Arnoldson, Klas Pontus (1844-1916), a Swedish journalist and politician, was a dedicated pacifist and antimilitarist who campaigned strongly for Scandinavian unity. In 1908, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for peace for founding the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society 25 years before. He shared the prize with Fredrik Bajer of Denmark (see Bajer, Fredrik ).
In 1881, after 21 years working for the Swedish railways–first as a clerk and then as a stationmaster and inspector–Arnoldson was elected to the Riksdag, Sweden’s parliament. As a politician, he campaigned for the extension of religious freedom and for the guaranteed neutrality of Sweden. In 1883, he helped to found the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society and became the society’s secretary. He worked for Nordiska Dagbladet–a north Scandinavian daily paper, and founded a new paper in 1883 called Tiden (Times). He left Tiden in 1886, and worked from 1892 to 1894 for the Nordsvenska Dagbladet.
In 1895, during the constitutional crisis that led to Norway’s independence from Sweden, Arnoldson’s sympathy for Norway and strong support for a peaceful solution attracted much controversy (see Norway (Independence) ). His 1908 Nobel Peace Prize outraged many Swedes. Newspapers claimed that the award was a disgrace to the Swedish people, especially since Alfred Nobel himself had been Swedish.
In addition to his many newspaper articles, Arnoldson wrote several important works on peace and similar themes, including Pax Mundi (1890), a historical essay on international law, and Religion in the Light of Research (1891).
Arnoldson was born on Oct. 27, 1844, in Goteborg, Sweden. He died on Feb. 20, 1916.
