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Hans Christian Andersen’s Teacher became a Telegraph Operator


By Mogens Eilertsen

"Saturday, the 7th of December 1872, earlier this morning I visited Counsellor Bärthelson who tried to persuade me to go with him to congratulate old Carstens on his golden wedding day – I do not feel up to it. I feel less and less well –".
Hans Christian Andersen wrote this in his diary in 1872.


In honour of the occasion "old Carstens" and his wife had a daguerreotype taken at the photographer’s in Svendborg. It lies on the table in front of me. He was my great-great-grandfather.

Fedder Carstens and his wife lived in Vindeby on the island of Taasinge near the ferryman’s house where he used to work as an attendant at the "Transport Services". He was 88 years old.

Literary Telegraph Manager
But why do we mention Fedder Carstens (1784-1874) the MuseumsPosten? There is, of course, a reason: In 1813, he became manager of the optical telegraph in Vindeby where his nearest signal mast was placed in Svendborg on the Island of Funen.

Carstens was presumably one of the "literary" or "cultured" telegraph operators. It was, however, not his qualifications as Andersen’s first teacher in the "charity school" in Odense that made him a literary telegraph operator. It was probably his education as a teacher that saved him when his "charity school" or "Jewish school" had to close down. Since 1810, Carstens had been the headmaster of a small, private school in Odense. But his teaching skills were supposedly greater than his business talents.

After the closing down of the school Carstens moved to the optical telegraph in Vindeby where from 1813 he was to communicate important optical war messages to and from Funen.

Some Danish History
Wars had raged in Europe almost incessantly since 1792 and Denmark stayed neutral until 2nd September 1807 when the English launched a fire bomb attack on Copenhagen. When, moreover, the Danish warships were stolen by the English fleet, Danish neutrality came to an end. King Christian the 7th allied with the French Emperor, Napoleon, against England.

Russia pressed Denmark to declare war on Sweden in 1808. The Danish army would then get support from Napoleon’s "auxiliary troops" that were moving towards Rendsborg and further on towards Kolding.

In all probability, the newly appointed telegraph manager, Fedder Carstens, formed part of the optical communication between the new king, Frederik the 6th, and his army, which was on Funen in 1813, and the Danish fortress in Rendsborg.

As it will be recalled, the Danish "engagement" in the war did not exactly end gloriously with the peace in Kiel in 1814 when among other things Denmark had to surrender Norway to Sweden.

The Golden Wedding Present
The old telegraph operator in Vindeby was by the way one of Andersen’s good memories. The writer of fairy-tales relates in his memoirs how Carstens took the poor shoemaker’s son under his wings.

When the 67-year-old poet did not want to attend his old teacher’s golden wedding together with his schoolmate, Bärthelson, it was because Andersen was unwell. Already on Monday the 9th of September he wrote in his diary: "- I have to go and buy my bust for Carstens –".

In 1865, the sculptor H.W. Bissen (1798-1868) had modelled a portrait bust of the world-famous poet. Sometimes Andersen had casts made for special friends and acquaintances. One of these was literary telegraph operator and attendant Carstens who received a letter, a golden wedding song, and a bust from his former pupil.


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