Peder Hansen (8 May 1746 – 26 October 1810) was a Danish

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

and

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

. He served as a

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

in both

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

and in

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 ...

from 1798 until his death in 1810. Hansen is the elder brother to Christian Frederik Hansen, the famous Danish

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs, and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

Personal life

Peder Hansen was born on 8 May 1746 in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, the son of shoemaker Matthias Hansen (c.1708–1789) and his wife Anna Marie Malling (1716–1766). He was married three times. He married Marie Hedevig Runchel in 1771, but she died just four years later. In 1777, he married Abeline Marie Clausen, but she died about ten years later. His third marriage, in 1798, was to Juliane Marie Rasch, and she out-lived him by nearly 25 years. Peder Hansen was a brother of architect Christian Frederik Hansen. He died in October 1810 in

Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185,480 while Odense Municipality had a population of 210, ...

Education and career

He graduated with a diploma from the school in

in 1768 and then received a royal scholarship to study abroad. He studied

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

for two years at the

University of Halle Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (), also referred to as MLU, is a public research university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg. It is the largest and oldest university in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. MLU offers German and i ...

in Halle in

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

and then spent a year at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The university was established in 1558 and is cou ...

Jena Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

. In 1771, Hansen was hired as the assistant

chaplain A chaplain is, traditionally, a cleric (such as a minister, priest, pastor, rabbi, purohit, or imam), or a lay representative of a religious tradition, attached to a secular institution (such as a hospital, prison, military unit, intellige ...

Helsingør Helsingør ( , ; ), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a coastal city in northeastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 63,953 on 1 January 2025, making it the 23rd most populated municipality in Denmark. Helsin ...

where he served the local castle,

Kronborg Kronborg is a castle and historical stronghold in the town of Helsingør, Denmark. Immortalised as Elsinore in William Shakespeare's play ''Hamlet'', Kronborg is one of the most important Renaissance castles in Northern Europe. It was inscribed ...

and the local prison. In this role, he was able to preach to the imprisoned Queen Caroline Mathilde who was held in the castle prior to her divorce from the King. In 1775, he was hired as the parish priest in

Skanderborg Skanderborg is a town in Skanderborg Municipality, Denmark. It is situated on the north and north eastern brinks of Skanderborg Lake and there are several smaller ponds and bodies of water within the city itself, like Lillesø, Sortesø, Døj S ...

. In 1779, he moved to

Ringsted Ringsted is a city located centrally in the Danish island of Zealand. It is the seat of a municipality of the same name. Ringsted is situated approximately from Copenhagen. History Ringsted was the site of ''Sjællands Landsting'' (lit. ''Z ...

to become their parish priest. In 1780, was hired at the University of Halle as an

extraordinary professor Academic ranks in Germany are the titles, relative importance and power of professors, researchers, and administrative personnel held in academia. Overview Appointment grades * (Pay grade: ''W3'' or ''W2'') * (''W3'') * (''W2'') * (''W2'', ...

of theology. He was hired as the parish priest of the Helligåndskirken in the Danish capital of

in 1787. He was called to Copenhagen with a mission of reforming the way the church worked in the poorest parts of the city. He received his

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in 1793 from the University of Halle. In 1798, Peder Hansen was appointed as the Bishop of the Diocese of Christianssand (in

). He moved to Christianssand and served the church there until 1804. During that time, he was an opponent to the Haugean movement within the

Church of Norway The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...

. He was also a great proponent of improving the schools in the diocese of Christianssand as well as improving the quality of teacher education in Norway. He held courses for teachers each year. In 1804, he was appointed to be the Bishop of the

Diocese of Funen The Diocese of Funen () is a diocese within the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark. St. Canute's Cathedral in Odense serves as the seat of its bishop. Tine Lindhardt has been the bishop of the diocese since 2012. History The Roman Catholic ...

back in Denmark. He held that position until his death on 26 October 1810.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hansen, Peder 1746 births 1810 deaths Clergy from Copenhagen University of Halle alumni Academic staff of the University of Halle Danish expatriates in Germany Danish expatriates in Norway Bishops of Agder og Telemark 19th-century Norwegian Lutheran bishops 18th-century Danish Lutheran bishops 19th-century Danish Lutheran bishops