{{Short description|Danish socialist organizer}} thumb|Paul Johansen Geleff
'''Paul Johansen Geleff''' (January 6, 1842 – May 16, 1928) was a Danish socialist organizer.<ref name="p1">''[https://runeberg.org/dbl/5/0590.html Dansk biografisk Lexikon / V. Bind. Faaborg - Gersdorff / 588]''</ref> He was one of the founders of the socialist movement in Denmark.
Geleff completed his education as school teacher in 1864, and went on to work as a teacher and publisher.<ref name="p1"/> In 1867 he issued the publication ''Hejmdal''. He was sentenced to pay a fine after having insulted the Prussian state in one of his articles.<ref name="lex"/> In 1871 he came into contact with H. F. V. Brix, and through Brix he became acquainted to Louis Pio. The three began organizing a socialist movement.<ref name="p2"/> The trio founded the publication ''Socialisten'' ('The Socialist') in July 1871. In October the same year they founded a Danish branch of the First International.<ref name="p3">Paterson, William E., and Alastair H. Thomas. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=BfcNAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA235 Social Democratic Parties in Western Europe]''. London: Croom Helm, 1978. p. 235</ref>
The organization supported a bricklayers strike and had called for a meeting to mobilize support. In response, the authorities banned the organization and all its meetings.<ref name="p3"/> All three were arrested in the summer of 1872. Geleff was sentenced to three years forced labour. Geleff had also been accused of fraud, but after re-paying the amount he was accused of having embezzled those charges were dropped. Geleff wrote a book about his prison ordeals, ''Under Laas og Lukke'' ("Under lock and key") was published in 1876. After his release from jail, he and Pio again begun organizing socialist activities.<ref name="p2"/> In 1876 he was one of the founders of the Social Democratic Party.<ref name="marx"/> In March 1877 Geleff and Pio emigrated to the United States, with financial assistance from the Danish police.<ref name="p2"/><ref name="p3"/> Their intention was to set up a colony in America.<ref>Marzolf, Marion Tuttle. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=Sy7w47tB_RkC&pg=PA37 The Danish-Language Press in America]''. New York: Arno Press, 1979. pp. 37-38</ref> After settling down in America, Geleff and Pio broke their contacts. Geleff wrote a short publication about his trans-Atlantic travel and split with Pio, ''Den rene, skære Sandhed om Louis Pio og mig selv'' ("The pure truth about Louis Pio and myself") published in 1877.<ref name="p2">''[https://runeberg.org/dbl/5/0591.html Dansk biografisk Lexikon / V. Bind. Faaborg - Gersdorff / 589]''</ref>
Geleff occasionally wrote articles for ''Den Danske Pioneer'', published from Omaha in Nebraska. Geleff played a crucial role in formulating the radical agenda of the newspaper.<ref>Brøndal, Jørn. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=oVTPWILqYCkC&pg=PA91 Ethnic Leadership and Midwestern Politics: Scandinavian Americans and the Progressive Movement in Wisconsin, 1890-1914]''. Northfield, Minn: Norwegian-American Historical Association, 2004. p. 91</ref>
Geleff returned to Denmark in 1920, and lived as a pensioner with support from the Social Democratic Party.<ref name="lex">''[http://www.leksikon.org/print.php?n=975 Geleff, Paul]''</ref> Geleff died in 1928.<ref name="marx">''[https://books.google.com/books?id=SNAwPB7RodYC&pg=RA1-PA1387 Karl Marx / Friedrich Engels: Werke, Artikel, Entwrfe, Mai 1875 bis Mai 1883]''. p. 1387</ref> He was buried on Capri.<ref>Matvejević, Predrag, and Michael Henry Heim. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=4w5ccBpEoGUC&pg=RA1-PA216 Mediterranean: A Cultural Landscape]''. Berkeley [u.a.]: Univ. of California Press, 1999. p. 216</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geleff, Paul Johansen}} Category:Danish socialists Category:1842 births Category:1928 deaths Category:Danish schoolteachers Category:American people of Danish descent Category:Members of the International Workingmen's Association Category:History of Omaha, Nebraska