The 1800s was the era of the “well-drilled soldier." With the beginning of the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815), military conscription expanded rapidly. During this time, military culture became, as scholar Lind Gunner describes it, "distinct" and "sophisticated." There now were distinguished military uniforms, specialized military schools, dedicated journals, and scientific societies. Military offices became a visible and regular presence in rural and urban spaces, and soldiers were recruited from elite  and working-class families. High ranking military men – especially those with noble estates  – had a lot of social and cultural prestige and political influence. So much so, that this ethos seeped into the middle-classes, who sought to adopt and emulate military values. 

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But then, from the mid-1800s onwards, things began to change. As Norway moved towards increasing modernity and democracy, the military and its importance began to wane. Their social and political influence steadily declined. The public attitude towards the military also changed - they began to be viewed as representatives of an old regime – of an older world and an older way of living. And who began to replace their social and political ranks? Academics!

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Source: Lind, Gunner. “Militarisation of Scandinavia, 1520–1870.” The Cambridge History of Scandinavia. Ed. E. I. Kouri and Jens E. Olesen. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2016. 268–278. Print. The Cambridge History of Scandinavia.