Hedvig Gebhard

Hedvig Maria Gebhard (née Silén; 14 December 1867 in Turku – 13 January 1961 in Helsinki) was a Finnish journalist and politician. She was an elected member of the Parliament of Finland, representing the Finnish Party from 1907 to 1909 and the National Coalition Party from 1919 to 1922 and again from 1924 to 1929.

Life and work Born in Turku, Finland, Hedvig Gebhard came from a Swedish-speaking home. Her father was August Oskar Silén who began life as a poor shoemaker but made his fortune by virtue of hard work. Her mother was Hedvig Josephina Palmberg.

After graduation, she moved to Helsinki to continue her studies and became a student of the "Finnish-minded history master" Hannes Gebhard, with whom she fell in love and married in February 1891. She soon became a citizen of Finland. Her husband was also elected to Parliament that year.

Selected memberships

Finnish Women's Association (chairman) Nordic Committee for Women's Affairs (chair) Finnish Committee of the International Voting Rights Association (Chairman) Helsinki Cooperative District Council (Chairman) Board of the Home Teachers Association (Chairman) SOK Orphanage Board (Chairman)