Sophus Peter Lassenius SchackSophus Schack , Art Auction Results
/ref> was a Danish painter and officer who served in the

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and

Second Schleswig War The Second Schleswig War ( da, Krigen i 1864; german: Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War was the second military conflict over the Schleswig-Holstein Question of the nineteenth century. T ...

Biography

Military career

Schack was the son of barrister Gregers Schack. He became a cadet 1821 and promoted to second lieutenant in 1830 and in 1838 was characterized later in the following year as a true first lieutenant but was dismissed as early as 1842. However, he rejoined in July 1848 again as captain of the Third Reserve Battalion and participated 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, ...

. In 1849 he became a

Knight of Dannebrog A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...

. In 1860 he became captain guard in

Rendsburg Rendsburg ( da, Rendsborg, also ''Rensborg'', nds, Rendsborg, also ''Rensborg'') is a town on the River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the central part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the ''Kreis'' (district) of Rendsburg-Ecke ...

and in the same year was promoted to major. Schack would later participate as a major and battalion commander in the

, and after being badly wounded on 18 April during the

Battle of Dybbøl The Battle of Dybbøl ( da, Slaget ved Dybbøl; german: Erstürmung der Düppeler Schanzen) was the key battle of the Second Schleswig War, fought between Denmark and Prussia. The battle was fought on the morning of 18 April 1864, following ...

, he died on 21 April at a hospital 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 ...

Painting career

Schack had shown interest in art from his youth, but could only, after being an officer for some years, sacrifice himself more calmly for his art studies. At the same time as he gained access to

Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg (2 January 1783 – 22 July 1853) was a Danish painter. He was born in Blåkrog in the Southern Jutland region of Denmark. He went on to lay the foundation for the period of art known as the Golden Age of Dani ...

's painting school, he visited the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts ( da, Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi - Billedkunst Skolerne) has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Dani ...

from 1835 to 1840 and won both its silver medals.Kunstindeks Danmark & Weilbachs kunstnerleksikon
/ref>Sophus Schack - The Archive, Thorvaldsens Museum
/ref> He himself had perceived himself in relation to art as a dilettante, but now considered himself an artist, notwithstanding that, despite his diligence, his formation, and his unmistakable love of art, he did not reach any high place. He exhibited partly portraits and genre pictures, partly biblical pictures on topics of the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

. His pieces were inspired from Eckersberg's works and was even encouraged by

Christian VIII Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814. Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Frederi ...

himself. From 1844 to 45, Schack was given two years of travel support for the academy for

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and Sardinia–Piedmont; he had also been commissioned to produce an altarpiece, ''Christi Bjærgprædiken'', which was only delivered after the king's death, and a large picture for Christian VIII's and Queen Caroline Amalie's Coronation.Sophus Schack
/ref> His works are preserved at

Kronborg Kronborg is a castle and stronghold in the town of Helsingør, Denmark. Immortalized as Elsinore in William Shakespeare's play ''Hamlet'', Kronborg is one of the most important Renaissance castles in Northern Europe and was inscribed on the UNES ...

. Schack later published a couple of volumes of ''Physiognomic Studies'' (1858–59), in which his best qualities as an artist were associated with a spirited gift of production as a writer.

Personal life and legacy

Schack married Vilhelmine Bothilde Olsen (1826-1900) in 1853, daughter of Colonel and cartographer Oluf Nicolai Olsen. Their daughter Laura Cathrine Marie Schack married the painter Ole Pedersen on 28 November 1890 in Copenhagen. He was buried in Garrison Cemetery. There is a self-portrait from 1859 (formerly in Johan Hansen's collection), a pen drawing by

Vilhelm Rosenstand Vilhelm Jacob Rosenstand (31 July 1838 – 11 March 1915) was a Danish painter and illustrator. His best known work is a mural decorating the banqueting hall in the University of Copenhagen. Biography Born in Copenhagen, Rosenstand attended the ...

( Camp scene ) 1863 ( Frederiksborg Museum), a portrait of the woodcuts Fallen Officers in 1864 and Fallen at Dybbøl, a woodcut drawing in 1864 by

Henrik Olrik Ole Henrik Benedictus Olrik (24 May 1830 – 2 January 1890) was a Danish painter, sculptor and applied artist. Early life and education Henrik Olrik, born in Copenhagen, was son of customs inspector Henrik Johan Ludvig Olrik and Benedicte Marti ...

and a Lithograph in 1867 by Edvard Fortling.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schack, Sophus 1811 births 1864 deaths 19th-century Danish military personnel People of the First Schleswig War Artists from Copenhagen Danish military personnel of the Second Schleswig War Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog Danish military personnel killed in action