Olaus Michael Schmidt
Olaus Michael Schmidt (11 July 1784 – 5 July 1851) was a Norwegian judge and politician. A Supreme Court Assessor by profession, he served one term in the Norwegian Parliament, and was the Minister of Justice and the Police for four non-consecutive terms between 1838 and 1848.
Personal life
Schmidt was born in Trondhjem[1] as the son of Claus Pedersen Schmidt and Johanne Christine Beck.[2] Claus was originally from Flensborg in Slesvig. Olaus had several brothers, including the Constitutional Founding Father Peter Schmidt, Jr..[3]
In 1816 he married Sophie Magdalene Carite Sommerfeldt, who hailed from Østre Toten. She was the daughter of Christian Sommerfeldt and Anna Sophie Hagerup.[2] On the paternal side she was a niece of politician Ole Hannibal Sommerfeldt and an aunt of Karl Linné Sommerfeldt and priest and politician Christian Sommerfeldt. On the maternal side she was a first cousin of Wolfgang Wenzel von Haffner.
Career
Olaus Michael Schmidt enrolled as a student in 1801, and graduated with the cand.theol. degree in 1806. He was hired as a school teacher, but left this job in 1810 to study law at the University of Copenhagen.[3] He graduated with the cand.jur. degree in 1812.[1] He became an assessor in the district court of Christianssand in 1817, and was promoted to Chief Justice at the same place in 1828.[3] He had been elected to the Parliament of Norway in 1827, to represent his city. He only served one term.[4] In 1829 he became national Supreme Court Assessor.[1]
However, he was not finished on national political scene. On 22 January 1838 he was appointed Minister of Justice and the Police. He held this post until 1 July the same year, when he was appointed as a member of the Council of State Division in Stockholm. On 1 August 1839 he returned as Minister of Justice. On 1 September 1842 he returned to serve one year in Stockholm. He then got his third spell as Minister of Justice from 1 September 1843 to 1 April 1845. One final tenure in Stockholm followed; he then returned to Norway to become Minister of Finance and Customs from 1 May 1846 to 1 July 1847, and then Minister of Justice for the fourth time, from 1847 to 18 April 1848.[4] He then retired.[3]
Olaus Michael Schmidt died in 1851 in Töplitz, three years after the death of his wife.[2]
References
- 1 2 3 Henriksen, Petter, ed. (2007). "Olaus Michael Schmidt". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Oslo: Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 3 December 2010.
- 1 2 3 Genealogy
- 1 2 3 4 Personalhistorie for Trondhjems by og omegn i et tidsrum af circa 1 1/2 aarhundrede, by Chr. Thaulow. Hosted by Trondheim public library.
- 1 2 Olaus Michael Schmidt – Norwegian Social Science Data Services (NSD)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Poul Christian Holst |
Norwegian Minister of Justice and the Police January 1838–June 1838 |
Succeeded by Valentin Sibbern |
| Preceded by Valentin Sibbern |
Norwegian Minister of Justice and the Police 1839–1842 |
Succeeded by Valentin Sibbern |
| Preceded by Valentin Sibbern |
Norwegian Minister of Justice and the Police 1843–1845 |
Succeeded by Hans Christian Petersen |
| Preceded by Jørgen Herman Vogt |
Norwegian Minister of Finance and Customs 1846–1847 |
Succeeded by Jørgen Herman Vogt |
| Preceded by Hans Christian Petersen |
Norwegian Minister of Justice and the Police 1847–1848 |
Succeeded by Søren Sørenssen |