Re Municipality

Re Municipality
Re kommune
Former municipality
View of the local Undrumsdal Church
Flag of Re Municipality
Flag
Coat of arms of Re Municipality
Coat of arms
Vestfold within Norway
Vestfold within Norway
Re within Vestfold
Re within Vestfold
Coordinates: 59°25′8″N 10°17′10″E / 59.41889°N 10.28611°E / 59.41889; 10.28611
CountryNorway
CountyVestfold
DistrictJarlsberg
Established1 Jan 2002
 • Preceded byRamnes Municipality and Våle Municipality
Disestablished1 Jan 2020
 • Succeeded byTønsberg Municipality
Administrative centreRevetal
Government
 • Mayor (2002–2020)Thorvald Hillestad (Sp)
Area
 (upon dissolution)
 • Total
224.66 km2 (86.74 sq mi)
 • Land222.37 km2 (85.86 sq mi)
 • Water2.29 km2 (0.88 sq mi)  1%
 • Rank#319 in Norway
Highest elevation
(Snippane)
399.97 m (1,312.2 ft)
Population
 (2019)
 • Total
9,730
 • Rank#118 in Norway
 • Density43.8/km2 (113/sq mi)
 • Change (10 years)
Increase +14.1%
DemonymRe-folk
Official language
 • Norwegian formBokmål
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
ISO 3166 codeNO-0716

Re (Norwegian pronunciation: [reː]; locally [ræː]) is a former municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The 224.66-square-kilometre (86.74 sq mi) municipality existed from 2002 until its dissolution in 2020. The area is now part of Tønsberg Municipality in the traditional district of Jarlsberg. The administrative centre was the village of Revetal. Other villages in the municipality included Ramnes, Brekkeåsen, Bergsåsen, Gretteåsen, Undrumsdal, Fon, Vivestad.

Prior to its dissolution in 2020, the 224.66-square-kilometre (86.74 sq mi) municipality was the 319th largest by area out of the 422 municipalities in Norway. Re Municipality was the 118th most populous municipality in Norway with a population of about 9,730. The municipality's population density was 43.8 inhabitants per square kilometre (113/sq mi) and its population had increased by 14.1% over the previous 10-year period.

General information

Administrative history

The municipality of Re was established on 1 January 2002 when Våle Municipality (population: 4,248) and Ramnes Municipality (population: 3,790) were merged to form the new Re Municipality.

In 2020, there were many municipal and county mergers across Norway due to the work of the Solberg cabinet. On 1 January 2020, Re Municipality was dissolved and new borders were drawn for the three neighboring municipalities of Horten, Tønsberg, and Holmestrand:

Name

The municipality is named after an old name for the district, Re (Old Norse: Ré). The name is related to the old German word reihe which means "line" or "row", referring to the local geological formation called Raet.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms was granted on 31 August 2001 in preparation for the establishment of the new municipality on 1 January 2002. It was determined by a public competition and a public vote among inhabitants of the new municipality. The official blazon is "Vert, an escarbuncle Or" (Norwegian: I grønt en gul liljehaspel). This means the arms have a green field (background) and the charge is a five-pointed escarbuncle. The charge has a tincture of Or which means it is commonly colored yellow, but if it is made out of metal, then gold is used. The green color in the field symbolizes the importance of nature and agriculture. The five-pointed design has a long history in the area and it symbolizes unity and to point back in time to the historic battles fought at Re. The five points represent the five parishes within Re. The arms were designed by Arvid Steen. The municipal flag has the same design as the coat of arms.

Churches

The Church of Norway had five parishes (sokn) within Re Municipality. It was part of the Nord-Jarlsberg prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Tunsberg.

Churches in Re Municipality
Parish (sokn)Church nameLocation of the churchYear built
FonFon ChurchFonc. 1100
RamnesRamnes ChurchRamnesc. 1100
UndrumsdalUndrumsdal ChurchUndrumsdal1882
VivestadVivestad ChurchVivestad1914
VåleVåle ChurchBergsåsenc. 1100

Geography

The river Aulielva ran through the municipality. The highest point in the municipality was the 399.97-metre (1,312.2 ft) tall mountain Snippane, located on the western border with Lardal Municipality, about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) south of the village of Hof.

Holmestrand Municipality was located to the north, Horten Municipality was located to the east, Tønsberg Municipality was located to the southeast, Sandefjord Municipality was located to the south, Larvik Municipality was located to the west.

History

In this area a battle took place in 1177, which is the last one mentioned in Heimskringla by Snorri Sturluson. Graves and other findings from the Viking Age and even earlier can be found throughout the district.

Government

While it existed, Re 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 Tønsberg District Court and the Agder Court of Appeal.

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Re Municipality was made up of 25 representatives that were elected to four year terms. The tables below show the historical composition of the council by political party.

