In 930 AD, while most of Europe was mired in feudalism and conflict, chieftains in Iceland
gathered in a natural amphitheater to the north and west of Reykjavik and
formed the world’s first parliament, the Althing. The meeting place was called
Thingvellir (“parliament plains”), and over the next 300 years representatives
journeyed here once a year to elect leaders, argue cases, and settle disputes - sometimes
peacefully, sometimes not. Today, Thingvellir National Park remains the ultimate symbol of
Iceland’s independence and unity, a landscape inseparable
from the national soul.
The
founders of the Althing could hardly have chosen a more appropriate
place to meet. Thingvellir tells the story of
Iceland’s land as much as
it does its people. Nowhere in the country is there a landscape
that better vocalizes the geologic history of
Iceland. In Thingvellir, you can stand on a bluff and see the Mid-Atlantic
ridge as it carves its way North and East into the island’s
interior.
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