Le Nord : revue internationale des Pays de Nord - 01.06.1938, Blaðsíða 84

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LE NORD
geneous, that all its subjects speak one and the same language,
and that it is not bordered by any other country.
When the colonization of Iceland, chiefly by Norwegian im-
migrants, was completed, she received her first constitution, as a
sovereign Free State in 930, a constitution enacted solely by her
own inhabitants. More than three hundred years later Iceland and
Norway came to be ruled by the same king, and later both Ice-
land and Norway came to have the same king as Denmark.
Developments during the succeeding centuries brought Iceland
into a certain dependence on Denmark, but this was finally
brought to an end in 1918 by the recognition of Iceland as a
sovereign State. To these historical facts, recorded as they are in
the school-books of many countries, it is no doubt largely due that
many people are still in doubt whether Iceland »belongs« to Den-
mark or no.
Finally, the official face which Iceland presents to the world
may perhaps contribute to this doubt. In addition to sharing her
king with Iceland, Denmark looks after the foreign affairs of
Iceland through her Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and her lega-
tions, consulates, etc. Danish subjects enjoy certain rights in Ice-
land not enjoyed by other nationals, and the same applies to Ice-
landic subjects in Denmark.
There is a widespread view that the fact of two countries
having the same king must necessarily mean that they must also
have a joint foreign policy and joint defence. If this were true,
it would follow that Denmark and Iceland must have a joint
foreign policy and joint defence, seeing that they have the same
king. Denmark, whose population is much larger than that of
Iceland, and which is a much older and better known State, would
then necessarily have a larger say in these matters, and her de-
sires would overrule those of Iceland in matters of dispute. Fur-
thermore, the wider rights enjoyed by Danish subjects in Iceland
than by other nationals might be thought to indicate a joint
citizenship.
That this is not the case, I shall endeavour to demonstrate in
the following lines.
»Denmark and Iceland are free and sovereign States, united
by a common King and by the agreement contained in this Act
of Union. The name of both States shall form part of the King’s
title.«
Thus begins the Dano-Icelandic Act of Union of 30th No-