Johannes Helms (8 November 1828 – 4 December 1895) was a Danish writer and schoolmaster who experienced the Three Years' War firsthand.

Biography

Helms was born in the rectory of Sørbymagle County. His father, Søren Bagger Helms (1788–1872), was the local rector and his mother, Nicoline Marie Zeuthen (1789–1870), was her husband's second wife. Four of the couples sons were present in Schleswig-Holstein during the battles in 1864 and subsequently published their experiences. He graduated from

Frederiksborg Gymnasium Frederiksborg may refer to: * Frederiksborg Castle, in Hillerød, Denmark * Frederiksborg, former name of Hillerød, a municipality to the north of Copenhagen, Denmark * Frederiksborg County, former county on the island of Zealand in Denmark * Fort ...

in 1847 and continued onto Philology 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 ...

that same year. At the time he was a member of the (a military unit made up of university students and a de facto competitor/substitute for the Copenhagen police). In March 1850 he joined the Danish army partaking in the nationalistic frenzy erupting in those months. He was promoted to (sergeant) before the

Battle of Fredericia The Battle of Fredericia was fought between soldiers of Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark on 6 July 1849 at Fredericia in Denmark. The battle was a part of the First Schleswig War, which was a conflict between Schleswig-Holstein, supported by sever ...

and received the Silver Cross for his actions there. He returned to his studies two-and-a-half year later and continued as a member of the Student Guard for the remainder of his student-period. In 1856, after working as a private teacher, Johannes became teacher at the judiciary school of Slesvig. He had to leave this position due to the War of 1864. In 1867 he was appointed headmaster of at

Christianshavn Christianshavn (literally, "ingChristian's Harbour") is a neighbourhood in Copenhagen, Denmark. Part of the Indre By District, it is located on several artificial islands between the islands of Zealand and Amager and separated from the rest of th ...

, a position he held until his death. In 1887 he became honorary doctor at the university and in 1892 he was elected a member of the

Copenhagen City Council The Copenhagen City Council (Danish: ) is the municipal government of Copenhagen, Denmark, and has its seat at Copenhagen City Hall. The city council is Copenhagen's highest political authority and sets the framework for the committees' tasks. ...

. In July 1875 he accepted two of the first female students in Denmark:

Nielsine Nielsen Nielsine Nielsen (10 June 1850 – 8 October 1916) was the first female academic and physician in Denmark. She graduated in 1885 and in 1889 she established her own medical practice and worked as a general practitioner. She was active in the gend ...

and Marie Gleerup, who were graduated by Ludvig Trier 9 July 1877. He was succeeded as headmaster by his son-in-law, Peter C.G. Leuning.

Legacy

His song "" ("I love the green meadows") is a well-known staple in Danish song books and was featured in the TV series ''

Matador A bullfighter (or matador) is a performer in the activity of bullfighting. ''Torero'' () or ''toureiro'' (), both from Latin ''taurarius'', are the Spanish and Portuguese words for bullfighter and describe all the performers in the activit ...

''. The text was translated into

Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communi ...

in the 1920s. ('A Soldier's Life in War and Peace') was reprinted and published in an edited version on the 150-year anniversary of the breakout of the war in 1848.

Works

* ('Some Verses'), published in 1856. * ('A Soldier's Life in War and Peace'), published in 1875, is a general recount of his personal story as a soldier in the

First Schleswig War The First Schleswig War (german: Schleswig-Holsteinischer Krieg) was a military conflict in southern Denmark and northern Germany rooted in the Schleswig-Holstein Question, contesting the issue of who should control the Duchies of Schleswig, ...

. * "The Childhood and Adolescence of Vestre Borgerdyd School" published in 1884. * ('Stories and Poems, Songs and Verses') published in 1888, a compilation of his lyrical works and a now-rare Danish account of the events in Slesvig of January and February 1864. * : a fictionalized account of incidents happening in and around Gribskov in North Zealand during the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

. Helms' own foreword claims the names as having been altered for anonymity; the story centers around the folkloric figures "Mother Grib" and "Brother Rus" and the attested slavery and piracy in North Zealand in the beginning of the century as well as forging a link to the legendary disappearance of

Nólsoyar Páll Nólsoyar Páll (originally, Poul Poulsen Nolsøe) (11 October 1766 – 1808 or 1809) is a Faroese national hero. He was a seaman, trader, poet, farmer and boat builder who tried to develop direct trade between the Faroes and the rest of Eu ...

Literature

* Leif Ludwig Albertsen: "" in: ''Danske Studier'', 1968, pp. 120–125.

External links

Johannes Helms at ''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon''

Text of Helms' poem "En Svensk Konstabel Fra Sverrig"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helms, Johannes 1828 births 1895 deaths Danish educators Danish male writers 19th-century Copenhagen City Council members University of Copenhagen alumni People from Slagelse Municipality