A (0:00)

Long before modern democracies, before constitutions or elections as we know them today, a society of Viking settlers gathered in a windswept valley to create laws, settle disputes, and govern themselves without a monarch. Against the odds, this institution endured for over a thousand years in various forms, shaping a nation and influencing ideas about laws and representation. Learn more about the Icelandic Althing, one of the oldest political institutions in history. A On this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. This episode is sponsored by Audible it's time to believe in the Hail Mary, one of the most talked about science fiction adventures of the decade. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir is now on the big screen and there's never been a better moment to experience the audiobook that started it all. Ryland Grace is humanity's last hope. Alone in space with no memory of how he got there, he must solve an impossible scientific mystery before the Earth is wiped out forever. What follows is a smart, thrilling and surprisingly emotional journey that blends hard science with non stop suspense fans favorite narrator Ray Porter delivers an unforgettable performance, balancing humor, heart and escalating tension as the stakes grow higher with every chapter. Part scientific puzzle, part interstellar adventure, Project Hail Mary is a story about curiosity, ingenuity and survival against impossible odds. Now that the blockbuster movie has finally arrived in theaters, there's never been a better time to start listening to the universally acclaimed audiobook Project Hail Mary. Listen. Watch Save the World. Start listening today@audible.com Hailmary this episode is sponsored by Mint Mobile. It's been said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. I'd like to update this and suggest that insanity is paying too much for something when you can get something equally as good for less. With Mint Mobile you can stop the insanity and get high speed data and unlimited talk and text delivered on the nation's largest 5G network starting at only $15 a month. Bring your own phone and number, activate with ESIM in minutes and start saving immediately. No long term contracts, no no hassle. That is why I recommend Mint Mobile. If you like your money, Mint Mobile is for you. Shop plans@mintmobile.com eed that's mintmobile.com eed upfront payment of $45 for 3 month 5GB plan required equivalent to $15 a month new customer offer for first 3 months only, then full price plan options available, taxes and fees extra. See Mint Mobile for details. In previous episodes, I covered several milestones in the history of modern democracy. I've done episodes on the Valencia Water Council, the Tynwald of the Isle of Man, the Magna Carta, and the Cortes of Lyon. One of the major milestones that belongs on that list is the Icelandic Althing. To understand the creation of the Althing, you have to understand the Viking ethos. Viking political culture centered on a collection of free men who gathered in communal assemblies, known as a Thing. Not to be confused with the giant rock guy from the Fantastic Four, a Thing met all the criteria of a historical democracy. These assemblies were open to all males in a community. Any male could participate in a discussion and bring grievances before a council of elected leaders. When the Vikings landed in Iceland, they didn't just bring longships and axes. They brought a fierce commitment to a decentralized form of government. The migration of Vikings to Iceland wasn't a random expansion. These settlers were fleeing Norway during a violent transition as King Harald Fairhair crushed the traditional independence of the Norse nobles to forge a single centralized monarchy. For these chieftains, Iceland wasn't just a new home. It was a political sanctuary where they could revive the thing and keep the power of kings at bay. The foundational myth of Iceland's permanent settlement dates back to a disgruntled Norwegian nobleman by the name of Ingolfur Arnesson. In the midst of a blood feud and an expansion in the Norwegian king's political authority, Arneson sailed west in a Viking longship, seeking to regain his freedom in a new land. Legend notes that he threw his family symbols, two large carved wooden pillars, into the sea. He then vowed to build his home where the gods had taken them. Arneson's pillars landed in a bay with smoke rising from abundant hot springs, a land he called Reykjavik, which was Norse for Smoky Bay. Word of Arnensen's success soon spread to Norway. Over the next half century, as many as 400 Norwegian chieftains fleeing King Harald Fairhair followed Arnesson and migrated to Iceland to stake out their claims. By the year 930, thanks to steady migration across the Norwegian Sea, Iceland's population had grown large enough to necessitate an assembly. The Icelandic chieftains founded their assembly, known as the Althing, at a place called Thingvellir. The site of Thingvellir was chosen for a mix of practical and symbolic reasons. It sat roughly between the main settlements and the southwest of Iceland, making it relatively accessible by horseback from different regions. The area also offered natural open, flat plains for