King Oscar I (1799-1859) Oscar I succeeded his father as King of
Norway and Sweden in 1844, and took as his motto Justice and
truth. He was married to Josephine of Leuchtenberg, and they had
five children, two of whom became kings of Norway-Sweden. Oscar
I was crowned in Sweden in 1844 and a coronation in Norway was
planned for summer 1847. However, the date was first changed to
1848, and then put off repeatedly. The reason for this was that
the Bishop of Nidaros, Hans Riddervold, refused to crown a
Catholic queen. After a number of delays the matter was quietly
shelved, and King Oscar I and Queen Josephine were never crowned
in Norway. Norways position in the union Oscar I showed great
interest in Norway from early on, and spoke Norwegian as well as
Swedish. He was appointed Viceroy of Norway in 1824, and spent
six months in the country at that time. He presided over the
meetings of the government and made a good impression on the
Norwegians. King Oscar often took Norways side in matters
involving equality b