Sophus Christensen (22 January 1848 – 24 January 1920) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

military officer.

Personal life

He was born in

Sandefjord Sandefjord () is a city and the most populous municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county, Norway. The municipality of Sandefjord was established on 1 January 1838. The municipality of Sandar was merged into Sandefjord on 1 January 1969. On 1 ...

as a son of ship-owner and merchant Søren Lorents Christensen (1810–1862) and Othilie Juliane Kruge (1820–1903). He was a younger brother of physician and politician

Julius Christensen Julius Christensen (6 December 1840 – 19 October 1923) was a Norwegian doctor and politician for the Conservative Party. He was born in Sandefjord as a son of ship-owner and merchant Søren Lorents Christensen (1810–1862) and Othilie Juliane ...

and whaler Christen Christensen. Through the former he was a brother-in-law of

Dorothea Christensen Dorothea von der Lippe Christensen, née Frost (19 December 1847 – 28 February 1908) was a Norwegian domestic science proponent and politician. Early and personal life She was born in Veøy as a daughter of vicar Christian Frost (1810–1862) a ...

, and through the latter an uncle of

Lars Christensen Lars Christensen (6 April 1884 – 10 December 1965) was a Norwegian shipowner and whaling magnate. He was also a philanthropist with a keen interest in the exploration of Antarctica. Career Lars Christensen was born at Sandar in Vestfold, Norw ...

.''Hvem er hvem?'' 1912
pp. 47–48 In 1894 he married physician's daughter Margrethe Castberg Ebbesen from Sandefjord. She was a daughter of mayor

Jørgen Tandberg Ebbesen Jørgen Tandberg Ebbesen (11 December 1812 – 16 July 1887) was a Norwegian politician for the Conservative Party. Jørgen Tandberg Ebbesen was born in Fredrikstad as the son of Hans Christian Ebbesen (1774–1858) and Abigael Marie Bing (1785– ...

. The couple settled in

Langesund is the administrative centre of the municipalities of Norway, municipality of Bamble, Norway. The town of Langesund was established as a municipality 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). It was merged with Bamble 1 January 1964. In the ...

Career

Christensen became an officer in 1870, and after attending the Central School in Kristiania and Stockholm in 1874–1875 he reached the rank of Premier Lieutenant. He notably participated in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. His main career was in Norway, though, and via Captain in 1889 he reached the rank of

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in 1902. He belonged to the Sixth Brigade, then the First Brigade from 1906. He retired from active service in 1908. He was among the founders of the interest organization Norges Forsvarsforening in 1886, was active here, and wrote prolifically for the reconstruction and expansion of Norway's armed forces. Pieces include ''Om den norske Hærs Krigsdygtighed'' (1880), ''Nationen og Armeen'' (1898), ''Infanteriets øvelser og sagkyndigheden'' (1898), ''Legemsøvelser i folkeskolen'' (1900) and ''Forsvarets Genrejsning'' (1901). In ''Nationen og Armeen'', he argued that war in itself was a necessary

baptism by fire The phrase baptism by fire or baptism of fire is a Christian theological concept originating from the words of John the Baptist in Matthew 3:11. It also has related meanings in military history and popular culture. Christianity The term ''bapti ...

, and that war contributed to the evolution of mankind. He became often referred to by the Norwegian labour movement, since he proposed budget increases that the labour movement thought too high. He was decorated as a Commander of the Order of St. Olav and a Knight, Second Class of the

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Order of St. Anna The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holst ...

and the

Order of Saint Stanislaus The Order of Saint Stanislaus ( pl, Order Św. Stanisława Biskupa Męczennika, russian: Орден Святого Станислава), also spelled Stanislas, was a Polish order of knighthood founded in 1765 by King Stanisław August Ponia ...

. Christensen died in January 1920 and was buried in Sandar. A memorial stone was raised at his grave by "Friends of the Norwegian Defence".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christensen, Sophus 1848 births 1920 deaths People from Sandefjord Norwegian Army personnel Russian military personnel of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) Norwegian non-fiction writers Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class