Jørgen Blydt (14 March 1868 – 28 April 1938) was a Norwegian businessperson and politician for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

. He ran for parliamentary election in all four of

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

county's constituencies at the time—

Kalfaret Kalfaret is a neighborhood in the city of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway. The neighborhood is located in the borough of Bergenhus, just north of the Store Lungegårdsvannet bay, east of the city centre. The area is an affluent neighborhood, a ...

Nordnes Nordnes is a peninsula and neighbourhood in the city centre of Bergen in Vestland county, Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The ...

Sandviken Sandviken is a locality and the seat of Sandviken Municipality in Gävleborg County, Sweden with 26,438 inhabitants in 2023. It is situated about 25 km west of Gävle and lies approximately 190 km north of Stockholm. The rail journey t ...

and Nygaard—and served two terms as an MP (1900–1903 and 1916–1918). He ran a company with his brother-in-law, was a stock exchange commissary, and from 1932 to 1938 he was the Chancellor of the Order Council.

Career

He was born in

as a son of merchant Hans Schultz Blydt (1830–1916) and Maren Breder Hagelsteen (1834–1870). He finished Bergen Commerce School before taking education in France, England and Belgium between 1886 and 1889. He took over his father's company which traded in fishing and angling tools in 1891, and ran it together with his brother-in-law Hjalmar Grung as ''Blydt & Grung''. He retired in 1929. From 1912 he was also a commissary for Bergen Stock Exchange. He was a member of Bergen city council, and was first elected to the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list proportional represe ...

1899 Events January * January 1 ** Spanish rule formally ends in Cuba with the cession of Spanish sovereignty to the U.S., concluding 400 years of the Spanish Empire in the Americas.''The American Monthly Review of Reviews'' (February 1899), p ...

from the plural-member constituency Bergen. In the

1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...

he ran in the single-member constituency

, and was elected deputy as the running mate of

Johan Ludwig Mowinckel Johan Ludwig Mowinckel (22 October 1870 – 30 September 1943) was a Norwegian statesman, shipping magnate and philanthropist. He served as the prime minister of Norway during three separate terms. Biography Johan Ludwig Mowinckel was born in B ...

. The race was unusually close, with Mowinckel/Blydt edging out Lothe/ Hanssen of the Coalition Party with 932 against 914 votes. In

1909 Events January–February * January 4 – Explorer Aeneas Mackintosh of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition escapes death by fleeing across ice floes. * January 7 – Colombia recognizes the independence of Panama. * Janu ...

Blydt ran in

, but finished third behind Konow and Hopp. In

1912 This year is notable for Sinking of the Titanic, the sinking of the ''Titanic'', which occurred on April 15. In Albania, this leap year runs with only 353 days as the country achieved switching from the Julian to Gregorian Calendar by skippin ...

Blydt ran in

, and finished second behind Labour's

Lars Sæbø Lars Olsen Sæbø (24 February 1866 – 1941) was a Norwegian trade unionist and politician for the Labour Party. He was born in Sæbø as a son of farmers Ole Johnsen Sæbø og Magdali Olsen. He took shoemaker's training and had his own shoema ...

. In the 1915 parliamentary election, Blydt ran in the last of Bergen's four constituencies, Nygaard, in the first round. He finished second (with 2,446 votes) behind Labour's S. K. Tjønneland (2,563 votes) but ahead of Conservative Henrik Ameln (2,056 votes). A runoff vote had to be held. However, both Blydt and Tjønneland were pulled from the race. The reason was that Blydt had run in Sandviken as well, and though finishing second behind Lars Sæbø again, he managed to reach the runoff here. In this runoff, Blydt won the seat with 3,836 votes against Sæbø's 3,429. He thus served a second term as an MP, and like fifteen years prior, he was a member of the Standing Committee on Trade. Particularly during the First World War he was a member of numerous committees that sprang up as the state needed more control over enterprise. He chaired one of these committees, the Coal Provisioning Committee of 1917. He chaired Bergen Commercial Association for five years, and Bergen Chamber of Commerce from 1915 to 1926. Nationally, he was a board member of Den Norske Handelsstands Fællesforening from 1909 to 1916, and he was also a council member of the

International Chamber of Commerce The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC; French: ''Chambre de commerce internationale'') is the largest, most representative business organization in the world. ICC represents over 45 million businesses in over 170 countries who have interest ...

. He was a board member of

Bergens Kreditbank Bergens Kreditbank was a Norwegian commercial bank based in Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norw ...

(1906–1922), Fiskeribanken (1921–1936), Norges Oplysningskontor for Næringsveiene and the Norwegian America Line. He was a council member of the Chr. Michelsen Institute and a supervisory committee member of the

Bergen Line The Bergen Line, or the Bergen Railway ( or ), is a long scenic overlook, scenic standard gauge railway line between Bergen and Hønefoss, Norway. The name is often applied to the entire route from Bergen to Oslo, including the Randsfjord Line ...

. In culture, he was a board member of

Den Nationale Scene Den Nationale Scene () is the largest theatre in Bergen, Norway. Den Nationale Scene is also one of the oldest permanent theatres in Norway. History Opened under the name '' Det Norske Theater'' in 1850, the theatre has roots dating back to its ...

from 1913 to 1931, chairing it for the last two years. He was a member of the Order Council, which rewards the

Order of St. Olav The Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav (; or ''Sanct Olafs Orden'', the old Norwegian name) is a Norwegian order of chivalry instituted by King Oscar I on 21 August 1847. It is named after King Olav II, known to posterity as St. Olav. Just be ...

, from 1925, and served as vice chancellor in 1931 and chancellor from 1932 to his death in 1938.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blydt, Joergen 1868 births 1938 deaths Businesspeople from Bergen Liberal Party (Norway) politicians Members of the Storting Members of the Storting 1900–1903 Politicians from Bergen