Mathias Otto Leth Sommerhielm (22 August 1764 15 November 1827) was a Danish-Norwegian politician who served as the Norwegian prime minister in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Biography

Mathias Otto Leth Sommerhielm was born in the seaport of

Kolding Kolding () is a Denmark, Danish seaport city located at the head of Kolding Fjord in the Region of Southern Denmark. It is the seat of Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre and has numerous industria ...

in southern

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. He graduated from the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen (, KU) is a public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia, after Uppsala University. ...

with degrees in Latin and Law in 1785. He subsequently moved to Christiania where he was appointed a prosecutor in 1789. In 1801, Sommerhielm became director general of military prosecutions and in 1807 he became member of the Superior Criminal Court. After the dissolution of the union between Denmark and Norway, he attended the Meeting of Notables in

Eidsvoll Eidsvoll (; sometimes written as ''Eidsvold'') is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the munic ...

on 16 February 1814. He served as

First Minister A first minister is any of a variety of leaders of government cabinets. The term literally has the same meaning as "prime minister" but is typically chosen to distinguish the office-holder from a superior prime minister. Currently the title of ' ...

from 1815 to 1822, a position assigned to the most prominent cabinet minister at the time. In 1822, Sommerhielm was appointed

Prime Minister of Norway The prime minister of Norway (, which directly translates to "minister of state") is the head of government and chief executive of Norway. The prime minister and Cabinet of Norway, Cabinet (consisting of all the most senior government departme ...

, following the resignation of Peder Anker due to personal illness. Sommerhielm became Norway's second prime minister, an office located in

. He held the office until 1827, when the seat was vacated. He died in Stockholm later that year.Mathias Sommerhielm Biography (Norwegian Government Administration Services)
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Awards

Sommerhielm was awarded the

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 ...

(''Dannebrogordenen''),

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 ...

(''Nordstjerneorden'') and

Seraphim Medal The Seraphim Medal () is a royal medal of Sweden. Established in 1748, it is awarded by the King of Sweden for service that benefits society or service of a humanitarian nature. Appearance The Seraphim Medal is a gold medal of the 8th size. The o ...

(''Serafimerordenen'').

References

External links

Matthias Otto Leth Sommerhielm (Statsrådsaktivitet)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sommerhielm, Mathias 1764 births 1827 deaths Government ministers of Norway 19th-century Norwegian politicians Members of the Storting People from Kolding University of Copenhagen alumni Order of the Dannebrog Order of the Polar Star Ministers of justice of Norway