Short biography

Berner, Carl Christian

1841 – 1918
Educator and politician
Liberal

As a young man, Carl Christian Berner studied science and then worked as a teacher in Kristiania (Oslo). From 1874 up to 1891 he was Director of a Technical College in Bergen. He was also engaged in the local Liberal Union and got elected to the city council. In 1885 he was elected to the Storting and soon became a leading representative of the Liberal Party. He was a member of the Storting between 1885-1892 and 1895-1909; President of the Odelsting 1889-1891 and President of the Storting in 1898-1909.

Berner was a member of the Norwegian Government in 1891-1893. As President of the Storting, he played an important role in the political process that finally led to the peaceful dissolution of the Swedish-Norwegian union in 1905. He was a member of the Norwegian Nobel Committee between 1904-1918.

Back to the list of Norwegian Nobel Committee members 1901-2017

The biographical sketches of the Norwegian Nobel Committee members were written by Sølvi Glendrange and edited by Øyvind Tønnesson. They are based on the following sources:
– Norsk Biografisk Leksikon (Norwegian Biographical Encyclopaedia), Oslo 1923-1983
– Hvem er Hvem? (The Norwegian “Who’s Who”), several editions
– Aschehoug og Gyldendals Store Norske Leksikon (The Norwegian National Encyclopaedia), Kunnskapsforlaget, 2nd and 3rd edition, Oslo 1989/1995-1999
– Kunnskapsforlagets Nettleksikon (the Web Encyclopedia of Kunnskapsforlaget, www.kunnskapsforlaget.no), Oslo 1999