Björn Jónsson

Björn Jónsson
Minister for Iceland
In office 31 March 1909 – 14 March 1911
Preceded by	Hannes Hafstein
Succeeded by	Kristján Jónsson
Personal details
Born	(1846-10-08)8 October 1846 Djúpadal, Gufudalssveit, Iceland
Died	24 November 1912(1912-11-24) (aged 66) Reykjavík, Iceland
Political party	Independence Party
Spouse	Elísabet Sveinsdóttir

Björn Jónsson (8 October 1846 – 24 November 1912) was

Björn was commonly known for Ísafold, the paper he published and edited from 1874 to 1909, and was known as Björn í Ísafold or Ísafoldar-Björn. Björn offended the Danish Authorities in 1909 by appointing a Councillor of Commerce to work on business negotiations for Iceland, when he appointed his supporter, Bjarni Jónsson frá Vogi, to that post. The Danish Authorities stated that appointing such a councillor was not in harmony with the common foreign policy of Denmark and Iceland.^[2]

In 1909, Björn got alcohol prohibition accepted in the

. It came into full effect in 1915, more than two years after Björn's death, and was not repealed until 1934.

• 
  Björn Jónsson gives a speech to a gathering on 2 June 1908 regarding the autonomy of Iceland vis-à-vis

  Danish colony

  , gaining independence in 1944

Death

Björn's health deteriorated sharply in his last years. He died at his home in Reykjavík on 24 November 1912 after suffering a stroke few days earlier.^[3]

References

External links

• Biography on
  Alþingi