A potato priest ( no, potetprest) is a Norwegian term used for priests in the

18th century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trad ...

that, partly following royal orders, encouraged the cultivation of

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...

es in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The term is also used for priests that were as equally interested in agriculture and practical matters as in preaching. The potato plant came to

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

together with the

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

tobacco plant ''Nicotiana'' () is a genus of herbaceous plants and shrubs in the family Solanaceae, that is indigenous to the Americas, Australia, Southwestern Africa and the South Pacific. Various ''Nicotiana'' species, commonly referred to as tobacco plants ...

in the

16th century The 16th century begins with the Julian year 1501 ( MDI) and ends with either the Julian or the Gregorian year 1600 ( MDC) (depending on the reckoning used; the Gregorian calendar introduced a lapse of 10 days in October 1582). The 16th cent ...

. In order to use agricultural land at higher latitudes (such as the

Nordic region The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Swed ...

), the Danish-Norwegian king and priests sought to promote potato cultivation, primarily because it had been determined that it provided large and relatively certain yields at such latitudes. Thus, the potato became an important part of the food supply in Norway. There was some resistance to the potato in Norway at the beginning, partly because people were not certain which parts of the plant were edible. Later, after the potato was adopted, it was also discovered that potatoes had beneficial effects against

scurvy Scurvy is a disease resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Early symptoms of deficiency include weakness, feeling tired and sore arms and legs. Without treatment, decreased red blood cells, gum disease, changes to hair, and bleeding ...

. The introduction of the potato was of great importance in Norway. It has been said that the potato was more important to the Norwegian people than the

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...

. It was potato cultivation that was able to create immediate relief in the daily pursuit of life after

1814 Events January * January 1 – War of the Sixth Coalition – The Royal Prussian Army led by Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher crosses the Rhine. * January 3 ** War of the Sixth Coalition – Siege of Cattaro: French garrison s ...

, not the constitution. Prominent examples of potato priests include Peder Harboe Hertzberg,

Abraham Pihl Abraham Pihl (3 October 1756 – 20 May 1821) was a Norwegian clergyman, astronomer, and architect. Biography Abraham Pihl was born in Gausdal, in Oppland county, Norway. He completed priest study at the University of Copenhagen in 1783 wher ...

, Jens Rynning, and

Jacob Nicolai Wilse Jacob Nicolai Wilse (January 24, 1736 – May 23, 1801) was a parish priest in Spydeberg and Eidsberg, Norway. He was born in Lemvig, Denmark and is known for writing topographic works with extensive descriptions of travel in Norway in the 1790s. ...

References

{{reflist 18th century in Norway Norwegian religious leaders History of the potato