Iceland became a sovereign nation on December 1, 1918. The Danes recognised that we were a free state, but they would take care of foreign affairs, and the Danish king would continue to be the nation’s head of state. Iceland thus became an independent nation on June 17, 1944, while Denmark was occupied by the Germans. There were not many who celebrated the Icelandic sovereignty 103 years ago. It was not only freezing cold that day, but the whole winter was one of the coldest ever witnessed in Iceland. It was named “Frosaveturinn mikli” or “the Great Frosty Winter”. In late October 1918, when the Katla volcano was erupting, the Spanish flu arrived, a plague that killed over 500 Icelanders, half of them in Reykjavík. The epidemic peaked at the end of November and the beginning of December at a time when we should have been celebrating this significant milestone in the country’s history.
Reykjavík 01/12/2021 11:59 – A7C : FE 2.5/40mm G
Photographs and text : Páll Stefánsson
