Johan Olaus Søhr
MVO (né Sørensen; 6 September 1867 – 1 January 1949) was a Norwegian jurist and police officer. Commonly known as Joh. Søhr.
Personal life
Søhr was born in Oterøy,
Sannidal
Sannidal is a former municipality which is now located in the municipality of Kragerø in Telemark county, Norway.
History
Sannidal is situated at the end of the Kil fjord. For this reason it was one of the earliest settlements in the area, bein ...
, as the son of farmer and ship owner Johan Christian Sørensen and Ellen Kathrine Sørensen. He was married to Margit Mosgaard. In 1914 he changed his name from Sørensen to Søhr. He died in
Bærum
Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electoral ...
in 1949.
Career
Søhr
finished
Finished may refer to:
* ''Finished'' (novel), a 1917 novel by H. Rider Haggard
* ''Finished'' (film), a 1923 British silent romance film
* "Finished" (short story), a science fiction short story by L. Sprague de Camp
See also
*Finishing (disa ...
his secondary education in
Kristiania
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...
in 1885. He studied 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- ...
, and then Law at the
University of Kristiania, graduating as
cand.jur.
Candidate of Law (Latin: ''candidatus/candidata juris/iuris'') is both a graduate law degree awarded to law students in the Nordic region as well as an academic status designation for advanced Law School students in German-speaking countries.
...
in 1890. His first assignments were in
Søndre Bergenhus and in
Østerdalen
Østerdalen () is a valley and traditional district in Innlandet county, in Eastern Norway. This area typically is described as the large Glåma river valley as well as all its tributary valleys. It includes the municipalities Rendalen, Alvdal, F ...
. He started working for the Kristiania Police in 1896, and as police inspector from 1906 to 1913.
[ He was chief of the criminal department of the Kristiania Police from 1913 to 1925.]World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
he was responsible for the investigation of several espionage cases.[ Among these were the ]Otto von Rosen
Otto Carl Robert von Rosen (11 May 1884–26 May 1963) was a Swedish military officer and sport shooter who participated in sabotage attacks during the First World War.
Baron Von Rosen was born in Solna, Sweden. He is reported to have been a ch ...
case, which involved confiscation of explosives, bottles with the toxin curare
Curare ( /kʊˈrɑːri/ or /kjʊˈrɑːri/; ''koo-rah-ree'' or ''kyoo-rah-ree'') is a common name for various alkaloid arrow poisons originating from plant extracts. Used as a paralyzing agent by indigenous peoples in Central and South ...
, and anthrax bacteria,[
From 1925 to 1937 Søhr was Chief of Police of Aker. In 1938 he published the book ''Spioner og bomber. Fra opdagelsespolitiets arbeide under verdenskrigen'', an account of the espionage cases during World War I. He was decorated Knight, First Class of the ]Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav
Royal may refer to:
People
* Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name
* A member of a royal family
Places United States
* Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Royal, Illinois, a village
* Royal, Iowa, a ci ...
in 1917, and was also Knight of the Swedish Order of the Polar Star
The Royal Order of the Polar Star (Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim.
The Order of the ...
.[ He was decorated Knight of the French ]Légion d'honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
, Officer of the Dutch Order of Orange-Nassau
The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands.
The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...
, and received the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
and the Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...
.
Bibliography
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Soehr, Johan
1867 births
1949 deaths
People from Kragerø
Norwegian Military Academy alumni
University of Oslo alumni
Norwegian police chiefs
Norwegian non-fiction writers
Espionage writers
Norwegian memoirists
Knights of the Order of the Polar Star
Knights of the Legion of Honour
Honorary Members of the Order of the British Empire
Honorary Members of the Royal Victorian Order
Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau