Christian Molbech (8 October 1783 – 23 June 1857) was a Danish

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the stu ...

, literary critic, writer, and theater director. He was a professor of literature at the University of Copenhagen and was the founding editor of ''Historisk Tidsskrift

Early life and education

Christian Molbech was born and raised at

Sorø Sorø () is a town in Sorø municipality in Region Sjælland on the island of Zealand (''Sjælland'') in east Denmark. The population is 7,999 (2022).

on the island of Zealand in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. He was the son of professor at

Sorø Academy Sorø Academy (Danish, ''Sorø Akademi'') is a boarding school and gymnasium located in the small town of Sorø, Denmark. It traces its history back to the 12th century when Bishop Absalon founded a monastery at the site, which was confiscated by ...

Johan Christian Molbech (1744-1824) and his wife Louise Philippine Friederike Tübell (1760-1829). He graduated from Sorø Academy in 1802.

Career

Molbech was employed at the

Royal Danish Library The Royal Library ( da, Det Kongelige Bibliotek) in Copenhagen is the national library of Denmark and the university library of the University of Copenhagen. It is among the largest libraries in the world and the largest in the Nordic countries ...

in 1804. He was thus never formally trained as a historian. In 1829 he succeeded

Knud Lyne Rahbek Knud Lyne Rahbek (18 December 1760 – 22 April 1830) was a Denmark, Danish literary historian, critic, writer, poet and magazine editor. Biography Knud Lyne Rahbek was the son of clergyman . He had always wanted to become an actor. In his yout ...

as professor of literature at the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

. He also functioned as the director of the

Royal Danish Theatre The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first ser ...

from 1830 to 1842. In 1839 he participated in the founding of the Danish Historical Society (''Den danske historiske Forening''). In 1840, he was founder and first editor of '' Historisk Tidsskrift'', which is the oldest still published scientific historical journal in the world. Molbech also wrote various philological works, including "The Danish Dictionary" (''Dansk Ordbog'') 1828–1833 and the "Danish Dialect Dictionary" (''Dansk Dialektleksikon'') 1833-1841. ''Om public Bibliotheker'' (1829) was a pioneering work in library science. Furthermore he wrote the "Historical Annals for Enlightenment and Education in the History of the North, specifically the History of Denmark" (''Historiske Aarbøger til Oplysning og Veiledning i Nordens, særdeles Danmarks Historie I-III'') in 3 volumes between 1845–1851, which was meant as a reference work for historians and which was groundbreaking in the establishment of the chronology of Danish history.

Personal life

Molbech met Johanne Christine Langberg (April 1793 - 24 July 1879) at

Bakkehuset Bakkehuset ( lit. "''The Hill House'') is a historic house museum on Rahbeks Allé in the Frederiksberg district of Copenhagen, Denmark. Dating from the 1520s, it has served a number of functions over the years, including as a farmhouse, inn, priv ...

in Copenhagen which was owned by Knud Lyne Rahbek and his wife Kamma Rahbek. They married on 23 October 1820. She was the daughter of ''dispachør'' and later ''justitsråd'' Knud Engelbreth Langberg (1760-1833) and Birgitte Marie Jacobsen (c. 1769-1829). They were the parents of poet Christian Knud Frederik Molbech (1821-1888). Christian Molbech was a member of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters and was made a Commander First Class of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

in 1853. He died in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

and was buried at Sorø Gamle Kirkegård.

References

Other Sources

* Morten Borup (1954) ''Christian Molbech'' (Copenhagen: Rosenkilde & Bagger)

External links

Danish Biographical Encyclopedia, volume XI
1. edition 1887-1905. {{DEFAULTSORT:Molbech, Christian 1783 births 1857 deaths People from Sorø Municipality Academic staff of the University of Copenhagen Danish magazine editors 19th-century Danish historians Danish literary critics Danish male writers Danish theatre managers and producers Commanders First Class of the Order of the Dannebrog Members of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters