Jón was a classical liberal, unlike most of his contemporary and subsequent nationalists. Historian Gunnar Karlsson describes him in the following fashion, Jon Sigurdsson was by no means a typical 19th-century national hero. He was not an extreme nationalist and for his time, was rather devoid of romanticism. Above all, he was a protagonist of modernization, democracy, human rights and economic progress... Jon's career was not typical for a leader of a liberation movement either. He was never arrested for his political activity or spent a single night in prison. On the contrary, for most of his life he was sustained by rather generous research grants from various scholarly institutions, more or less funded by the Danish treasury.Jón never requested full autonomy for Iceland during his lifetime. Jón called for greater self-rule, arguing that "the country should be allowed to govern itself as much as possible, in order for the great energy, which is inherent in the country but lies dormant, to be revived and to mature." He died in Copenhagen in 1879. Legacy His birthday, 17 June, was chosen as Iceland's National Holiday to recognize his efforts toward Icelandic independence. He is often referred to as President ("Jón forseti") by Icelanders. The main reason for this is that he served as the president of Althing several times, for the first time in 1849. He also served as the President of the Copenhagen Department of Hið íslenska bókmenntafélag (the Icelandic Literature Society). He is currently pictured on Iceland's 500 krónur bill, and The apartment which Jón and Ingibjörg rented at Øster Voldgade 12 in Copenhagen from 1852 is called Jónshús and has been the property of the Icelandic government since 1967. It serves as a cultural center for Icelanders in Denmark, and as housing for academics on sabbatical. A plaque on the corner with Stokhusgade commemorates that he used to live in the building. Further reading Hermannsson, Birgir. 2005. Understanding nationalism: studies in Icelandic nationalism, 1800-2000. PhD thesis: Stockholm University. References К. Maurer. Zur politischen Geschichte Islands. Leipzig, 1880). External links Jón Sigurðsson of Iceland (in English) Jónshús 1811 births 1879 deaths Jon Sigurdsson Jon Sigurdsson Jon Sigurdsson Icelandic independence activists Members of constitutional conventions