Svenn Thorkild Stray (11 February 1922 – 20 May 2012) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

politician and a member of the

Conservative Party of Norway The Conservative Party or The Right ( nb, Høyre, nn, Høgre, , H; se, Olgešbellodat) is a liberal-conservative political party in Norway. It is the major party of the Norwegian centre-right, and was the leading party in government as part o ...

. He served as a member of parliament from 1958 to 1985, as president of the

Nordic Council The Nordic Council is the official body for formal inter-parliamentary Nordic cooperation among the Nordic countries. Formed in 1952, it has 87 representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as from the autonomo ...

in 1968, and as foreign minister of Norway from 1970 to 1971, and 1981 to 1986.

Background

He was born in

Arendal Arendal () is a municipality in Agder county in southeastern Norway. Arendal belongs to the region of Sørlandet. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Arendal (which is also the seat of Agder county). Some of the not ...

. Stray's parents were Gudmund Stray (1885–1970), a dentist, and Anne Johanne Marie Frøstrup (1893–1975). Svenn Stray graduated from the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top univers ...

with a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers. But while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not confer a license themselves. A legal license is gr ...

in 1946. After having served as a clerk in

Moss, Norway is a coastal town and a municipality in Viken county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Moss. The city of Moss was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt) and City in 1720 ...

, he opened his own practice in Moss in 1950.

Political career

Stray was first elected to local office in Moss in 1955, and he remained active in local politics until 1979. He was elected to Stortinget in 1958. He served continuously in the parliament until 1985, for a total of 27 years, 264 days. Stray was foreign minister twice, from 1970 to 1971, and 1981 to 1986. He died on 20 May 2012 at the age of 90.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Stray, Svenn Foreign Ministers of Norway Government ministers of Norway Norwegian diplomats Conservative Party (Norway) politicians Members of the Storting Vice Presidents of the Storting 20th-century Norwegian politicians Politicians from Arendal 1922 births 2012 deaths