Erik Dons (2 April 1915 – 29 January 2002) was a Norwegian diplomat. He was born in

Horten Horten () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Jarlsberg. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Horten (town) ...

as a son of navy captain Hans Fleischer Dons (1882–1940) and his wife Hilda Marie Høyer. He finished his secondary education in 1934, and graduated from the

Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo (; ) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick University, the university was established in 1811 as the de facto Norwegian conti ...

with the

cand.jur. Candidate ( or ) is the name of various academic degrees, which are today mainly awarded in Scandinavia. The degree title was phased out in much of Europe through the 1999 Bologna Process, which has re-formatted academic degrees in Europe. The de ...

degree in 1939. He started working in the

Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( Norwegian or ''Utenriksdepartementet''; or ''Utanriksdepartementet''; UD) is the foreign ministry of the Kingdom of Norway. It was established on June 7, 1905, the same day the Parliament of ...

in 1940, and followed the political leadership into exile in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

during the Second World War. He was promoted to assistant secretary in 1949. He was a counsellor to the Norwegian

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

delegation from 1952, and was present in the delegations to the General Assembly from 1946 to 1955. He also represented Norway in the

International Refugee Organization The International Refugee Organization (IRO) was an intergovernmental organization founded on 20 April 1946 to deal with the massive refugee problem created by World War II. A Preparatory Commission began operations fourteen months previously. ...

's general council in 1949 and 1951, and in the

United Nations Economic and Social Council The United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) is one of six principal organs of the United Nations, responsible for coordinating the economic and social fields of the organization, specifically in regards to the fifteen specialized ...

delegation from 1954 to 1956. He served as ambassador to

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

and the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

from 1956 to 1959, the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

from 1959 to 1964 and

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

from 1964 to 1966. He was succeeded by

Jørgen Finne-Grønn Jørgen Magnus Finne-Grønn (30 July 1905 – 3 October 1998) was a Norwegian diplomat. He was born in Oslo, Kristiania as a son of genealogist Stian Herlofsen Finne-Grønn (1869–1953) and Margrethe Borchgrevink (1873–1963). He was a brother o ...

. He was hired as a special adviser in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1967, and from 1976 to 1981 he was Norway's ambassador to

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. He then worked in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs again, until 1985. He wrote two books, ''Norsk statsborgerrett'' (1947) and ''FN i arbeid'' (1949). He was decorated as a Knight, 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 ...

(1958) and held the Grand Cross of the

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand (; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) for Thais, the royal family, governmental employees, and foreign dignitaries for their outstanding serv ...

. His Order of St. Olav was upgraded to Commander in 1978. He died in January 2002 and was buried in

Ris, Oslo Ris (formerly written Riis) is an affluent neighborhood Vinderen Vinderen is a neighbourhood in the Vestre Aker borough of Oslo, Norway. It was a separate borough until 1 January 2004, when it was incorporated into the newly established borough of Vestre Aker. Its amenities include Vinderen (station), Vinderen ...

in his later life.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dons, Erik 1915 births 2002 deaths People from Horten University of Oslo alumni Norwegian civil servants Norwegian non-fiction writers Ambassadors of Norway to Thailand Ambassadors of Norway to Indonesia Ambassadors of Norway to the Philippines Ambassadors of Norway to China Ambassadors of Norway to Portugal Ambassadors of Norway to East Germany Norwegian expatriates in the United Kingdom Norwegian expatriates in the United States 20th-century Norwegian non-fiction writers