and cooperation between pupils. Regulations from the last decades of the study show strong changes in teaching ideals. Desks and furnishing now should make interaction and cooperation between pupils easy, and the teacher were to be more of a mentor than a lecturer.

The Nightmare Island: Representations of St. Barthélemy in Swedish Novels

The Nightmare Island: Representations of St. Barthélemy in Swedish Novels

A Book on the History of Sweden in the Context of Soviet-Swedish Relations at the Turn of the 1940s — 1950s

The paper refers to the authorship of the foreword to the Russian edition of “The History of Sweden” by Ingvar Andersson, published in 1951. The foreword was written by the Latvian Soviet historian Janis Zutis. According to the content and tone of the text the foreword is clearly divided into two parts. The bulk of the foreword, together with the commentary on Andersson's text, looks like Zutis’ review of the book, written from the Marxist standpoint, but in a benevolent manner. But the first few pages of the preface speak about Sweden's aggressive policy toward Russia and the Soviet Union from the Middle Ages until the mid-20th century. So, this part of the foreword is perceived as a kind of political statement in an anti-Swedish spirit. The author of the article points out that the manuscript of the book arrived at the publishing house at the end of 1950, but the foreword mentions the “Riksdag of Peace”, which took place in Stockholm on March, 3—5, 1951. As the manuscript was signed for print on March 15, 1951, the part of the preface which mentions this event must have been written between these dates. It seems that such a politicized addition to the foreword was made at the request of the censor or the publishing house management in order to comply with the official point of view on the foreign policy of the Swedish authorities in those years. But Zutis himself was actively engaged in scientific and social activities in Riga in those days and had no opportunity to divert to the addition of the foreword in the Moscow publishing house. Obviously, this work was done by someone else, not caring about the consistency of style between this part and the scientific one of the foreword.

Ericus Olai, the Praise of Sweden and the Concept “Uppsala as a New Syon” in the “Chronica Regni Gothorum”

The hero of the article is Ericus Olai, the 15th century theologian and historian, and his “Chronica regni Gothorum”, the history of Sweden from primordial times to the second half of the 15th century. In the preface the author stresses the role of the Church in the society, and proclaims that the secular authorities must cooperate with the Church. This thought serves as one of the key ideas for the whole chronicle. Uppsala, the ecclesiastical centre of Sweden, is given the central place in Chronica regni Gothorum. Ericus portrays Uppsala as a place which initially was a site where pagan gods were worshiped, and which subsequently became a prominent centre of Christianity. According to Ericus Olai, Uppsala is a successor of Jerusalem and Rome. The author of the chronicle praises not only Uppsala, but also Sweden in general; he portrays Sweden as a blessed country which abounds in various natural resources. However, the concept “Uppsala as a new Syon” did not spread widely; Ericus Olai’s ideas, based on Catholic theological thought, became out of date – to a great extent in connection with the Reformation.

The Treaty of Nystad in the history of Sweden and Swedish historiography

The Treaty of Nystad in the history of Sweden and Swedish historiography

Everyday nationalism in Swedish preschools: something old, something new and something borrowed

ABSTRACT This paper explores everyday nationalism in relation to work with traditions in Swedish preschools, as well as how preschool teachers reflect on these practices. One of the tasks of the Swedish preschools is to transmit and develop a cultural heritage. In Sweden, 95% of children aged 3–5 attend preschool. Approximately one fourth have a foreign background. Moreover, preschool children encounter very different cultural realities depending on where their preschool is located. Sweden is a secular as well as multi-religious country. This makes the cultural heritage that the preschools are supposed to transmit ambiguous and complex. Based on a survey where preschool practitioners answered questions about what traditions they pay attention to and what content they fill these traditions with, the article maps which traditions preschool practitioners actualize in their preschool practices. The data is analyzed and discussed in relation to everyday nationalism and the pedagogy of nation. The results show that the everyday nationalism of Swedish preschools both consolidates and challenges the traditions generally considered as being rooted in Swedish history. At the same time, many preschools integrate new traditions into their repertoire that represent societal changes, both in terms of cultural globalization and in terms of the traditions of religious minorities gaining greater visibility.

Students navigating shifting literacy expectations in grade 6 history teaching: a qualitative text-based study

This qualitative study focuses on Grade 6 students’ possibilities to engage in disciplinary writing practices in history teaching in a school located in a socially disadvantaged and linguistically diverse area. The aim is to contribute knowledge about how students negotiate different literacy expectations in the teaching. The researcher used ethnographic methods to follow one teacher and two groups of Grade 6 students for 12 weeks’ teaching about the Vasa era in Swedish history. The material used consists of samples of students writing, parts of the text material they studied, and written questions they answered in tests and pre-writing discussion. In the analysis, systemic-functional linguistics (SFL) and thematic content analysis were employed to develop categories of literacy expectations based on the written questions. SFL was also used to analyze samples of the students’ writing and relevant textbook material. The findings show that the expectations increased in a final test because most questions required causal reasoning. In contrast, the questions used in text discussions and homework tests conveyed a variety of literacy expectations, with an emphasis on chronological reconstructions of events. While some students adjusted their writing to causal reasoning, others relied on a reconstruct approach that adhered closely to the simple text material that was chronologically structured. Outlier examples showed students using multimodal representations, a substitute teacher’s oral elaboration on a text, and resources of learner language in their answers. Implications for teaching that support all students’ engagement in disciplinary practices of history are discussed.

When a King of Norway Became a King of Russia

When a King of Norway Became a King of Russia