Nils Claus Ihlen was a Norwegian engineer and politician for the Liberal Party. He served as foreign minister of Norway between 1913 and 1920.

Personal life

He was born in Skedsmo

Skedsmo

Skedsmo is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillestrøm. About one third of the municipal population lives in Lillestrøm. Other important towns are Skedsmokorset, Skjetten and...

 as the oldest son of Wincentz Thurmann Ihlen

Wincentz Thurmann Ihlen

Wincentz Thurmann Ihlen was a Norwegian engineer and industrialist.He was born in Holmestrand as the son of Nils Ihlen and Barbara Wincentz Thurmann. His brother Jacob Thurmann Ihlen was a politician...

 (1826–1892) and Birgitte Elisabeth Mørch (1830–1913). He was a first cousin of Christian Ihlen, newphew of Niels Ihlen and Jacob Thurmann Ihlen

Jacob Thurmann Ihlen

Jacob Thurmann Ihlen was a Norwegian barrister and politician for the Conservative Party.-Personal life:He was born in Holmestrand as the son of ship-owner Nils Ihlen and Barbara Wincentz Thurmann...

, great-grandson of Constitutional founding father Ole Clausen Mørch

Ole Clausen Mørch

Ole Clausen Mørch was a Norwegian politician.He was born in Christianssand as the son of Claus Mørch and Johanne Marie Halkier. He married Cathrine Margrethe Tobiesen in June 1797, and the couple had two daughters and two sons...

 and brother-in-law of Per Lund.

From August 1892 he was married to actress Constance Bruun, but she died in October 1894. In February 1898 he married Colonel's daughter Henriette Marie Lund (1870–1962). The couple had several daughters and sons. The sons Nils, Joakim

Joakim Ihlen

Joakim Lund Ihlen was a Norwegian industrialist. He was born in Skedsmo, the son of engineer and politician Nils Claus Ihlen. He was co-manager of the workshop Strømmens Værksted for nearly fifty years, along with his brother Alf Ihlen....

 and Alf

Alf Ihlen

Alf Ihlen was a Norwegian industrialist.He was born in Skedsmo, as a son of engineer and politician Nils Claus Ihlen and Henriette Marie Lund. He was co-manager of the workshop Strømmens Værksted for about fifty years, along with his brother Joakim Ihlen...

 (Nils was the half-brother of the other two) took over the family business.

Career

Ihlen took his education at the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule of Zürich

ETH Zurich

The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich or ETH Zürich is an engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management university in the City of Zurich, Switzerland....

, and returned to Norway in 1877 to work one year for the Norwegian State Railways

Norwegian State Railways (1883–1996)

The Norwegian State Railways was a state-owned railway company that operated most of the railway network in Norway. The government agency was created in 1883 to oversee the construction and operation of all state-owned railways in Norway...

. In 1878 he was hired by his father at the iron works Strømmens Værksted

Strømmens Værksted

Strømmens Værksted A/S was an industrial company based in Skedsmo, Norway, specializing in the production of rolling stock. Founded in 1873, it remains as a part of Bombardier Transportation...

 (then named W. Ihlen, Strømmen) to work as a manager. In 1883 he took over as owner of the factory. He left in 1908, leaving his younger brothers in control.

Ihlen first entered politics as mayor of Skedsmo municipality, serving from 1989 to 1904 and 1907 to 1910. He was elected to the Parliament of Norway in 1907, representing the rural constituency of Mellem Romerike.

After one year he was appointed Minister of Labour

Minister of Transport and Communications (Norway)

The Minister of Transport and Communications is a Councillor of State and Chief of the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications. Since 20 October 2009, the position has been held by Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa of the Centre Party...

 in the first cabinet Knudsen

First cabinet Knudsen

The Knudsen's First Cabinet governed Norway between 19 March 1908 and 2 February 1910. It had the following composition:-Cabinet members:-State Secretary:Not to be confused with the modern title State Secretary...

. During his tenure, there were several achievements; including the opening of the Rjukan Line and the Bergen Line railways. His seat in parliament was taken by Martin Løken

Martin Løken

Martin Løken was a Norwegian politician for the Liberal Party.He served as a deputy representative to the Norwegian Parliament during the term 1907–1909...

 in 1908 and 1909, and Ihlen was not re-elected in 1910. The first cabinet Knudsen fell in February 1910, but when the second cabinet Knudsen assumed office on 31 January 1913, Ihlen was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. He served through the entire World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, during which Norway balanced on a thin line of neutrality

Neutrality (international relations)

A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...

. For some days in July 1918 he had also served as Minister of Industrial Provisioning. In June 1920 Ihlen resigned along with the rest of the second cabinet Knudsen, leaving national politics.

Nils Claus Ihlen died in 1925 in Kristiania.