Balestrand is a former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1850 until its dissolution in 2020. The area is now part of Sogndal Municipality in the traditional district of Sogn in Vestland county. The administrative centre was the village of Balestrand. Other villages in the municipality included Ese, Kvamme, Låne, Sæle, Dragsviki, and Vetlefjorden.

The municipality was situated at the confluence of the Fjærlandsfjorden/Esefjorden and the main Sognefjorden. The major industries in the municipality were tourism and farming. Balestrand Municipality became popular early due to the interest of artists, such as Hans Gude, Kjartan Lauritzen, Alfred Heaton Cooper, Hans Dahl, and Johannes Flintoe. Their paintings of the scenery around Balestrand inspired visitors, and Balestrand maintains its connection with art. Other industries include made-to-order kitchen interiors, local apple juice, and Nesseplast which produces industrial plastic. The Norwegian National Road 13 ran through the municipality.

At the time of its dissolution in 2020, the municipality was the 231st largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Balestrand Municipality was the 370th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of . The municipality's population density was and its population had decreased by 5.1% over the previous decade.

In 2016, the chief of police for Vestlandet formally suggested a reconfiguration of police districts and stations. He proposed that the police station in Balestrand be closed.

General information

thumb|left|View of Balestrand village (left), the Esefjorden (center), and the Fjærlandsfjorden (right)

thumb|left|A view to Vetlefjorddalen and Bårddalen from a lookout spot at the top of the serpentine County Road 13

thumb|left|Painting: Munken gård i Esefjorden

thumb|left|[[Kvamsøy Church on Kvamsøy island]]

The prestegjeld of Balestrand was established as a municipality in 1850 when the large Leikanger Municipality was divided as follows:

  • the parishes of Vangsnes, Tjugum, and Mundal (population: 2,122) became the new Balestrand Municipality
  • the parishes of Leikanger, Fresvik, and Rinde (population: 2,368) continued on as a smaller Leikanger Municipality

In 1861, the Mundal parish was renamed Fjærland.

Name

The municipality is named Balestrand, a compound name for the area that was created in 1832 by the Norwegian writer Henrik Wergeland. The first element is the name of the old Bale farm (). The farm name is identical to the word which means "grassy hillside". The last element is derived from the word which means "beach" or "shore". Thus the "shore along the grassy hillside."

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 23 October 1989. The official blazon is "Azure, a down-pointing sword argent issuant from the base" (). This means the arms have a blue field (background) and the charge is the hilt of a Viking sword. The charge has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used. The design symbolizes an old Viking sword found in the burial mound in Balestrand. The sword is believed to belong to King Bele from Frithiof's Saga. The arms were designed by Inge Rotevatn. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway had one parish () within Balestrand Municipality. It was part of the Sogn prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Bjørgvin.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

|+ style="font-size:medium"|Churches in Balestrand Municipality

!Parish ()!!Church name!!Location of the church!!Year built

|-

|rowspan="3"|Balestrand||Kvamsøy Church||Kvamsøy||1290

|-

|Sæle Church||Sæle||1903

|-

|Tjugum Church||Dragsviki||1863

|}

There is also one Anglican church in Balestrand:

  • St. Olaf's Church (built in 1897) is located in the village of Balestrand.

Government

While it existed, Balestrand Municipality was responsible for primary education (through 10th grade), outpatient health services, senior citizen services, welfare and other social services, zoning, economic development, and municipal roads and utilities. The municipality was governed by a municipal council of directly elected representatives. The mayor was indirectly elected by a vote of the municipal council. The municipality was under the jurisdiction of the Sogn og Fjordane District Court and the Gulating Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council of Balestrand Municipality was made up of 17 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.

Mayors

The mayor () of Balestrand Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. The following people held this position:

  • 1850–1879: Rev. Harald Ulrik Sverdrup
  • 1880–1883: Sjur S. Bjaastad
  • 1884–1885: Anders L. Ese
  • 1886–1887: Sjur S. Bjaastad
  • 1888–1895: Anders L. Ese
  • 1896–1901: Sjur S. Bjaastad
  • 1902–1922: Ole Tjugum
  • 1923–1925: Per Hovland
  • 1926–1934: Hermund J. Bale
  • 1934–1935: Sigurd Kvikne, Sr.
  • 1936–1941: Anders Johanneson Bøyum (V)
  • 1941–1942: Anders Gjerde (H)
  • 1945–1947: Anders Johanneson Bøyum (V)
  • 1948–1959: Per P. Hovland (Bp)
  • 1960–1961: Sverre Aardal (Sp)
  • 1961–1971: Per Horpedal (Sp)
  • 1972–1974: Karl Munkerud (Sp)
  • 1975–1975: Haakon Steine (H)
  • 1976–1981: Tor Tjugum (Sp)
  • 1982–1983: Jens K. Ese (H)
  • 1984–1995: Olav J. Ulvestad (Sp)
  • 1995–2003: Åse Kari Einevoll (V)
  • 2003–2007: Erland A. Fagermoen (KrF)
  • 2007–2011: Einar Målsnes (H)
  • 2011–2019: Harald Offerdal (Ap)

Geography

Balestrand Municipality was located between the high snow-covered Gaularfjellet mountains in the center of the beautiful, lush Sognefjorden. Three fjord arms stretched inland, winding through the mountains which was dotted with charming hamlets: Lånefjorden, Esefjorden, and Vetlefjorden. The Fjærlandsfjorden ran along the eastern border of the municipality. The Jostefonni glacier sits at the very northernmost part of the municipality. The highest point in the municipality was the tall mountain Sunnfjordbjørnen on the Jostefonni glacier on the border with Gaular Municipality.

St. Olaf's Church

St. Olaf's Church, also known as the English Church, is an Anglican church built in the style of a Stave church. The church was completed in 1897 as a memorial to Margaret Green. Margaret, an English lady, came to the fjords as a tourist to hike the mountains. She met, fell in love with and married Knut Kvikne who was an avid mountain man. Being a very pious woman, she wished for an Anglican church in Balestrand. She started the church with her husband, but died before its completion. Sunday services are held during the summer months, being conducted by rotating vicars from England.

St. Olaf's Church is notable as the inspiration for the chapel in Elsa's coronation scene in the 2013 Disney film Frozen.

Other attractions

  • Songnefjord Aquarium
  • Balejazz summer jazz festival
  • Balestrand Art Village