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Description
In 1814, the danish king Fredrik VI had to give Norway to Sweden after the defeat of Napoleon. When the norwegians got wind of this, they decided to draft up their own constitution and declare independence instead. A key figure in this were the danish crown prince Kristian Fredrik, who'd been govenor of Norway during the war times. A great public speaker, he rallied to the norwegians cause and even got elected to be king of Norway. But the swedish crown prince, Karl Johan (formerly a general of Napoleon's; Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte) was hell bent on having Norway be a part of Sweden, and his military talent and rescourses far surpassed Kristian Fredrik's, who was defeated after only a few months as king. In October 1814 Norway entered into a union with Sweden and Kristian Fredrik had to leave the country, bitterly disappointed. He later became Kristian VII of Denmark, and reigned for around 40 years without really doing anything of any significance.

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Can you believe that I did a historical piece? Well, I just did! ;D This is a result of my history studies. I became extremely fascinated by the sad and largely forgotten (by the masses, at least) story of Kristian Fredrik, elected king of an independent Norway during a few months of 1814.

So the drawing shows Karl Johan on the left and Kristian Fredrik on the right. I tried to show the difference in their ages, but it's really not that apparent. Karl Johan's in his fifthies, while Kristian Fredrik's around 25. What's with the curls, you ask? I have no idea, I guess they were fashionable at the time. Yes, Kristian Fredrik really did have corkscrew-ish curls. While drawing those, I thought he'd look way too feminine, but I think it turned out looking pretty good on him, actually. And yeah, I'm aware that his forehead is way too high ...

Ink: Black Faber-Castell artist pen.
Colours: Winsor & Newton Artist's Watercolours.
Paper: A4 Canson aquarelle paper (250 g/m2).
References: Paintings of the respective crown princes and old maps of Norway.
Artwork (c) 2012 ~FynnFish
People: Karl Johan, crown prince of Sweden from 1810-1818 and Kristian Fredrik, crown prince of Denmark and king of Norway from 17th May - 10th October 1814.

CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM IS APPRECIATED!

Description
In 1814, the danish king Fredrik VI had to give Norway to Sweden after the defeat of Napoleon. When the norwegians got wind of this, they decided to draft up their own constitution and declare independence instead. A key figure in this were the danish crown prince Kristian Fredrik, who'd been govenor of Norway during the war times. A great public speaker, he rallied to the norwegians cause and even got elected to be king of Norway. But the swedish crown prince, Karl Johan (formerly a general of Napoleon's; Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte) was hell bent on having Norway be a part of Sweden, and his military talent and rescourses far surpassed Kristian Fredrik's, who was defeated after only a few months as king. In October 1814 Norway entered into a union with Sweden and Kristian Fredrik had to leave the country, bitterly disappointed. He later became Kristian VII of Denmark, and reigned for around 40 years without really doing anything of any significance.

--- :: --- :: ---

Can you believe that I did a historical piece? Well, I just did! ;D This is a result of my history studies. I became extremely fascinated by the sad and largely forgotten (by the masses, at least) story of Kristian Fredrik, elected king of an independent Norway during a few months of 1814.

So the drawing shows Karl Johan on the left and Kristian Fredrik on the right. I tried to show the difference in their ages, but it's really not that apparent. Karl Johan's in his fifthies, while Kristian Fredrik's around 25. What's with the curls, you ask? I have no idea, I guess they were fashionable at the time. Yes, Kristian Fredrik really did have corkscrew-ish curls. While drawing those, I thought he'd look way too feminine, but I think it turned out looking pretty good on him, actually. And yeah, I'm aware that his forehead is way too high ...

Ink: Black Faber-Castell artist pen.
Colours: Winsor & Newton Artist's Watercolours.
Paper: A4 Canson aquarelle paper (250 g/m2).
References: Paintings of the respective crown princes and old maps of Norway.
Artwork (c) 2012 ~FynnFish
People: Karl Johan, crown prince of Sweden from 1810-1818 and Kristian Fredrik, crown prince of Denmark and king of Norway from 17th May - 10th October 1814.

CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM IS APPRECIATED!