Andreas Munch (19 October 1811 – 27 June 1884) was a Norwegian poet, novelist, playwright and newspaper editor. He was the first person to be granted a poet's pension by the Parliament of Norway.

Personal life

Munch was born in Christiania, as son of poet, priest and later

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

Bishop Johan Storm Munch and his wife Else Petronelle Hofgaard. He was married to Charlotte Amalie Juul from 1844 until her death in 1850. One of his sons also died in 1850, and a second son died a few years later. In 1865 he married Danish citizen Anna Marie Amalie Raben. He died in

Vedbæk Vedbæk is a wealthy suburban neighbourhood on the coast north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It belongs to Rudersdal Municipality and has merged with the town of Hørsholm to the north. The area has been inhabited for at least 7,000 years, as evidenced ...

in Denmark in 1884.

Career

Munch made his literary debut in 1836 with the poetry collection ''Ephemerer'' (''

Ephemera Ephemera are items which were not originally designed to be retained or preserved, but have been collected or retained. The word is etymologically derived from the Greek ephēmeros 'lasting only a day'. The word is both plural and singular. On ...

''). His first play was ''Kong Sverres Ungdom'' from 1837, written for the opening of

Christiania Theatre Christiania Theatre, or ''Kristiania Theatre'', was Norway's finest stage for spoken drama from 4 October 1836 (opening date) to 1 September 1899. It was located at Bankplassen by the Akershus Fortress, in central Christiania. It was the fir ...

´s new building. In 1840 he published the one-act play ''Donna Clara'', set in Spain. He edited the newspaper '' Den Constitutionelle'' from 1841 to 1846. His story ''Den Ensomme. En Sjælehistorie'' was first printed in ''Den Constitutionelle'' in 1846. From 1846 to 1848 he made an educational European tour together with his family, and visited France, Italy, Switzerland and Germany. He published the poetry collection ¨''Digte, gamle og nye'' in 1848, and ''Nye Digte'' in 1850. His poetry collection ''Sorg og Trøst'' from 1852 was written after the death of his wife and son. In 1866

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...

composed music to the poem "Vuggesang" from this collection, published as Opus 9 together with three other songs with text by Munch. In "Vuggesang" the father sings for his newborn son after the mother's death. In the 1850s he wrote three historic plays in verse, ''Salomon de Caus'' (1854), ''En Aften paa Giske'' (1855), and ''Lord William Russell'' (1857). Munch was granted a poet's pension by the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list proportional represe ...

from 1860, the first as such in Norway, and was titled professor from 1866. He was decorated Commander, First Class of the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

for literary merits in 1880, and was also a Commander of the Danish

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

, and a Knight of the Swedish

Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish language, Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden''), sometimes translated as the Royal Order of the North Star, is a Swedish order of chivalry created by Frederick I of Sweden, King Frederick I on 23 F ...

References

External links

Digitized books by Munch
in the

National Library of Norway The National Library of Norway () was established in 1989. Its principal task is "to preserve the past for the future". The library is located both in Oslo and in Mo i Rana. The building in Oslo was restored and reopened in 2005. Prior to the e ...

Homepage of the Andreas Munch Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Munch, Andreas 1811 births 1884 deaths Writers from Oslo 19th-century Norwegian poets Norwegian male poets Norwegian newspaper editors Commanders of the Order of the Dannebrog Knights of the Order of the Polar Star 19th-century journalists Norwegian male journalists Norwegian male novelists Norwegian male dramatists and playwrights 19th-century Norwegian novelists 19th-century Norwegian dramatists and playwrights 19th-century Norwegian male writers