sternness

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

sternness
    n 1: the quality (as of scenery) being grim and gloomy and
         forbidding; "the sternness of his surroundings made him
         uncomfortable"
    2: uncompromising resolution [syn: {sternness}, {strictness}]

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Sternness \Stern"ness\, n.
   The quality or state of being stern.
   [1913 Webster]