Christian Adolph Diriks

Christian Adolph Diriks

Christian Adolph Diriks (1 November 1775 – 16 December 1837) was a Norwegian lawyer and statesman, and a member of the Norwegian Constituent Assembly at Eidsvoll in 1814.. He was born in Copenhagen, the son of maritime captain Boye Boyesen Dyriks (1744–80) and Marie Elisabeth Stoppel (d. 1797).^[1] After studying law and working for some years in Copenhagen, he was transferred to Norway in 1806. In 1812, he was made town vogt for Larvik.^[2] It was from Larvik that he was elected to the Constitutional Assembly, and here, as the legal secretary of the Constitutional Committee, he played an important part in shaping the language of the Constitution.^[1] Diriks was the assembly's resident expert on foreign constitutions, and emphasised civil liberties. He was responsible for the inclusion of §100, concerning freedom of speech, and §102, guarding against unreasonable searches and seizures.^[1][3] He was later made president of the Assembly, with responsibility for passing the Constitution.^[1]

Shortly after the dissolution of the assembly, Diriks was appointed professor of law at the newly founded Royal Frederick University (today's Oslo), but continuing government responsibilities prevented him from taking up the position.^[1] Among the positions he held were Minister of the Police and Minister of Justice from 1814 to 1818, and Minister of Education and Church Affairs from 1825 to 1836.^[4] He did not enjoy the support of Count Wedel-Jarlsberg, however, and when Wedel-Jarlsberg was appointed Governor-general in 1836, Diriks was forced to retire.^[1]

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