ABSTRACT

This chapter focuses on some of the developments in Norway over the last 100 years, that is, from the time Norway gained independence and became an international subject. During most of the Cold War, for the first time in history, conscription, defined as a universally applied draft with widespread legitimacy, was applied in Norway. But despite conscription and compulsory international service for the officers, without public support, international military operations are impossible. The international developments were certainly important for the Norwegian security policy. The chapter focuses on the dynamics of the power-constellations in the security discourse. A Clausewitz-inspired triangle of the people, state and army will be applied as an analytical tool to demonstrate the shifting relationships of power and legitimacy of the armed forces over the century. The Labour Party had a deep lack of confidence in the armed forces, claiming that the officers and the organisation at large were controlled by the Others, that is, the upper classes.