large gatherings, a nearby water source, and dramatic rock formations that created natural amphitheaters ideal for hearing laws recited out loud. And just as important, it was largely unclaimed land, which prevented any single chieftain from gaining control over the Assembly. That neutrality made it a politically acceptable meeting place for a society built on a fragile balance between competing leaders. And just as an aside, what they did not know at the time is that this also happened to be the place where the Eurasian tectonic plate met the North American tectonic plate. The foundation of the Althing coincided with the return to Iceland of a chief by the name of Ull Fliotr, who went to Norway to study the laws and procedures of the Norwegian assembly, the Gulatheng. Using the Norwegian legal code as a model, the Althing had three core reciting the law, creating new legislation, and resolving disputes. At the center of this system was the Law speaker, the presiding official, who memorized and publicly recited the law and guided the assembly's proceedings. Working alongside him was the Logretta, the legislative council. It was composed of the 39 district chieftains who were known as Gothar, along with the Law Speaker. Within this body, the chieftains collectively debated and decided on new laws and amendments to existing ones, ensuring the legal system could adapt to changing conditions. In addition to its legislative role, the Logreta also played a part in resolving disputes. Although the judicial decisions were often carried out through the All Things Court system, the Althing met once a year in an open air amphitheater at a beautiful rock outcrop in Thingvellir. At the center of the outcropping was a large volcanic rock called the Logberg. This majestic basalt stone was where the Law speaker administered the proceedings. The location of the original Logberg stone remained shrouded in mystery. The region is so geologically active that the original 10th century location is most likely underground right now as it sinks by about 1 millimeter per year due to tectonic activity. Beyond politics, the Althing also shaped Iceland's social and cultural life. Accounts of the Althing suggest that the attendees partied during their stay, looking to outdo each other with elaborate feasts. The Althing often hosted notable weddings and served as a center of worship, feasting and festivals. Viking storytellers would gather at the summer Althing and recount the sagas of Norse mythology. The chieftains were not just noblemen. They also served as priests for their religion. It was their job to communicate stories of Thor's heroics and Odin's benevolence. The year 1262 brought a major change. The Althing shifted its character after agreeing to yield sovereignty to the Norwegian king, reflecting a toxic combination of internal and external forces that had developed over the centuries. The Logretta system of leadership had broken down into a civil war. It was supposed to grant each of the 39 Gothar autonomy and freedom, with the Althing acting as an arbitrary of disputes and a dispensary of laws to maintain order. However, in the centuries that followed Iceland's settlement, the system fell apart. A core group of elite families emerged and the Althing was unable to suppress the ensuing conflict. Between 1220 and 1262, Iceland was torn asunder by a civil war. The most powerful clan on the island, the Stirlungr, led the conflict. It began when Snorri Sturlsson, chieftain of the Stirlunger clan, became a vassal of King Haakon of Norway. The king insisted that Snorri help him bring Iceland under Norwegian rule. Snorri and several members of the Sturlungr clan, who also accepted Norwegian patronage, pledged to bring down Iceland's sovereignty from within the island's clan. Rivalries soon consumed the Althing. Once a place of law and justice, the Althing became a den of assassination and intrigue. Violence at this sacred location shattered Icelandic conventions and was considered a disgrace to Thor and Odin, the guardians of Norse culture. As hallowed ground, the Althing had been a weapons free zone. After the civil war, chieftains began arriving with armed warriors, accelerating interclan violence. By 1221, the Sacred Peace of the Althing had vanished. The Stirlungr saga records that Loughtor Bicapson had brought an army to the assembly to intimidate his rivals, not to debate the law. Lothor was not the only chieftain to bring an army to the Althing. His rival, Bjorn Thorvaldsson also came armed as well. In the midst of all this chaos, not even the law speaker could settle the feud. Lothor rode straight from the assembly plains to his rival's home and ended the argument with his sword. The battle of Erlachstother that followed was the largest in icelandic history. Nearly 3,000 people, or 5% of the island's entire population, participated in the effort to unite Iceland under a single clan. The spirit of Iceland's republican assembly was cracking under the weight of clan violence. Ultimately, the loss of sovereignty and the reduction of the all things power became necessary to restore order to the country. The only solution was to cede authority to Norway and King Haakon IV by agreeing to the Old Covenant, which