Nicolai Wergeland

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Nicolai Wergeland

Nicolai Wergeland , baptized "Niels Vergeland Wergeland" (born November 9, 1780 in Mjøs (Møes) in Hosanger (now Osterøy ), Hordaland ; † March 25, 1848 in Eidsvoll ) was a Norwegian theologian and politician .

origin

His parents were the teacher and sexton Halvor Lassesen Beraas, later Vergeland (1755– around 1790), and his wife Augusta Antonette Jonsdatter Nedervold (1759–1810). It got its name Wergeland after the farm of his great-grandfather in Ytre Sogn (the coastal area of Sogn og Fjordane ). The father came into conflict with the Danish-born local priest and moved to Bergen in 1784 , where he opened a general store. The business went bankrupt and he was hired on a ship overseas. This loses its track. The mother was left with three young children.

Early years and studies

Thanks to his talent and a little support from his great-uncle Niels Wergeland, a retired officer, Niels was able to attend school in Bergen. He had a free place at the cathedral school. In 1799 he was sent to the University of Copenhagen .

He joined the ruling rationalist theology of the time and passed the theological state examination with distinction in 1803. In 1805 he won the gold medal for the prize assignment on the dogma of the last judgment. Then he attended the educational seminar. In 1806 he became an adjunct at the Kristiansand Cathedral School , where he was an excellent teacher.

Work, career, conflicts

Nicolai Wergeland worked for a long time on an incomplete description of the city of Kristiansand (which was only published in 1963) and in 1812 was appointed "resident chaplain". His breakthrough as an author came with his work Mnemosyne , which was published by the Kgl. Selskab for Norges Vel (The Royal Society for the Welfare of Norway) for the best writing about the benefits of a Norwegian university. In this pamphlet he underlined the right of every nation to have its own university, put forward a plan for its organization in six faculties and proposed Christiania as a university town. This award script made him a national hero through his patriotic language and predestined him to become Kristiansand's representative in the Eidsvoll meeting in 1814 . There he came up with his own constitutional proposal, in which he introduced the term " storting ", which was then incorporated into the final constitution . He was elected to the Constitutional Committee. He stood up here to prevent a reunification with Denmark in the future, and joined Count Wedel . His lecturing style irritated the independence party. With his openly shown distrust of the still very popular Danish King Christian Frederik , he forfeited his popularity, so that in the end he almost received a public reprimand.

In 1814 he was accused of slandering Christian Frederik and was convicted. In 1815, at the instigation of Count Wedel, Wergeland became a clerical member of the Nordstjärne Order and court preacher due to his anti-Danish attitude, and since then has had the reputation of being a friend of Sweden. It was even worse when he anonymously wrote Danmarks politiske Forbrydelser imod Kongeriget Norge (Denmark's political crimes against the Kingdom of Norway), which was partly based on pure inventions. In the writing he attacked the Danish-speaking officials and tax collectors sharply and also polemicized against the Danish criticism of his writing Mnemosyne . It quickly became known that Wergeland was the author, and a number of counter-statements ended his future as a historical-political author. The tirades of hate in the conflict also dashed his hopes for a later episcopate. His anti-Danish agitation also made his wish to become a professor at the newly founded Christiania University unattainable. But he was financially supported by King Karl Johann and in 1816 was at the head of the applicants for the coveted pastor's office in Eidsvoll. In 1817 he got the job.

In 1822 he became provost in Øvre Romerike . His goal was a bishopric. But when the bishopric of Kristiansand became free in 1832, it was passed over. When the diocese became free again in 1841, it was passed over again. He gradually became depressed after the memories of his daughter Camilla. He now devoted himself to the advancement of his children. He had shown his interest in the church in 1832 with his writing Fjorten Paragraffer Kirke- og Undervisningsvæsenet vedkommende (14 paragraphs concerning the church and university system), the last important writing in the old rationalist spirit in Norway. As a source is still valuable: Fortrolige Breve til en Ven, skrevne fra Eidsvold i Aaret 1814 af et Medlem af Rigsforsamlingen (confidential letters to a friend, written by Eidsvoll in 1814 from a member of the Imperial Assembly).

The defense of his son Henrik against the uncomprehending attack of Johan Sebastian Welhaven against poetry and against the person of his son in Norges Dæmring became known with the writings Retfærdig Bedømmelse af Henrik Wergelands Poesie og Karakteer (Justification of the judgment of the poetry and character of Henrik Wergeland) (1833) with the request to burn this book publicly, and in 1835 with Forsvar for det norske Folk og udførlig criticism over det beryktede Skrift Norges Dæmring (Defense of the Norwegian people and detailed criticism of the infamous book 'The Twilight of Norway').

family

In order to be able to successfully woo one of the Thaulow daughters, Wergeland entered the high society of Kristiansand, showed talent on the violin, was a drawing teacher and occasional poet. He married in Kristiansand on August 19, 1807 Alette Dorothea Thaulow (* December 10, 1780; † August 14, 1843), daughter of the town and town hall clerk Henrich Arnold Thaulow (1722-1799) and Jacobine Chrystie (1746-1818). The couple had five children, including Henrik and Camilla , both of whom have become famous, and Joseph Frants Oscar Wergeland (later General).

Works

  • Sandfærdig Beretning om Danmarks politiske Forbrydelser imod Kongeriket Norge (1816)
  • Tanker og Bekjendelse (1848)

literature

Web links

Commons : Nicolai Wergeland  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d e f g Odd Arvid Storsveen: Nicolai Wergeland . In: Norsk biografisk leksikon
  2. a b c d e K. Fischer / C. Brinckmann: " Wergeland, Nicolai ". In: Salmonsens konversationsleksikon , p. 946.