Poul Steenstrup (10 December 1772 – 9 October 1864) was a Norwegian industrialist and politician. He was the founder of the Kongsberg Arms Factory (''Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk'') and served as a representative at the

Norwegian Constituent Assembly The Norwegian Constituent Assembly ( or ) is the name given to the 1814 constitutional assembly that adopted the Norwegian Constitution and formalised the dissolution of the union with Denmark. The meetings took place at the Eidsvoll Manor in th ...

in 1814.

Biography

Poul Steenstrup was born the son of a Danish landowner at

Egtved Egtved is a village with a population of 2,433 (as of 1 January 2025) near Vejle, Denmark in Vejle municipality in the Denmark, Danish Region of Southern Denmark. Nearby is Tørskind Gravel Pit, a sculpture park. The village has a Romanesque arc ...

, in

Vejle Vejle () is a city in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle River and Grejs River and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality (''Municipalities of De ...

, Denmark. He studied surgery and science at 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. ...

but did not take the final examination. In 1797, he came to

Buskerud Buskerud () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Innlandet, Vestland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Hardanger ...

in Norway where he attended the Royal Norwegian Mining Academy (''kongelige norske Mining Academy'') in

Kongsberg Kongsberg () is a historical mining town and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The city is located on the river Numedalslågen at the entrance to the valley of Numedal. Kongsberg has been a centre of silver mining, arms production and fo ...

. From 1801 he undertook a three-year scholarship trip to German and Austrian ironworks and factories, principally in

Freiberg Freiberg () is a university and former mining town in Saxony, Germany, with around 41,000 inhabitants. The city lies in the foreland of the Ore Mountains, in the Saxon urbanization axis, which runs along the northern edge of the Elster and ...

and

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. Upon returning to Norway, he served as mining inspector at the

Kongsberg Silver Mines Kongsberg Silver works () was a mining operation at Kongsberg in Buskerud county in Norway. The town of Kongsberg is the site of the Norwegian Mining Museum (). History Operating from over 80 different sites, Kongsberg silver mines constitute ...

. He was superintendent and manager of Kongsberg Ironworks (''Kongsberg Jernverk'') from the start of operations in 1809 until it was privatized in 1824. In 1813 he managed to win the backing of Prince Regent Christian Frederik (later Christian VIII of Denmark) to establish Norway's first factory, the Kongsberg Arms Factory (''Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk'') which opened in 1814. He was director of the Kongsberg Silver Mines from 1833 to 1840. Poul Steenstrup represented Kongsberg at the

in 1814. He was associated with the independence party (''Selvstendighetspartiet''). Steenstrup was also a member of the

Norwegian Parliament 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 ...

during 1824-1826.

Personal life

Poul Steenstrup was married to Mathea Bernardine Collett (1779-1847), daughter of timber merchant Peter Collett. They were the parents of eight children including Peter Severin Steenstrup.

Honors

He was appointed Knight of the Swedish

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry founded on 29 May 1772 by Gustav III, King Gustav III. It is awarded to Swedish citizens for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. His ...

in 1816.

Memorials

*A bust of Poul Steenstrup was unveiled during 1914. The current location of the bust is at Prestegårdsparken in Kongsberg. *Steenstrups Gate in Kongsberg was also named in his honor.''Paul Steenstrup'' (lokalhistoriewiki.no)
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Biography

Personal life

Honors

Memorials

See also

References

Related reading