Karl Sigwald Johannes Bull (30 June 1860 – 27 December 1936) 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 ...

military officer and politician for the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. He is best known as the Norwegian Minister of Defence from 1910 to 1912.

Personal life

He was born 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 o ...

as the son of military officer and politician

Anders Sandøe Ørsted Bull Anders Sandøe Ørsted Bull (13 September 1817 – 15 April 1907) was a Norwegian civil servant and government minister. He served as acting Minister of the Army in 1875 (twice), 1881 and 1884. He also served as mayor of Oslo in 1877 and 1878. B ...

and his wife Caroline Elisabeth Dahl. Also, he was a grandson of Supreme Court Justice

Georg Jacob Bull Georg Jacob Bull (born 1 August 1785 in Christiania, died 12 December 1854) was a Norwegian jurist and politician. He was a stipendiary magistrate (''byfogd'') of Bergen from 1810 to 1821. While stationed here, he was elected to the Norwegian P ...

, a great-grandson of Chief Justice

Johan Randulf Bull Johan Randulf Bull (29 April 1749 – 28 February 1829) was a Norwegian judge. He was born in Stod, as the brother of Johan Lausen Bull. He took the jurist examination in Copenhagen in 1778, and was a member of ''Det Norske Selskab'' there ...

, a great-grandnephew of

Johan Lausen Bull Johan Lausen Bull (14 May 1751 – 29 July 1817) was a Norwegian jurist, politician and land owner. Tøyen Manor He was born in Stod in Nord-Trøndelag, Norway. He was the son of Captain Jørgen Andreas Bull (1703–1764) and Dorothea Catharina W ...

and a first cousin of chief physician Edvard Isak Hambro Bull. His son Georg Jacob Falck Bull (1892–1977) became a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Career

He graduated from officer's school in 1880, held the rank of second lieutenant from 1880 and premier lieutenant from 1883. In 1889 he was promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. He worked for 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 h ...

(then known as ''Den geografiske opmaaling'') from 1889 to 1891, and as a teacher at the Norwegian Military College from 1891 to 1907. He was known as a writer of military literature. From 1905 Bull held 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 colon ...

in the army, and at the Negotiations in Karlstad in the same year, he was present as a Norwegian military representative. On 2 February 1910, when the cabinet Konow assumed office, Bull was appointed as the new

Minister of Defence A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

. He held this position until 19 February 1912, when the cabinet resigned. He returned to his military career. In 1911 he had been promoted to

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

and chief of the Fourth Infantry Regiment of East Akershus. He died in December 1936.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bull, Karl Sigwald Johannes 1860 births 1936 deaths Norwegian Army personnel Conservative Party (Norway) politicians Military personnel from Oslo Defence ministers of Norway Politicians from Oslo