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Lars Andersen Kruse (1828–1894) was a
''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon''. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
From an early age, Kruse took part in many rescues off Skagen's dangerous coasts, helping to save the lives of some 200 people. One of his most heroic exploits was on 27 December 1862 when the Swedish
Lars Kruse's courage was recorded by See ''The Skagen fisherman and rescuer Lars Kruse'' on artnet
/ref>
Lars Andersen Kruse (1828–1894) was a fisherman
A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish.
Worldwide, there are about 38 million Commercial fishing, commercial and Artisan fishing, subsistence fishers and Fish farming, fi ...
from Skagen
Skagen () is the northernmost town in Denmark, on the east coast of the Skagen Odde peninsula in the far north of Jutland, part of Frederikshavn Municipality in North Denmark Region, Nordjylland, north of Frederikshavn and northeast of Aalbo ...
in the far north of Jutland
Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...
, Denmark. He is remembered not only for his heroic rescues but for his portraits painted by Michael Ancher
Michael Peter Ancher (9 June 1849 – 19 September 1927) was a Danish Realism (art movement), realist artist, widely known for his paintings of fishermen, the Skagerak and the North Sea, and other scenes from the Danish fishing community in Skag ...
and an account of his mistreatment written by Holger Drachmann
Holger Henrik Herholdt Drachmann (9 October 1846 – 14 January 1908) was a Danish poet, dramatist and painter. He was a member of the Skagen Painters, Skagen artistic colony and became a figure of the Scandinavian Modern Breakthrough Movem ...
in a mixture of poems and prose."Lars Kruse"''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon''. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
Biography
From an early age, Kruse took part in many rescues off Skagen's dangerous coasts, helping to save the lives of some 200 people. One of his most heroic exploits was on 27 December 1862 when the Swedish brig
A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...
''Daphne'' was stranded off the coast to the north. After the lifeboat had capsized and her crew of eight had drowned, Kruse took his own boat out into the storm and saved the ship's crew. He was immediately assigned to the Life-Saving Service, where he was put in charge of Skagen's lifeboat. In 1880, he was awarded a silver cross with the inscription: ''Ydmyg i Ordet, stolt i sin Daad, kristen i Gjerning, Mand i sin Baad'' (Humble in speech, Proud in deed, Christian in action, Man in his boat). Kruse drowned in March 1894 off Skagen's north beach, trying to reach land in a violent snowstorm.
In literature and art
Lars Kruse's courage was recorded by Holger Drachmann
Holger Henrik Herholdt Drachmann (9 October 1846 – 14 January 1908) was a Danish poet, dramatist and painter. He was a member of the Skagen Painters, Skagen artistic colony and became a figure of the Scandinavian Modern Breakthrough Movem ...
in 1879 when he wrote a descriptive account interspersed with poems entitled: ''Lars Kruse. En Skildring fra Virkelighedens og Sandets Regioner'' (Lars Kruse. A Picture from Regions of Reality and Truth). The work tells how initially the authorities refused to award him a medal for his heroic rescues on the grounds that when a poor youngster, he had sold a plank which had drifted up on the beach and kept the money for himself. As a result of Drachmann's critical account of his treatment, Kruse was later awarded the Danish Medal of Merit.
Lars Kruse appears in several works by Michael Ancher
Michael Peter Ancher (9 June 1849 – 19 September 1927) was a Danish Realism (art movement), realist artist, widely known for his paintings of fishermen, the Skagerak and the North Sea, and other scenes from the Danish fishing community in Skag ...
of the Skagen Painters
The Skagen Painters () were a group of Scandinavian artists who gathered in the village of Skagen, the northernmost part of Denmark, from the late 1870s until the turn of the century. Skagen was a summer destination whose scenic nature, local mi ...
: ''Redningsformand Lars Kruse'' (Head of Lifesaving Lars Kruse, 1882), ''Lystige folk. I købmandens bod'' (Joyful folk in the shopkeeper's bar) from 1883, and ''Skagensfisker Lars Kruse i eftermiddagslys'' (Skagen Fisherman Lars Kruse in the Afternoon Light, 1908)./ref>
References
Bibliography
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kruse, Lars 1828 births 1894 deaths Fishermen People from Skagen Deaths by drowning Accidental deaths in Denmark Danish artists' models