INGEMANN, BERNHARD SEVERIN

born May 28, 1789, Torkilstrup, Den. died Feb. 24, 1862, Sor historical novelist and poet whose works glorifying Denmark's medieval past were popular for generations. Most of Ingemann's works have not won enduring acclaim, but his simple Morgen og aftensange (183739; Morning and Evening Songs) and his patriotic verse cycle Holger Danske (1837; Holger the Dane) are much admired in Denmark. Ingemann studied at the University of Copenhagen, traveled in Germany and Italy, and later settled at Sor Academy as a teacher (1822) and director (from 1846). There he produced a series of six historical novels, of which the first, Valdemar den store og hans Mnd (1824; Waldemar the Great and his Men), and the last, Dronning Margrethe (1836; Queen Margrethe), are in verse, the other four in prose. He is also the author of a hymn, Through the Night of Doubt and Sorrow, well-known in English translation.