Makemakean
Mr Makemean
- Pronouns
- Logical, unlike those in German
Lawspeakers of the Folketing of the Nordic Empire
1867-1872: Jean Baptiste Bedoire (Hat) [1]
1872-1874: Vilhelm De Silentz (Unionist Cap) [2]
1874-1876: Irnes Moe (Unionist) [3]
1876-1879: Knud Lillelund (Radikale Højre) [4]
1879-1882: Tapani Kangasniemi (Liberal) [5]
1882-1885: James Dickson (Liberal) [6]
1885-1887: Harald Birkeland (National Liberal) [7]
[1] The first Lawspeaker election was expected to be about to become a messy affair. Sweden had generally had a tradition of electing the ranking member of the majority party from Stockholm’s burgher constituency for the post of Speaker, which not seldom was one of Stockholm’s four mayors. Fortunately, since Nicolas Andersen could unveil his Friends of the Union composition agreement already two weeks before first Unionsdag was supposed to gather in Gothenburg, the issue became moot, as Radikale Højre pledged to support the candidate from the Hat-Unionist Cap-Norwegian Unionist-etc.-etc. alliance, and Jean Baptiste Bedoire, the Mayor of Finance of Stockholm, was elected without a hitch. The man was from an old Huguenot family that had immigrated to Sweden in the 17th century, and had insisted on keeping to French names for the next two hundred years.
[2] The old political fox Vilhelm De Silentz was given the job after he stepped down as Secretary of Union for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs so that his son could get that portfolio. This was to be the crowning achievement of De Silentz’ political career, and he is widely considered to have been one of the most political speakers that the Nordic Empire has ever had, never agreeing to a vote on anything unless he knew that the government’s side would win, and unilaterally engaging in all sorts of odd behaviour to make sure that bills to be sent to a vote would satisfy the good burghers of Gothenburg. Even some government deputies hated the man for it. They probably should not have written it into the Constitution that the only way to remove a Lawspeaker was if he resigned himself, or if he died. De Silentz held the post for less than two years, before he drowned while going for a morning swim in the Gothenburg archipelago in the summer of ‘74.
[3] The former Mayor of Christiania, Irnes Moe, became the first Norwegian Lawspeaker upon De Silentz’ death. Possibly because he came from Norway, where the Unionists (the party formed by the merger of the constituent parties of the Hat-Unionist Cap-Norwegian Unionist-etc.-etc. alliance) were far from strong, Moe was more inclined toward a conciliatory approach, viewing his role more as that of a presiding officer than as a director of government business, in other words a complete renunciation of what his predecessor had done. He is generally remembered fondly.
[4] Nicolas Andersen’s resignation as Chancery President in 1875 meant that it was felt appropriate to put a Dane in the Lawspeaker’s chair. And indeed, Knud Lillelund, a former Mayor of Copenhagen was elected after the 1876 election without any controversy at all. Then the Friends of the Union composition fell apart, and Lillelund were to become just as political a Lawspeaker as Vilhelm De Silentz had been. But whereas De Silentz had acted to help the government, and out of a deep love for klientelpolitik, the Radikale Højremand Lillelund was motivated by pure vindictiveness and hatred for the Unionists, who ironically had once placed him on his little throne. Lillelund would go as far as to address government ministers from the chair in the most guttural Danish he could muster, sprinkling his vocabulary with words unique to the Zealand dialect, often to the extent that even Danish deputies found themselves scratching their heads as they listened to him. And then, when it was time for the opposition, he would speak slowly, and as clearly as he could. Still, his attempts at overtures to the Leader of the Opposition, Sønderheim, did not work out. Sønderheim had spent years forging the Liberal Party, and he now wanted to bring that to power in its purest form, without composition with the Radikale Højre.
[5] First Finn to occupy the post, Kangasniemi had once been a powerful orator and rural leader, with his roots in the Finnish agrarian movement. Ironically, by the time he became Lawspeaker, his voice had since long failed him, and he always spoke with a deep rasper.
[6] Kangasniemi did not stand for re-election in 1882, and so, the post fell to a Gothenburger, James Dickson. Dickson would go on to be the only Lawspeaker in history to later advance to the post of Chancery President.
[7] Second Norwegian to serve as Lawspeaker. Birkeland actually had a background in the radical wing of the Liberal Party. Nonetheless, as part of the general craziness that was Bille-Brahe’s manoeuvering to become the first Skeptical Chancery President, Birkeland was elected speaker with the votes of both Unionists and Skepticals. Upon his election, Sønderheim declared that his only regret was that the Norwegian language lacked a word strong enough to convey just how much of a traitor Birkeland was.