Re kommunestyre 2015–2019   
Party name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 6
  Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) 4
  Green Party (Miljøpartiet De Grønne) 1
  Conservative Party (Høyre) 4
  Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) 2
  Centre Party (Senterpartiet) 6
  Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) 1
  Liberal Party (Venstre) 1
Total number of members:25
Note: On 1 January 2020, Re Municipality became part of Tønsberg Municipality.
Re kommunestyre 2011–2015   
Party name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 4
  Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) 4
  Centre Party (Senterpartiet) 9
  Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) 1
  Liberal Party (Venstre) 1
  Joint list of the Conservative Party (Høyre) and Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) 6
Total number of members:25
Re kommunestyre 2007–2011   
Party name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 5
  Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) 5
  Conservative Party (Høyre) 3
  Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) 2
  Centre Party (Senterpartiet) 8
  Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) 1
  Liberal Party (Venstre) 1
Total number of members:25
Re kommunestyre 2003–2007   
Party name (in Norwegian)Number of
representatives
  Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) 4
  Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) 5
  Conservative Party (Høyre) 3
  Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) 3
  Centre Party (Senterpartiet) 7
  Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) 2
  Liberal Party (Venstre) 1
Total number of members:25

Mayor

The mayor (Norwegian: ordfører) of Re Municipality was the political leader of the municipality and the chairperson of the municipal council. Re Municipality only had one mayor during its existence: Thorvald Hillestad from the Centre Party. He served from 2002 until its dissolution in 2020. Prior to this, he was the mayor of Våle Municipality for many years.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Høgaste fjelltopp i kvar kommune: Tønsberg" (in Norwegian). Kartverket. 16 January 2024.
  2. ↑ "Forskrift om målvedtak i kommunar og fylkeskommunar" (in Norwegian). Lovdata.no. 2 April 2002.
  3. 1 2 Lundbo, Sten, ed. (2 March 2026). "Re (tidligere kommune)". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  4. ↑ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "Table: 06913: Population 1 January and population changes during the calendar year (M)" (in Norwegian).
  5. ↑ Statistisk sentralbyrå. "09280: Area of land and fresh water (km²) (M)" (in Norwegian).
  6. ↑ Larsen, Erlend (2016). Tre kommuner blir til én: Suksesskriteriene bak nye Sandefjord (in Norwegian). E-forlag. p. 32. ISBN 9788293057277.
  7. ↑ Hansen, Tore; Thorsnæs, Geir, eds. (27 May 2024). "kommuneinndelingen i Norge". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
  8. ↑ "Vedtak om mindre grensejusteringer mellom Re og Holmestrand kommuner, Vestfold". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). 11 December 2018. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  9. 1 2 3 "Vedtak om mindre grensejusteringer mellom Re og Horten kommuner, Vestfold". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og regionaldepartementet. 11 December 2018. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  10. ↑ "Forskrift om sammenslåing av Tønsberg kommune og Re kommune til Tønsberg kommune, Vestfold". Lovdata.no (in Norwegian). Norges kommunal- og moderniseringsdepartementet. 11 December 2017. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  11. ↑ Rygh, Oluf (1907). Norske gaardnavne: Jarlsberg og Larviks amt (in Norwegian) (6 ed.). Kristiania, Norge: W. C. Fabritius & sønners bogtrikkeri. pp. 153–154.
  12. ↑ "Civic heraldry of Norway - Norske Kommunevåpen". Heraldry of the World. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  13. ↑ "Re, Vestfold (Norway)". Flags of the World. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  14. ↑ "Kommunevåpnet til Re kommune" (in Norwegian). Re kommune. Retrieved 13 January 2009.
  15. ↑ "Re kommune, våpen". Digitalarkivet (in Norwegian). Arkivverket. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  16. ↑ Larsen, Erlend (2011). På Tur i Vestfold del 2 (in Norwegian). E-forlag. p. 190. ISBN 9788293057222.
  17. ↑ Hansen, Tore; Vabo, Signy Irene, eds. (25 November 2024). "kommunestyre". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
  18. ↑ "AS-1283_01 - Horten tingrett". Arkivverket (in Norwegian). Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  19. ↑ Gisle, Jon, ed. (10 June 2025). "Vestfold tingrett". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Foreningen Store norske leksikon. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
  20. ↑ "Kommunestyrevalg 2015 - Vestfold". Valgdirektoratet.
  21. 1 2 3 "Table: 04813: Members of the local councils, by party/electoral list at the Municipal Council election (M)" (in Norwegian). Statistics Norway.
  22. ↑ "Kommunestyrevalg 2011 - Vestfold". Valgdirektoratet.
  23. ↑ Tørrestad, Yngve (10 September 2007). "Thorvald Hillestad med norgesrekord". NRK (in Norwegian). Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  24. ↑ Fiva, Jon H; Sørensen, Rune J.; Vøllo, Reidar, eds. (2024). "Local Candidate Dataset" (PDF).