Development of mining techniques
Mining techniques were also changing as miners began to dig deeper in pursuit of plunging orebodies with attractive grades at depth. Such orebodies were often below the water table and required de-watering – something, as we have seen before, that was historically done by hand. The coming of waterwheels, then steam power and pumping, meant that this labour intensive and increasingly expensive task could be mechanised and made more efficient and effective. Basic gunpowder also began to be used in the mines in the Erzgebirge Mountains of Hungary in the 17th century to blast the ore from the mineral-carrying seams, replacing fire setting, the traditional method of breaking ore that had been used for centuries.
3. Scandinavia
For much of the Middle Ages Scandinavia was divided into two blocs, the political union of Denmark and Norway, and the kingdom of Sweden, which fully incorporated Finland. During this period Norway became a significant mining and quarrying region with the 16th century witnessing a surge in developments, in part due to the revenue needs of the Crown.
Norway
One of the major mining regions was Telemark in the south of Norway and it was here that the Gullnes copper mine was opened in 1524. In 1537 control of the mine passed to the Crown, which imported a number of German miners from Saxony to improve the mine’s efficiency. The locals of Hjartdal, who coveted the rich silver lodes that existed in the area, were unhappy with the German presence and the privileges granted them by the Crown, and eventually ejected the miners, who fled back to Saxony. This presumption on the part of the locals led to the Crown prosecuting and hanging the ringleaders.
Although the putting down of the revolt in Telemark was hardly likely to endear the Norwegians to mining as an industry, especially as the King in Copenhagen was behind the introduction of German mining laws and methods, the expansion of mining continued for over two further centuries. By the middle of the 16th century iron ore was being mined in Hadeland, north of Oslo, and ironworks were built in Skien, Telemark, and at Hakadal near the iron ore mines. Copper mines were also established at Ytteroy, Trondheim Fjord, in central Norway and mining of phosphate continued into the 20th century. Two other major copper mines, established in the mid-17th century in the central part of Norway, were the Kvikne and Rorus mines – the former operated for 200 years before being flooded. Other copper mines were opened at Trondelag, also in the central part of the country, and smelters were built near Oslo, the first one at Baerum.
The biggest mine was the Lokken Verk copper mine, developed in 1652 it continued in production until its closure in 1987, by which time it had become primarily a pyrites operation. The mine and its profits formed the historic base for today’s giant Orkla Group. Although for many decades copper was the main metal mined in Norway, in the early 17th century silver was discovered in Kongsberg in the south of the country; silver mining continued there until the mines closed in 1957, having produced an estimated 48 million ozs over the period. As the Industrial Revolution loomed in the 18th century, further copper mines at Selbu in Trondelag and at Folldal in the east of Norway were developed, and cobalt was also discovered. The economic impact of Norway’s mining industry was widespread; as well as providing raw materials to Denmark and Norway, mine products were also exported to Germany and to the Netherlands, with Amsterdam a major customer of Norwegian stone.
Sweden and Finland
There was also a vigorous mining industry in Sweden and Finland in the years before the Industrial Revolution. Iron ore has been mined in the Bergslagen district in the centre of Sweden since the 1st century BC, but it was in the 16th century that larger-scale iron ore mines were developed and at the end of the 17th century iron ore was discovered in the north of Sweden in the Kiruna region by Samuel Mort. These deposits continue to be mined today, 300 years later.
Some base metal mines, amongst these the Garpenberg and Zinkgruvan copper, lead and zinc mines, which are also still in production today, were established around the same time. The former had been originally worked in the 15th century and was restructured in the following century with the arrival of German miners. The Falun copper mine in Bergslagen has probably been mined since the early 11th century and a share issue took place in 1288 making Falun the oldest joint stock company in recorded history. In the 17th century, when Gustavus Adolphus was attempting to unify and conquer Europe, it is thought the Falun mine was responsible for almost 70% of known world copper output. It continued to operate until closure in December 1992 after around 1000 years of life. The 14th century also saw the start of silver mining at Hornkullens near Filipstad in central Sweden, an activity that continued until the 19th century.
For most of its history Finland was an agricultural country, sparsely populated but with basic skills in iron working due to the incidence of surface iron ore. In 1540 the first Finnish iron ore operation, the Ojama mine, was established in Lohja in the south of the country following Finland’s integration into Sweden. Finland had substantial iron ore reserves and also huge waterpower potential and massive forests to provide it with charcoal for the iron treatment furnaces, and this led to the Swedish Crown and private interests establishing iron works in Finland to convert its ore resources into iron.
By the middle of the 17th century, mining of Finnish iron ore had become unprofitable and Finnish ironworks began to import Swedish ore. After many decades as a great European power, Sweden faded, and at the end of the 17th century famine hit Scandinavia. Finland was particularly badly affected and also had to contend with aggressive Russian actions during the Great Northern War in the first two decades of the 18th century as Baltic states sought successfully to put an end to Swedish hegemony in the region. When peace returned Finland was unable to sustain its iron industry and Swedish capital took control. However, as the 18th century ended copper was discovered in Orijarvi to the east of Helsinki, promising a new era for Finnish mining.
4. France
With the ending of the Dark Ages, France, no longer under the thrall of Rome, began to recover and as a result a number of iron-based industries emerged, including weapons, armour and wrought work. By the 12th century coal had been discovered and began to be mined in the region east and west of Liege, where coal mining continued well into the 20th century.
One of France’s oldest mines was the Salsigne gold mine near Carcassonne in the southwest. The mine was first exploited by the Romans in the 3rd century, but as an iron mine. The furnaces were fired by charcoal and wind tunnels were used to power them, another example of Roman technology anticipating the modern world. The Romans, however, did not realise that there was gold in the slag that was discarded in the iron-making process, perhaps as much as 1 million ozs, and now lost forever under the town which was eventually built on the mine dumps. During the Middle Ages Salsigne was mined intermittently for its iron ore, but it was only after a period as an arsenic or arsenopyrite mine at the end of the 19th century that gold was finally discovered, and during the 20th century 100 tonnes of gold and 300 tonnes of silver were produced at Salsigne.
By the time of the Middle Ages mining had begun to expand in Europe, with the negative influence of the Dark Ages on social and economic activity beginning to wane. The old silver and copper mines of Aveyron in south central France were re-opened in the 10th century and were worked for some centuries following. The main target for this revival of mining activity in France was silver, which was increasingly in demand for coin as commerce began to revive. Other areas that saw a surge in mining were Lorraine in the northeast, the Auvergne in the centre of the country, and the Pyrenees, where silver and gold were the main metals sought.
In the 14th century the lead and silver mines in the Languedoc in the southeast at La Caunette were re-opened and to the northwest
