Bjarni Benediktsson (born 1908)

This article is about a former Prime Minister of Iceland. For his great-nephew who was the Prime Minister, see Bjarni Benediktsson (born 1970).

This is an Icelandic name. The last name is patronymic, not a family name; this person is referred to by the given name Bjarni.

Bjarni Benediktsson (30 April 1908 – 10 July 1970) was an Icelandic politician of the Independence Party who served as prime minister of Iceland from 1963 to 1970. His father, Benedikt Sveinsson [is] (1877–1954), was a leader in the independence movement in Iceland and a member of the Althingi from 1908 to 1931.

Bjarni Benediktsson
17th Prime Minister of Iceland
In office 14 November 1963 – 10 July 1970
President	Ásgeir Ásgeirsson Kristján Eldjárn
Preceded by	Ólafur Thors
Succeeded by	Jóhann Hafstein
Acting 8 September 1961 – 31 December 1961
President	Ásgeir Ásgeirsson
Preceded by	Ólafur Thors
Succeeded by	Ólafur Thors
Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office 4 February 1947 – 11 September 1953
Prime Minister	Stefán Jóhann Stefánsson Ólafur Thors Steingrímur Steinþórsson
Preceded by	Ólafur Thors
Succeeded by	Kristinn Guðmundsson
Personal details
Born	(1908-04-30)30 April 1908 Reykjavík, Iceland
Died	10 July 1970(1970-07-10) (aged 62) Þingvellir, Iceland
Political party	Independence
Alma mater	University of Iceland

Bjarni studied constitutional law and became a professor at the University of Iceland at age 24. He was elected to the city council in Reykjavík in 1934 as a member of the Independence Party and from 1940 to 1947 was mayor of the city.

Bjarni (right) with Prime Minister of Israel Levi Eshkol in 1964.

In 1947 he became Foreign Minister and served in various posts in cabinets until 1956. Bjarni was mainly responsible for Iceland joining NATO in 1949, against significant opposition, and for giving the United States Air Force a lease on Keflavík Airport near Reykjavík, which was of major strategic importance during the Cold War.^[1] Bjarni was caricatured by the Nobel prize winning writer Halldór Laxness in his 1948 play Atómstöðin (The Atom Station).^[1]

In 1956, when the left-wing parties formed a coalition government, Bjarni, out of office, became editor of Morgunblaðið, a leading conservative newspaper. In 1959, when the Independence Party formed a coalition government with the Social Democrats, Bjarni became Minister of Justice. He served as speaker of the Althing in 1959.^[2] Two years later he was elected chairman of the Independence Party and in 1963 he took over from Ólafur Thors as Prime Minister. When Bjarni became prime minister, he received a congratulatory letter from the president of the United States, John F. Kennedy, only six days before his assassination.^[3] Bjarni served in this position until his death, which was caused by a fire at a government summer house at Þingvellir on 10 July 1970. His wife and grandson also perished in the blaze. Jóhann Hafstein was made prime minister immediately following his death.

Bjarni was the father of politicians Björn Bjarnason and Valgerður Bjarnadóttir, as well as the father-in-law of Vilmundur Gylfason. Bjarni was the great-uncle of his namesake Bjarni Benediktsson, who became Prime Minister in January 2017.

References

• "Bjarni Benediktsson". Althingi (Icelandic Parliament) (in Icelandic).

1. Williams, Moray (11 July 1970). "A Premier Dies, with wife and grandson, in fire". The Guardian. London. p. 3. ProQuest 185405902.(Subscription or UK public library membership required)
2. "Þingmenn". Alþingi.
3. "Borgarskjalasafn Reykjavíkur - Reykjavik Municipal Archives - Þann 14. nóvember 1963 varð Bjarni Benediktsson forsætisráðherra og daginn eftir barst honum skeyti með hamingjuóskum frá John F. Kennedy forseta Bandaríkjanna. Viku síðar var JFK skotinn í Dallas, Texas eins og minnst er um þessar mundir. Ástæða væri til að minnast þess að 50 ár eru frá því Bjarni Benediktsson varð forsætisráðherra en hann gegndi því embætti til dánardægurs árið 1970. Borgarskjalasafn varðveitir skjalasafn Bjarna Benediktssonar og hafa yfir 30.000 síður verið ljósmyndaðar og gerðar aðgengilegar á vef, einkum með liðsinni starfsmanna á vegum Vinnumálastofnunar. Hér má sjá heillaóskir sem bárust Bjarna á heimili hans eftir að hann tók við embætti. www.borgarskjalasafn.is/Portaldata/21/Resources/bjarni_ben/2_hluti_stjornmalamadurinn/askja_2-29/ork_05/Heilla_skaskeyti___tilefni__tnefningu_BB.pdf Slóðin er að öðru leyti www.bjarnibenediktsson.is | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 15 August 2024.

Further reading

• "Minning látinna manna". Althingi (Icelandic Parliament) (in Icelandic). Text of a speech in the Icelandic parliament by Sigurvin Einarsson on 10 October 1970, commemorating Bjarni

Political offices
Preceded by Ólafur Thors	Minister for Foreign Affairs 1947–1953	Succeeded by Kristinn Guðmundsson
	Prime Minister of Iceland 1963–1970	Succeeded by Jóhann Hafstein
Party political offices
Preceded by Ólafur Thors	Leader of the Independence Party 1963–1970	Succeeded by Jóhann Hafstein