Gerhard Munthe (4 January 1795,

Hafslo Hafslo is a Former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the old Sogn og Fjordane Counties of Norway, county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1963. It is located in the present-day Luster Municipal ...

- 15 December 1876, Luster) was a Norwegian military officer, historian and

cartographer Cartography (; from grc, χάρτης , "papyrus, sheet of paper, map"; and , "write") is the study and practice of making and using maps. Combining science, aesthetics and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality (or an im ...

Biography

He was born to Major Hartvig Kaas Munthe (1766–1830) and his wife, Bolette Christine, née Pavels (1774–1861), the daughter of a minister. He began attending the war school in Christiania (Oslo) in 1807 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 1811. That same year, he was retained by the

Norwegian Mapping and Cadastre Authority The Norwegian Mapping Authority (NMA) ( no, Statens kartverk or Kartverket) is Norway's national mapping agency, dealing with land surveying, geodesy, hydrographic surveying, cadastre and cartography. The current director is Johnny Welle. Its ...

. In 1814, he became a First Lieutenant and participated in the Swedish-Norwegian War as a cartographer; mapping the battlefields near

Kongsvinger Kongsvinger () is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Glåmdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Kongsvinger. Other settlements in the municipality include Aust ...

. The following year, he was part of a geographical survey team charged with creating a large

topographical Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...

map of Scandinavia. In 1825, he became Captain of the Bergen Infantry Brigade, but had to resign his commission in 1830, due to problems with his eyesight.Munthe, Sverre, ''Familien Munthe i Norge'', 1994,
Online
/ref> From 1816 to 1841, he was also an instructor at the

Norwegian Military Academy The Norwegian Military Academy (), in Oslo, educates officers of the Norwegian Army and serves as the King's Royal Guard. The academy was established in 1750, and is the oldest institution for higher education in Norway. History The Commander- ...

, where he taught drawing and

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

. In 1836, he became Director of the manuscript collection at the

University of Christiania 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 universit ...

. During this time, he wrote geographical notes for a translation of the

Heimskringla ''Heimskringla'' () is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorre Sturlason (1178/79–1241) 1230. The name ''Heimskringla'' was first used in the 17th century, derived ...

Jacob Aall Jacob Aall (27 July 1773 – 4 August 1844) was a Norwegian politician, historian, landowner and government economist. He was born the son of Nicolai Benjamin Aall (1739-1798), who was a merchant in Porsgrunn, Norway and owner of Ulefos Manor ...

. The visual problems that caused him to resign from the service continued to bother him so, from 1841 until his death, he made his living as a farmer at the family home in

Sogn Sogn is a traditional district in Western Norway ''(Vestlandet)''. It is located in the county of Vestland, surrounding the Sognefjord, the largest/longest fjord in Norway. The district of Sogn consists of the municipalities of Aurland, Balestra ...

. Many artists were regular visitors there, including his nephew, also named

Gerhard Munthe Gerhard Peter Frantz Munthe (19 July 1849 in Elverum, Hedmark – 15 January 1929 in Lysaker, Bærum) was a Norwegian painter and illustrator. Background Munthe was born in Elverum to physician Christopher Pavels Munthe (1816–1884) and his wif ...

. He is probably best remembered for the trips he made with the artist,

Johannes Flintoe Johannes Flintoe (1786/87, Copenhagen - 27 January 1870, Copenhagen) was a Danish-born painter of Norwegian ancestry. He is known for his landscapes, costume studies and historical scenes. His works play a significant role in the transition to rom ...

, through the Norwegian mountains. The first, in 1819, followed a little known route that had recently been explored by the cartographer, Wilhelm Maximilian Carpelan. In the summer of 1822, he and Flintoe made a second trip, to

Hardanger Hardanger is a traditional district in the western part of Norway, dominated by the Hardangerfjord and its inner branches of the Sørfjorden and the Eid Fjord. It consists of the municipalities of Ullensvang, Eidfjord, Ulvik and Kvam, and is l ...

. During the trip, they were joined by the botanist,

Matthias Numsen Blytt Matthias Numsen Blytt (26 April 1789 – 26 June 1862) was a Norwegian botanist. He was born at Overhalla in Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. He attended the University of Christiania (now University of Oslo) and the University of Copenhagen. Blytt was ...

and the architect,

Hans Ditlev Franciscus von Linstow Hans Ditlev Franciscus (Frants) von Linstow (4 May 1787 – 10 June 1851) was a Danish/ Norwegian architect who designed the Royal Palace in Oslo and much of the surrounding park and the street ''Karl Johans gate''. Background Hans Ditlev Fran ...

.Messel, Nils, ''Oppdagelsen av fjellet'', 2008, Nasjonalmuseet for kunst, arkitektur og design,
Online
/ref> He was married four times; to Thora Hansen (1810–1842), then to her sister, Ragnhild Susanne Hansen (1812–1853), followed by Catharine Pauline Suhrland (1823–1869) and Dora Kiønig (1837–1927). In addition to his nephew Gerhard, several other nephews and nieces were famous; notably the engineer,

Hartvig Andreas Munthe Hartvig Andreas Munthe (9 December 1845 – 17 June 1905) was a Norwegian military officer, engineer and genealogist. Personal life He was born in Elverum as a son of physician Christopher Pavels Munthe (1816–1884). He was an older brother of p ...

, the writer, Margrethe Munthe, and the historian,

Carl Oscar Munthe Carl Oscar Munthe (12 December 1861 – 20 December 1952) was a Norwegian military officer and historian. Personal life He was born in Elverum as a son of physician Christopher Pavels Munthe (1816–1884). He was a younger brother of historian an ...

References

External links

Biography
in ''Salmonsens konversationsleksikon'' @

Projekt Runeberg Project Runeberg ( sv, Projekt Runeberg) is a digital cultural archive initiative that publishes free electronic versions of books significant to the culture and history of the Nordic countries. Patterned after Project Gutenberg, it was founded ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Munthe, Gerhard 1795 births 1876 deaths Norwegian military personnel 19th-century Norwegian historians Norwegian cartographers People from Luster, Norway