Jonas Lauritz Lie (1833 - 1908)

Born 6 Nov 1833 in Hokksund, Buskerud, Norway

Ancestors

Husband of Thomasine Henriette Lie — married 26 May 1860 in Oslo, Norway

Died 5 Jul 1908 at age 74 in Sandvika, Akershus, Norway

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Biography

Jonas Lie was a Norwegian writer, poet and playwright who, along with Henrick Ibsen, Bjørnsterne Bjørnson and Alexander Kielland, was one of the four great writers of 19th century Norwegian literature. King Oscar II of Norway awarded him the Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav in 1904.^[1]

He was born Jonas Lauritz Idmil on 6 November 1833 in Eiker, Buskerud, the son of Mons Lie and Pauline Christine. He was baptized 26 May 1834 at Eiker.^[2] "In 1838, his father being appointed sheriff of Tromsö, the family removed to that Arctic town. Here the future novelist enjoyed an untrammelled childhood among the shipping of the little Nordland capital, and gained acquaintance with the wild seafaring life which he was afterwards to describe. In 1846 he was sent to the naval school at Frederiksvaern, but his extreme near-sight unfitted him for the service, and he was transferred to the Latin school at Bergen. In 1851 he went to the university of Christiania, where Ibsen and Björnson were among his fellow-students. Jonas Lie, however, showed at this time no inclination to literature. He pursued his studies as a lawyer, took his degrees in law in 1858, and settled down to practice as a solicitor in the little town of Kongsvinger."^[3]

Jonas married his cousin, Thomasine Henriette 26 May 1860 in Oslo.^[4] They were the parents of five children, two of whom died in infancy. The children who survived into adulthood were the diplomat Michael Strøm Lie (1862-1934), the writer Mons Lie *1864-1931) and Erik Røring Møinichen Lie (1869-1943).

At the time of the 1865 Norway Census, Jonas and his wife were living in Kongsvinger, Hedmark, where he was working as an attorney. The household included Jonas, age 33, and Thomasine, age 33, along with their children: Asta Lie, age 5 and born in Kongsvinger; Mikael Strøm, age 3 and born in Kongsvinger; Mons, age 2 born in Kongsvinger; and Ingeborg Bergitte, age 1, born in Kongsvinger. Also living in the household were four servants: Rønne Hansdatter, Helga Christiansdatter, Alette Nilsen and Embret Olsen.^[5]

"In 1866 he published his first book, a volume of poems. He made unlucky speculations in wood, and the consequent financial embarrassment induced him to return to Christiania to try his luck as a man of letters. As a journalist he had no success, but in 1870 he published a melancholy little romance, Den Fremsynte (Eng. trans., The Visionary, 1894), which made him famous. Lie proceeded to Rome, and published Tales in 1871 and Tremasteren “Fremtiden” (Eng. trans., The Barque “Future,” Chicago, 1879), a novel, in 1872. His first great book, however, was Lodsen og hans Hustru (The Pilot and his Wife, 1874), which placed him at the head of Norwegian novelists; it was written in the little town of Rocca di Papa in the Albano mountains. From that time Lie enjoyed, with Björnson and Ibsen, a stipend as poet from the Norwegian government. Lie spent the next few years partly in Dresden, partly in Stuttgart, with frequent summer excursions to Berchtesgaden in the Bavarian highlands"^[6]

At the time of the 1875 census, Jonas and Thomasine were living in Oslo at 4 Grev Wedels Plads. Jonas's occupation was listed as poet. Living in the household were Jonas, born 1833; Thomasine, 1834; Asta, 1861; Michael Strøm, 1862; Mons, 1864; and Erik Røring Møinichen, 1868, in Oslo. The family also had two servants, Rønne Hansen and Else Mathilde Ericksen.^[7]

"During his exile he produced the drama in verse called Faustina Strozzi (1876). Returning to Norway, Lie began a series of romances of modern life in Christiania, of which Thomas Ross (1878) and Adam Schroder (1879) were the earliest. He returned to Germany, and settled first in Dresden again, then in Hamburg, until 1882, when he took up his abode in Paris, where he lived in close retirement in the society of Scandinavian friends. His summers were spent at Berchtesgaden in Tirol. The novels of his German period are Rutland (1881) and Gaa paa (“Go Ahead!” 1882), tales of life in the Norwegian merchant navy. His subsequent works, produced with great regularity, enjoyed an immense reputation in Norway. Among the best of them are: Livsslaven (1883, Eng. trans., “One of Life's Slaves,” 1895); Familjen paa Gilje (“The Family of Gilje,” 1883); Malstroem (1885), describing the gradual ruin of a Norwegian family; Et Samliv (“Life in Common,” 1887), describing a marriage of convenience. Two of the most successful of his novels were The Commodore's Daughters (1886) and Niobe (1894), both of which were presented to English readers in the International library, edited by Mr Gosse. In 1891-1892 he wrote, under the influence of the new romantic impulse, twenty-four folk-tales, printed in two volumes entitled Trold. Some of these were translated by R. N. Bain in Weird Tales (1893), illustrated by L. Housman. Among his later works were the romance Naar Sol gaar ned (“When the Sun goes down,” 1895), the powerful novel of Dyre Rein (1896), the fairy drama of Lindelin (1897), Faste Forland (1899), a romance which contains much which is autobiographical, When the Iron Curtain falls (1901), and The Consul (1904). His Samlede Vaerker were published at Copenhagen in 14 vols. (1902-1904). Jonas Lie left Paris in 1891, and, after spending a year in Rome, returned to Norway, establishing himself at Holskogen, near Christiansand."^[8]

Jonas died 5 July 1908. Most accounts give his place of death as Oslo; however, his death record indicates a death at Stavern, Vestfold, Norway. The death record indicates that his place of residence at his death was Fredricksvaer in Baerum, Akershus, so perhaps this was his place of death. Five days after his death, his remains were buried at Stevern 11 July of the same year. In the death record, his name was given as "Poet Jonas Lie." ^[9] There are some lovely photos of Jonas's memorial at DIS-Norge, Slekt og Data.^[10]

Sources

1. ↑ Jonas Lie on Wikipedia.
2. ↑ Record of the Birth and Baptism of Jonas Lauritz Lie. Eiker kirkebøker, F/Fa/L0013a: Ministerialbok nr. I 13A, 1832-1845, s. 45.
3. ↑ 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica Jonas Lie Biography. Public Domain Article.
4. ↑ Record of the Marriage of Jonas Lie and Thomasine Lie. At the time of their marriage they were both 26 1/2 years of age. Jonas's father was Mons Lie and Thomasine's father was Mikkel Strøm Lie. Trefoldighet prestekontor Kirkebøker, F/Fc/L0001: Ministerialbok nr. III 1, 1858-1874, s. 50.
5. ↑ Folketelling 1865 for 0402B Vinger prestegjeld, Kongsvinger kjøpstad.
6. ↑ 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica Jonas Lie Biography. Public Domain Article.
7. ↑ Folketelling 1875 for 0301 Kristiania kjøpstad.
8. ↑ 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica Jonas Lie Biography. Public Domain Article.
9. ↑ Record of the Death and Burial of the poet Jonas Lie. Stavern kirkebøker, F/Fa/L0009: Ministerialbok nr. 9, 1906-1955, s. 290.
10. ↑ Grave Site of Jonas Lie and his wife, Thomasine Lie. DIS-Norge, Slekt og Data.