Christian August Selmer

Christian Selmer
MP
Christian Selmer MP
	Christian Selmer
2nd Prime Minister of Norway in Christiania
	In office; 11 October 1880 – 3 April 1884
Monarch	Oscar II
Preceded by	Frederik Stang
Succeeded by	Christian H. Schweigaard
Minister of the Army
	In office; 13 October 1879 – 15 September 1880
Prime Minister	Frederik Stang
Preceded by	Adolph F. Munthe
Succeeded by	Adolph F. Munthe
	In office; 29 July 1874 – 21 July 1875
Prime Minister	Frederik Stang
Preceded by	Lorentz Segelcke
Succeeded by	Lorentz Segelcke
Minister of the Interior
	In office; 15 August 1878 – 15 August 1879
Prime Minister	Frederik Stang
Preceded by	Niels Vogt
Succeeded by	Niels Vogt
	In office; 21 July 1875 – 15 August 1876
Prime Minister	Frederik Stang
Preceded by	Niels Vogt
Succeeded by	Niels Vogt
Minister of Justice
	In office; 15 August 1877 – 15 August 1878
Prime Minister	Frederik Stang
Preceded by	John Collett Falsen
Succeeded by	John Collett Falsen
Minister of Auditing
	In office; 13 June 1879 – 13 October 1879
Prime Minister	Frederik Stang
Preceded by	Jacob Aall jr.
Succeeded by	Christian Jensen
Personal details
Born	16 November 1816; Fredrikshald, Østfold, United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway
Died	1 November 1889 (aged 72); Bygdøy (now in Oslo), United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Anna Sylvia Leganger
Children	Jørgen ; Ida
Occupation	Magistrate
Profession	Attorney

Christian August Selmer (16 November 1816 – 1 September 1889) was a Norwegian lawyer and a magistrate. He served as a member of the Norwegian Parliament, Minister of Defense and Minister of Justice. He was the 2nd prime minister of Norway in Christiana between 1880 and 1884.^[1]

Background

Selmer was born at Fredrikshald in Østfold, Norway and grew up in Halden. He was the son of Johan Christian Selmer (1783-1830) and Johanne Ditlevine Michea Vibe (1788-1879). Selmer studied law at the University of Christiania from 1837, achieved his legal degree in 1842. In 1842, he was magistrate in Sør-Hedmark. In 1848, he was appointed law clerk in the office of attorney P.A. Midelfart in Drammen. In 1850, he took over the firm and developed an extensive legal practice. He served as a stipendiary magistrate in Drammen from 1862 until 1874. In 1848 he married Anna Sylvia Leganger (1825–1896).

Career

Selmer served as deputy to Parliament for Drammen from 1871 until 1873 and permanent representative from 1874 until 1876. In 1874 joined the cabinet of Prime Minister Frederik Stang. Following the surprising resignation of Frederik Stang as Prime Minister in September 1880, King Oscar II of Sweden had Selmer in mind as Norwegian Prime Minister. Selmer's record as Prime Minister was characterized by conflict over whether members of the cabinet were required to appear in Parliament to answer questions. He influenced King Oscar II to reject efforts at a compromise, setting the stage for impeachment proceedings. In April 1883 the members of the lower house (Odelsting) decided to impeach the members of the Selmer cabinet. Selmer was subsequently convicted under articles of impeachment and resigned as Prime Minister on March 1, 1884.^[2]^[3]

Subsequently, Selmer became acting General Auditor (Generalauditør) of the Royal Norwegian Army and Royal Norwegian Navy, He held this office until his death at Bygdøy in Aker during September 1889. He was buried at Vår Frelsers gravlund in Kristiania.^[4]

References

^ Knut Dørum. "Christian Selmer". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
^ Paul Thyness. "Christian Selmer, Jurist, Politiker". Norsk biografisk leksikon. Retrieved June 10, 2016.
^ Eirik Holmøyvik. "Odelstinget". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
^ Jacob Børresen. "Generalauditør". Store norske leksikon. Retrieved April 1, 2018.