diminished the role of the Althing. Iceland had been settled by Norwegians seeking relief from monarchical power. Yet after the violence of the 13th century, the Restoration of royal power was the Only real hope for peace under Norwegian rule. The All Things shifted its focus from making laws to judging them, a dramatic transformation from its original purpose. During the subsequent period of Norwegian dominion over Iceland, the Althing's primary function was to serve as a supreme court, hearing appeals and providing legal oversight. Cases heard by the Lagreta Council could then be appealed to the Althing, which served as a high court. The final appeal, of course, being an audience with the king. Norwegian control over Iceland was actually brief. In the late 14th century, Denmark, Sweden and Norway were unified under the Kalmar Union, the brainchild of Queen Margaret I of Denmark. She sought to unify Scandinavian kingdoms in an effort to break the economic monopoly that the Hanseatic League, which I covered in a previous episode, had over the region's trade. The union's primary power base was located in Copenhagen and it was controlled by the Danish aristocracy. Under the accord, Iceland and the Faroe Islands became colonial holdings of the Union. Now as a Danish possession, the All Things role changed once again. The Althing returned as the island's lawmaking body, yet its powers were severely limited. The true power in Iceland was held by the Danish authorities and the Icelandic aristocracy, who had strong connections to the government in Copenhagen. Legislation passed by the Althing had to be approved by the Danish king to have the full force of law. The Althing now was run by two Lagmen, one from each side of the island to preserve peace, but they were in essence vassals of the Danish monarch. The Kalmari Union ended in 1523 when Sweden broke away amid a violent rebellion. However, Iceland remained under Danish rule. The full weight of the limitations on the people of Iceland and their assembly was felt during the Protestant Reformation. The Danish government insisted on the expansion of Protestantism in Iceland and there was no room for compromise. Icelandic Catholics who resisted were killed. The Reformation provoked significant backlash against the Catholic Church's wealth and vast property holdings in Iceland, further reducing the All Things legal role. Historically, the All Things settled land disputes. However, during the Reformation, the Danish government seized Catholic lands without consulting the Icelandic assembly. The political trend in Europe towards absolute monarchy spelt the end of the All Things role in Icelandic government. Under the 17th century Danish king Frederick III, the Althing was no longer a policy making body or one with even diminished judicial powers. The Althings still met, but often just as a festival in remembrance of what it used to be. When it did conduct political business, it was to arbitrate minor local land disputes that were outside of Danish interests. As Danish power expanded, the Althing became a relic of Iceland's Viking past. In the year 1800, the Danish monarchy formally abolished the Althing and replaced it with a high court in the city of Reykjavik. Yet this was not the end of the Althing. The All Thing was revived in 1845 as part of a broader wave of 19th century European nationalism. Re established in Reykjavik by the Danish Crown, it initially functioned as a consultative advisory body with limited authority, reflecting growing Icelandic demands for greater self governance. Over time, however, it became the focal point of the Iceland independence movement. Constitutional reforms in 1874 granted Iceland Ltd. Legislative powers and subsequent changes steadily expanded its authority. The early 20th century marked the gradual return of real political power in Iceland. In 1904, Iceland gained home rule, restoring a legislative authority to the all thing. In 1918, Iceland became a sovereign state in personal union with Denmark, and finally in 1944, Iceland became a fully independent republic. After a period as a bicameral body, the Althing returned to being a unicameral institution in 1991. Today, the All Thing has 63 members of parliament, all elected through a system of proportional representation. From a rocky natural amphitheater where laws were spoken from memory, to a modern chamber where they're debated and written, the story of the All Thing is really the story of continuity in the face of change. Few institutions can claim a lineage that stretches back over 1,000 years, and fewer still have survived so many transformations while remaining central to a nation's identity. The executive producer of Everything Everywhere Daily is Charles Daniel. The associate producers are Austin Otkin and Cameron Kiefer. Research and writing for this episode was provided by Joel Hermanson. My big thanks go to everyone who supports the show over on Patreon. Your support helps make this podcast possible. I also want to remind everyone about the community groups on Facebook and Discord, as this is where everything happens outside of the podcast. As always, if you leave a review on any of the major podcast apps, you too can have it running the show.