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Andreas Frederik KriegerDanish politician, minister, law professor and Supreme Court judge
Date of Birth: 04.10.1817
Country:  Denmark |
Content:
- Biography of Andreas Frederik Krieger
- Political Career
- Personal Life and Connection to the Heibergs
- Later Years
- Andreas Frederik Krieger passed away on September 27, 1893.
Biography of Andreas Frederik Krieger
Andreas Frederik Krieger was a Danish political figure, minister, professor of jurisprudence, and judge of the Supreme Court. Born on October 4, 1817, in the village of Kolbjørnsvik, Norway, near Arendal, Krieger grew up in Copenhagen. At the age of 20, he obtained a degree in jurisprudence, specializing in constitutional law.
Political Career
In 1848, Krieger was elected as a member of the National Constitutional Assembly, representing the National Liberal Party. However, the outbreak of the First Danish-Prussian War for Schleswig prevented the assembly from discussing the proposed constitution. Krieger served in the Folketing, the Danish parliament, from 1849 to 1852, also representing the National Liberal Party.
From 1863 to 1890, Krieger was a member of the Landsting, representing the National Liberal Party initially and later the Conservative Party. He held various ministerial positions, including Minister of the Interior in 1856. During his tenure, Krieger played a significant role in passing the act for the construction of the east-west railroad in Jutland and implementing municipal administration reforms in Copenhagen.
Personal Life and Connection to the Heibergs
Krieger formed a close relationship with Johanne Luise Heiberg, a Danish actress, after the death of her husband, Johan Ludvig Heiberg, in 1860. Krieger and Heiberg were among the most vocal critics of the morganatic marriage between King Frederick VII and actress and ballerina Louise Rasmussen. In personal correspondence with Heiberg, Krieger referred to himself as a republican, although he did not publicly declare this position.
Later Years
In 1859, Krieger was part of a close circle of national-liberal politicians who governed the country through weekly dinners at the home of André. He also served as the speaker of the Landsting for a time in 1866. From 1872 to 1874, Krieger was a member of the government, serving as Minister of Justice and later Minister of Finance. In his role as Finance Minister, he worked towards Denmark's accession to the Scandinavian Monetary Union in 1873.
Krieger faced a legal trial in 1877 related to the sale of the ruins of Frederik's Church and its church square to financier Carl Frederik Tietgen during his time as Minister of Finance. The construction of the church began in 1749 but was halted in 1770, leaving the building unfinished and gradually deteriorating. Tietgen purchased the church for 100,000 rigsdalers with the condition that he would complete the construction and donate the church to the state upon its completion. Krieger was acquitted in the trial.
