Jens Christian Christensen Explained

Jens Christian Christensen
Order:Council President of Denmark
Term Start:14 January 1905
Term End:12 October 1908
Predecessor:Johan Henrik Deuntzer
Successor:Niels Neergaard
Office2:Minister of Defence
Term Start2:16 September 1909
Term End2:18 October 1909
Primeminister2:Ludvig Holstein-Ledreborg
Predecessor2:Niels Neergaard
Successor2:Ludvig Holstein-Ledreborg
Term Start3:14 January 1905
Term End3:12 October 1908
Primeminister3:Himself
Predecessor3:Position established
Successor3:Niels Neergaard
Office4:Minister for Ecclesiastical Affairs
Term Start4:5 May 1920
Term End4:15 August 1922
Primeminister4:Niels Neergaard
Predecessor4:Emil Ammentorp
Successor4:Jacob Appel
Office5:Speaker of the Folketing
Term Start5:15 March 1912
Term End5:13 June 1913
Monarch5:Frederik VIII
Christian X
Predecessor5:Anders Thomsen
Successor5:Niels Pedersen-Nyskov
Birth Date:21 November 1856
Birth Place:Påbøl, West Jutland, Denmark
Death Place:Hee (near Ringkøbing), Denmark
Spouse:Karen Kirstine Pedersen
Children:4
Party:Venstre Reform

Jens Christian Christensen (21 November 1856  - 19 December 1930), most often called J. C. Christensen with the 'J' pronounced as an 'I', was a Danish politician.

Biography

Christensen was born into a West Jutland peasant family and starting as a herd boy, he was educated a teacher and joined politics at an early age. He was a member of the Danish Liberal Party until he founded the Venstre Reform Party in 1895. During later years, he successfully and adroitly led the opposition against the last Right cabinets, which resulted in the victory of parliamentarianism 1901. In the first Left cabinet of J. H. Deuntzer, Christensen was Minister of Cultus and the strongman of the government, introducing reforms in the village school system.

J. C. Christensen was Council President of Denmark from 1905 to 1908 as the leader of the Christensen I Cabinet and II. During this period he introduced female suffrage in local politics and tried to solve the problem of the defense. Also, he took the first steps towards a re-conciliation with the moderate liberals excluding the radicals. In addition, a law was passed in April 1907 that authorised state contributions for unemployment relief.

The Alberti scandal in 1908 led to his fall and weakened his position, but he was still the leader of his party participating in the second Carl Theodor Zahle cabinet 1916–1918. In 1920–1922, he was minister for the last time and two years later he left politics. During his last years he supported the cultivation of the moor of Jutland.

Literature