1867-1872: Jean Baptiste Bedoire (Hat) [1]
1872-1874: Vilhelm De Silentz (Unionist Cap) [2]
1874-1876: Irnes Moe (Unionist) [3]
1876-1879: Knud Lillelund (Radikale Højre) [4]
1879-1882: Tapani Kangasniemi (Liberal) [5]
1882-1885: James Dickson (Liberal) [6]
1885-1887: Harald Birkeland (National Liberal) [7]
[1] The first Lawspeaker election was expected to be about to become a messy affair. Sweden had generally had a tradition of electing the ranking member of the majority party from Stockholm’s burgher constituency for the post of Speaker, which not seldom was one of Stockholm’s four mayors. Fortunately, since Nicolas Andersen could unveil his Friends of the Union composition agreement already two weeks before first Unionsdag was supposed to gather in Gothenburg, the issue became moot, as Radikale Højre pledged to support the candidate from the Hat-Unionist Cap-Norwegian Unionist-etc.-etc. alliance, and Jean Baptiste Bedoire, the Mayor of Finance of Stockholm, was elected without a hitch. The man was from an old Huguenot family that had immigrated to Sweden in the 17th century, and had insisted on keeping to French names for the next two hundred years.
[2] The old political fox Vilhelm De Silentz was given the job after he stepped down as Secretary of Union for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs so that his son could get that portfolio. This was to be the crowning achievement of De Silentz’ political career, and he is widely considered to have been one of the most political speakers that the Nordic Empire has ever had, never agreeing to a vote on anything unless he knew that the government’s side would win, and unilaterally engaging in all sorts of odd behaviour to make sure that bills to be sent to a vote would satisfy the good burghers of Gothenburg. Even some government deputies hated the man for it. They probably should not have written it into the Constitution that the only way to remove a Lawspeaker was if he resigned himself, or if he died. De Silentz held the post for less than two years, before he drowned while going for a morning swim in the Gothenburg archipelago in the summer of ‘74.
[3] The former Mayor of Christiania, Irnes Moe, became the first Norwegian Lawspeaker upon De Silentz’ death. Possibly because he came from Norway, where the Unionists (the party formed by the merger of the constituent parties of the Hat-Unionist Cap-Norwegian Unionist-etc.-etc. alliance) were far from strong, Moe was more inclined toward a conciliatory approach, viewing his role more as that of a presiding officer than as a director of government business, in other words a complete renunciation of what his predecessor had done. He is generally remembered fondly.
[4] Nicolas Andersen’s resignation as Chancery President in 1875 meant that it was felt appropriate to put a Dane in the Lawspeaker’s chair. And indeed, Knud Lillelund, a former Mayor of Copenhagen was elected after the 1876 election without any controversy at all. Then the Friends of the Union composition fell apart, and Lillelund were to become just as political a Lawspeaker as Vilhelm De Silentz had been. But whereas De Silentz had acted to help the government, and out of a deep love for klientelpolitik, the Radikale Højremand Lillelund was motivated by pure vindictiveness and hatred for the Unionists, who ironically had once placed him on his little throne. Lillelund would go as far as to address government ministers from the chair in the most guttural Danish he could muster, sprinkling his vocabulary with words unique to the Zealand dialect, often to the extent that even Danish deputies found themselves scratching their heads as they listened to him. And then, when it was time for the opposition, he would speak slowly, and as clearly as he could. Still, his attempts at overtures to the Leader of the Opposition, Sønderheim, did not work out. Sønderheim had spent years forging the Liberal Party, and he now wanted to bring that to power in its purest form, without composition with the Radikale Højre.
[5] First Finn to occupy the post, Kangasniemi had once been a powerful orator and rural leader, with his roots in the Finnish agrarian movement. Ironically, by the time he became Lawspeaker, his voice had since long failed him, and he always spoke with a deep rasper.
[6] Kangasniemi did not stand for re-election in 1882, and so, the post fell to a Gothenburger, James Dickson. Dickson would go on to be the only Lawspeaker in history to later advance to the post of Chancery President.
[7] Second Norwegian to serve as Lawspeaker. Birkeland actually had a background in the radical wing of the Liberal Party. Nonetheless, as part of the general craziness that was Bille-Brahe’s manoeuvering to become the first Skeptical Chancery President, Birkeland was elected speaker with the votes of both Unionists and Skepticals. Upon his election, Sønderheim declared that his only regret was that the Norwegian language lacked a word strong enough to convey just how much of a traitor Birkeland was.
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