The idea is prevalent that there is ill will between the Norwegian and Swedish peoples. This is a popular misconception. The Norwegian and Swedish peoples are racially very similar in character and habits, and mutually respect each other. King Oscar was as beloved and honored in Norway as he was in Sweden, and deservedly so. The Norwegians felt proud of his character, life, and statesmanship. They appreciated his wisdom and moderation, and gave him full credit for his earnest conviction that he was right in his differences with the Norwegian government. And yet, the dissolution was a blessing to both countries concerned. So long as Norway and Sweden were united under one king, there would have been friction. In like manner the long union between Norway and Denmark was a continuous source of irritation, but after the dissolution they were the best of friends. It has been suggested that Russia has long had her eye on the ice-free harbors of the Norwegian coast and has coveted them; that she has built her railroads across Finland close up to the Norwegian frontier, and that there is trouble ahead for Norway, because she has isolated herself from Sweden, her natural protector. But we see in the division a Greater Scandinavia. There are now the three great Scandinavian nations, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and it can be imagined that, so close of kin, any one of them would rush to arms in defense of the others. A united Norway and Sweden under one king brought constant bickerings; a separate Norway and Sweden can be of mutual help.[b] CHAPTER III SWEDEN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY Leading up to the events of the nineteenth century in Sweden were centuries of splendid history, some points of which will be briefly touched upon to connect the present-day Sweden with the mediaeval state. During the Folkung Dynasty, in the fourteenth century, the royal houses of Sweden and Norway became united through the marriage of Duke Eric, of Sweden, and Ingeborg, only child of King Haakon, of Norway; and Duke Valdemar to the king's niece of the same name. In May, 1319, King Haakon died, and Magnus Ericsson, the young son of Duke Eric and Princess Ingeborg, inherited the crown of Norway, and July 8 of the same year was elected King of Sweden, at Mora in Upland.