Home » Travel » Norway » The Norwegian Spruce in Trafalgar Square

The Norwegian Spruce in Trafalgar Square

© Valerie Borey

Ever since 1947, Norway has donated a Christmas tree to Britain as a symbol of gratitude for assistance to the Norwegian people, at home and abroad, during WWII. King Håkon VII (who spent five years in London) and the many Norwegians exiled abroad in this time sought refuge in Great Britain during Nazi occupation. Britain not only provided a home for the multitudes of displaced Norwegians, but also sent Norwegian broadcasts to those in Norway who had successfully managed to protect their radios against confiscation. These broadcasts were vital sources of information to the Norwegian underground.

During King Håkon's exile, members of the Norwegian resistance would each year risk capture by smuggling a Norwegian Christmas tree to him, that he might celebrate the holiday with thoughts of his homeland. After King Håkon's return, the first tree was donated to Britain in 1947 and placed in Trafalgar Square two days before Christmas. Since then, a tree has been sent to Britain each year, personally selected by the Municipal Head Forester of Norwegian woodlands. The tree itself is usually around 75 feet tall, magnificently decked with white lights that glow from noon to midnight each day of Christmas.

This year, the tree-lighting ceremony was held on December 7th, led by the new Crown Princess Mette-Marit. She was accompanied by her husband, Crown Prince Håkon, the grandson and namesake of the man with whom the tradition started. According to a report in the Norway Post, Mette-Marit graced the ceremony with the words, "The Norwegian tree is a thank you to Great Britain for its hospitality during the difficult years during the occupation, and a sign of friendship between our two peoples."

The Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square means more than just friendship and gratitude, however. It has also been a site of negotiation over environmental and economic-political concerns. In the 1960s British Parliament intervened when a plan to raise Norway's electrical expenses was proposed. In the 1980s, the expense of the tradition led the Westminster Council to consider ending it altogether. Other resistance to the tradition has come from Europeans who regard it as a violation of import restrictions. Environmental demonstrations have been organized around it, people have been chained to it, and some have even attempted to cut it down with a chain-saw.

This year, after the lighting ceremony, representatives of a Norwegian environmentalist group made a statement by climbing the tree in protest of the Sellafield nuclear repossession plant accused of allowing radioactive pollutant to corrupt the Norwegian coastline. While protestors on the ground handed out pamphlets, the two protesters in the tree brandished anti-Sellafield banners. The group, Bellona, completed their peaceful demonstration that night.