Ingeborg Maria Sick (1858–1951) was a Danish writer and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

. After devoting many years to supporting philanthropic initiatives for the poor and needy, from her forties she concentrated on writing, publishing some 30 novels as well as poetry and biographies. ''Fangernes Ven'' (Friend of the Prisones, 1921), a biography of the Swedish-Finnish philanthropist

Mathilda Wrede Mathilda Wrede (March 8, 1864, Vaasa – December 25, 1928), was a Finnish evangelist and baroness, known for being a precursor in the rehabilitation of prisoners, and known in Finland as "Friend of the prisoners". Life Her father, , was the p ...

, is among her most important works. Published in translation throughout Scandinavia and Germany, her novels were widely read. ''Helligt Ægterskab'' (Holy Matrimony, 1903) appeared in no less than six editions in a single year.

Early life

Born in Copenhagen on 17 September 1858, Ingeborg Maria Sick was the daughter of the Danish diplomat Carl Emil Sick (1825–64) and his wife Conradine Franciska née Marcher (1827–87). She spent her early years in Paris where her father was stationed until his early death when she returned to Denmark. As a result, she continued to feel half French and visited France frequently.

Career

Financially independent and deeply religious, she spent her early years nursing the needy in the poorer quarters of Copenhagen. She extended her knowledge of private philanthropic enterprise during visits to London and Paris. Thereafter she was employed for a number of years by the welfare services in Copenhagen. It was not until she was over 40 that Sick turned seriously to writing. In 1900, she published a collection of short stories titled ''Udi løndom. Billeder og skizzer'' (In Secret. Pictures and Sketches). Her first popular success came two years later with the romantic novel ''Højfjælds-Præst'' (Highland Priest) in which a young upper-class Copenhagen girl falls in love with a Norwegian priest. ''Helligt Ægteskab'' (1903) presents the romances of two sisters, a priest's wife who has a happy marriage and a baroness who falls in love with an artist before returning to her husband. Other popular novels included ''Jomfru Else'' (Else the Virgin, 1905), ''Af Jord'' (Of Earth, 1907), ''Farmor Ursulas Have'' (Grandmother Ursula's Garden, 1909) and ''Ina'' (1911). While her novels were widely read in translation throughout Scandinavia and in Germany, some were also published in Dutch, English, French and Russian. Given her deep religious convictions, Sick's novels all show that faith in God triumphs over earthly pleasures. Their popularity resulted from well developed female characters and their erotically coloured conflicts. While her novels remained popular until after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, today she is remembered above all for two biographies. ''Fangernes Ven'' (Friend of the Prisones, 1921) was inspired by Evy Fogelberg's biographies of the Swedish-Finnish philanthropist Mathilda Wrede while ''Pigen fra Danmark'' (The Girl from Denmark), which appeared in four parts until 1945, covers the life of the Danish missionary

Karen Jeppe Karen Vel Jeppe (1 July 1876 – 7 July 1935) was a Danish people, Danish missionary and social worker, known for her work with Ottoman Armenian refugees and survivors of the Armenian genocide, mainly widows and orphans, from 1903 until her deat ...

, especially her times in Armenia. Ingeborg Maria Sick died in

Hørsholm Hørsholm () is an urban area on the Øresund coast approximately north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It covers most of Hørsholm Municipality and straddles the borders neighbouring Fredensborg Municipality and Rudersdal Municipality. Hørsholm proper ...

on 14 November 1951 and was buried in Asminderød Cemetery.

References

External links

Works by Ingeborg Maria Sick in Dansk Forfatterleksikon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sick, Ingeborg Maria 1858 births 1951 deaths Writers from Copenhagen 19th-century Danish philosophers 20th-century Danish philosophers Danish women philosophers 20th-century Danish writers 20th-century Danish women writers 20th-century Danish novelists Danish women novelists 20th-century Danish biographers Danish women biographers 20th-century Danish poets Danish women poets