Dagmar Hjort facts for kids
Ane Marie Louise Dagmar Hjort (1860–1902) was an important Danish teacher, writer, and activist who worked for women's rights. She was a member of the Danish Women's Society. Dagmar Hjort was especially interested in helping women get the right to vote, also known as women's suffrage.
She joined the Suffrage Committee of Danish Women's Associations when it started in 1898. Dagmar Hjort believed that men and women should be equal in society, at work, and in politics. She also felt that women should have more freedom beyond just their homes and families. She wrote many articles for newspapers and journals. She also put together a history of the women's rights movement in North America. This book, called Kvinderetsbevægelsen i Nordamerika, was published after she passed away in 1906. It was very helpful for the women's movement in Denmark.
About Dagmar Hjort
Dagmar Hjort was born on January 13, 1860, in Rendsburg, which was then part of Denmark. Her father was a Major-General, and her mother was a kind person who helped others. In 1887, she married Niels Hjort, who was a school principal.
In the late 1870s, she worked as a private teacher for a short time. Later, she went to N. Zahle's School in Copenhagen. In 1884, she passed her university entrance exam and studied mathematics at the University of Copenhagen. After she got married in 1887, she taught at a school where her husband was a deputy principal.
Her Work for Women's Rights
Like her older sister, Charlotte Norrie, Dagmar Hjort was very active in the women's movement. She wrote articles for different journals, including Kvinden & Samfundet and Politiken. In 1898, she helped start the Suffrage Committee of Danish Women's Associations. This group worked to get women the right to vote.
In 1899, Dagmar Hjort went to an international meeting called the International Council of Women in London. There, she talked about how female students were treated in Denmark. She believed that Denmark's approach to women students was too slow compared to other countries.
Her biggest passion was for women to get the right to vote. She thought it was important for men and women to be equal in all parts of life. But she wanted even more. In 1899, she gave a speech about why the women's movement was so important. She said that women needed to break free from the limits of family life. This idea caused some debate with a politician named Nina Bang, who thought Dagmar's ideas didn't consider the needs of working women.
Dagmar Hjort spent a lot of time writing a detailed history of the women's movement in America. This book, Kvinderetsbevægelsen i Nordamerika, was published in 1906, after she died. It became a very important book for guiding the women's movement in Denmark.
Dagmar Hjort sadly passed away suddenly in Copenhagen on June 9, 1902, after an operation. She was buried in Frederiksberg Ældre Kirkegård.
