Alfred Eriksen

Caricature from 1905 in Korsaren by Andreas Bloch. Eriksen in the middle.

Alfred Eriksen (nicknamed "Karlsøypresten", 30 August 1864 – 4 May 1934) was a Norwegian priest, politician, newspaper editor, and non-fiction writer.

Personal life He was born as Alfred Eriksen in Christiania as the son of the watchmaker Henrik Erichsen (1825–1870) and Emilie Kathrine Christoffersen (1825–1902). He married the vicar's daughter Sigrid Marie Wexelsen (1866–1960) in August 1890. He was the brother of the painter and film director Adam Eriksen, and the father of the journalist and author Solvejg Eriksen.

Career Eriksen finished his secondary education at Kristiania Cathedral School in 1883. He then studied theology, graduating with the cand.theol. degree in theology in 1888. After working one year as a teacher in Ålesund he was appointed vicar for the parish of Karlsøy in 1891, and held this position until 1910, when he became vicar in Vålerengen Church. While being a priest he wrote his doctoral thesis, titled Vilje. En psykologisk afhandling. and edited Nordlys until 1911. In 1913 he founded the publication Dagens Liv, and edited it, but it soon became defunct. He was re-elected to Parliament in 1906 and in 1909 for the constituency of Tromsøsundet. Eriksen did not want to subordinate himself to the party discipline, and was eventually expelled from the Labour Party in 1912. Contributing to his downfall was his actions in the position as chairman of the society Riksmålsforbundet from 1911 to 1912. From then he was not politically active, but wrote numerous newspaper articles on cultural topics.

Eriksen died in Oslo on 4 May 1934, at the age of 69.

Selected works (thesis)