Victor was a son of Niels Georg la Cour (no. 13) and Emilie Antoinette la Cour, born on 15 January 1843 in Copenhagen. After spending 1847 to 1849 in a private primary school, Victor was enrolled in the Friis lower secondary school in 1850 and then studied at the Von Westen Institute from 1851 to 1858. After passing the entrance examination to the army’s Landkadetakademi* in October 1858, he was made a second lieutenant in the 5th Dragoon Regiment in Randers in 1860 and fought in the Second Schleswig War* of 1864. In 1863, Victor completed a four-month course at the gymnastic institute in Copenhagen and then worked at the military’s riding school from 1865 to 1867. In 1867, he was promoted to first lieutenant and immediately afterwards took a six- week trip to Paris. He was in charge of gymnastics instruction at the Randers grammar school* from 1867 to 1875. In 1869, Victor was also appointed a chamberlain. On 24 July 1870, Victor married Agnes Louise la Cour (née Møller) in Randers. Born on 7 November 1847 in Flensburg, Agnes was a daughter of Svend Christian Møller and Nielsine Vestine Buch.
In 1875, Victor was transferred to the 4th Dragoon Regiment in Næstved. After a short term of service in the Danish war ministry’s third office in 1877, he was promoted to the rank of captain and served as squadron commander with 4th Dragoon Regiment (still in Næstved). Serving as superintendent of the cavalry’s second lieutenant, sergeant and corporal school in Randers in 1882-83, Victor was made a Knight of the Order of Dannebrog* in February 1883. In August-September of that same year, he was sent to France to represent the Danish cavalry at the international cavalry manoeuvres at Chalons sur Marne and, in that connection was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour. After returning to Denmark, Victor was appointed to a commission set up to provide a draft version of new arms regulations for the cavalry. At the end of October 1885, he was assigned to the 5th Dragoon Regiment in Randers; however, on his way from Næstved to Randers, he was stopped in Copenhagen and requested by the war ministry to join the military police corps established by provisional law a few days earlier. He was immediately made available to the commander of the corps and helped organise the corps nationwide in November-December of that year, afterwards remaining on duty at the corps’ office in Copenhagen and accompanying the commander on his inspections.
Promoted in October 1887 to lieutenant colonel of the cavalry and head of the military police corps, Victor held the latter position until the elimination of the corps in 1894. He was awarded the Silver Cross of the Order of Dannebrog* on 13 February 1891. In addition to a few short trips to Norway in the summers of 1888 and 1893, Victor took a nine-week “health holiday” to Germany, Austria and Switzerland in the summer of 1892, with funding from the war ministry. On 5 April 1894 he resigned with severance pay, but he was in charge of dismantling the military police corps in 1894 and in the spring of 1895 helped the general staff organise a new military police group to be established in the event of a mobilisation. In 1895, he had to sue the Danish finance ministry for the severance pay he had been awarded – the ministry claimed that a parliamentary vote had to be taken first – and actually won the case. He was reinstated as a lieutenant colonel in the cavalry with his previous seniority and placed at the disposal of the first general command in Copenhagen.
On 18 April 1896, he was put in charge of the 2nd Dragoon Regiment (in Odense), and on 16 December of that year he was promoted to colonel. In 1897, he was elected both president of the officer’s association for the Odense garrison and president of the newly created Funen horse racing association. In September 1898, he headed a deputation of officers from the 2nd Dragoon Regiment invited to visit the military camp at Ljungbyhede in the Skåne region of Sweden. In December that same year, he was made a Commander Second Class of the Swedish Sword Order and on 15 February 1899 a Commander Second Class of the Order of Dannebrog. The summer of 1899 saw him take another six-week “health holiday” to Germany and Austria, again with funding from the war ministry.
In August 1899, Victor led a cavalry brigade in a few days of equestrian exercises with the 2nd, 3rd and 5th Dragoon Regiments, and the following year he refereed in cantonment manoeuvres. He was made a Knight Second Class of the Russian Saint Anna Order (Commander’s Cross) in 1901. In 1902, he was placed at the disposal of the First General Command (in Copenhagen). Upon application because of his age, he was honourably discharged in March 1903 with a pension; he was also made a Commander First Class of the Order of Dannebrog at the same time. He travelled to Germany in the summers of 1906 and 1907.
Victor’s wife Agnes had died many years before, on 30 August 1888, in Copenhagen. Victor himself died on 29 June 1926. (Four children: the Copenhagen Line, second branch.) http://www.pierrelacour.dk/victor-dornonville-de-la-cour-42/
