Swedish workers protest, threaten general strike and mutiny to prevent war against Norway, 1905

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Since 4 November 1814, the United Kingdoms of
Sweden and Norway shared the Swedish monarch, with increasing tension regarding
Norway's sovereignty.

In February 1905, Sweden's Social Democratic
Party, a party of the Swedish working class, held a meeting to discuss the
union's dissolution and invited the Norwegian Labour Party to speak at the
meeting.  The Norwegian Labour Party
called for the end of the union and for increased collaboration between workers
in Sweden and Norway.  The Social
Democrats released a statement to support Norway's independence without a
violent war. 

This also sparked action within the younger
working class. Zeth Höglund of the Young Social Democrats wrote Down
Weapons!, a manifesto for the Swedish working class.  The labor movement printed the manifesto in
newspapers and printed 100,000 leaflets to hand out to supporters.  In the manifesto, Höglund declared that the
working class would not go to war against Norway and called on the young
workers to protest their military duty. 

The manifesto also threatened that the Swedish
laboring class would refuse to work in order to prevent war with Norway.  The state took this threat of a general
strike seriously, as Sweden had recently seen a growth of the labor movement
and the enactment of strikes to support political causes, such as a general
strike for suffrage in 1902.

On 7 June 1905, the Norwegian Storting declared
a resolution to dissolve the union between Sweden and Norway.  Right-wing supporters of Sweden called for
war against Norway while the labor parties continued to push for peace.  The Social Democrats conducted demonstrations
opposing violent action by their government and wrote a letter of support to
the Norwegian Labour Party.

On 20 June, 1905, King Oscar II of Sweden
declared that the nation would not use force against Norway, stopping the
threat of war.