Abstract
Abstract In the spring of 1826, the young Danish naval officer Carl Irminger and two of his friends sailed with a cargo ship from Copenhagen to Iceland to stay there during the summer. This article is based on Irminger’s unpublished travel diary. Irminger and his friends blended in with the local elite, which provided them with equipment and contacts to travel. Their journeys out from Reykjavik were adventurous and depended on local guides and the hospitality of residents along the way. The tales of hardships during the travels, combined with contacts established during the trip, became important credentials in Irminger’s future career. He was hired as an adjutant to the Danish prince, and the narrative of his summer in Iceland ignited a royal expedition there in 1834, of which Irminger was to be the trip leader. Irminger’s diary reflects a broader shift from Enlightenment exploration reporting into Romantic travel writing, with more emotional and aesthetic emphasis. His journey was a forerunner of the nature tourism that eventually was to sprout in Iceland.
Highlights
What was the aim of their trip to Iceland, other than passing time while out of proper jobs? Irminger’s diary itself is not explicit about such circumstances
In the spring of 1826, the young Danish naval officer Carl Irminger and two of his friends sailed with a cargo ship from Copenhagen to Iceland to stay there during the summer
Irminger’s diary reflects a broader shift from Enlightenment exploration reporting into Romantic travel writing, with more emotional and aesthetic emphasis. His journey was a forerunner of the nature tourism that eventually was to sprout in Iceland
Summary
In the spring of 1826, Irminger, Secker and Rosenwinge had gone to the Copenhagen harbour to make a deal with a Captain Bruhn. Once in Iceland, ships sailed between smaller harbours and collected return cargo, which consisted of dried fish, wool, knitted socks and mittens, fish oil and lard, salted cod, and occasionally luxury goods like eiderdown, fox skins, swan skins and feathers. They might bring a few passengers under plain conditions. Studying English made it possible for Irminger to read the anglophone travel reports that were in vogue during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Most officials and clergymen were able to speak Danish, which facilitated for our travellers to communicate during their journey
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