Godtfred Kirk Christiansen

Danish businessperson and second generation owner of The Lego Group

Godtfred Kirk Christiansen (8 July 1920 – 13 July 1995) was the managing director of The Lego Group from 1957 to 1973. He was the third son of company founder Ole Kirk Christiansen and took over as managing director in 1957, eventually becoming the sole owner. Godtfred is credited with playing a pivotal role in the development of the Lego brick design and patented it in 1958. He also created the Lego System in Play, the cornerstone of the Lego construction toy. Godtfred stepped down as Leader of the company in 1973. His son Kjeld Kirk Christiansen became president in 1979.

Godtfred Kirk Christiansen was born on 8 July 1920 into a poor family and received limited formal education. He was the third son of five siblings. His father Ole Kirk Christiansen owned the Billund Woodworking and Carpentry Shop, a small family business based in Billund, which produced wooden furniture and built property. In 1924, at the age of four, Godtfred and his brother Karl Georg accidentally caused a fire and burned the woodworking shop to the ground. Godtfred later recalled, "My first contribution to the company – not that I'm proud of it – was when my brother Karl Georg and I lit the glue heater. Unfortunately some wood shavings caught fire – and the whole building burned to the ground." In 1937, at the age of 17, Godtfred had started to design wooden toys. Motivated by his ambition to better understand the business, he embarked on a sales trip in 1951, accompanied by his wife, Edith, which involved visiting all the customers in southern Jutland. This resulted in Godtfred winning several orders and also helped him to understand how products were displayed in shops. In 1952, he experienced a major disagreement with his father, who wanted to expand the factory. As a result, Godtfred resigned, but father and son later put aside their differences and he resumed his position. Ole and Godtfred were inspired by the design of a stackable cube with two rows of four studs designed by Hilary Fisher Page. The design was modified by the Christiansens and in 1953, the modified plastic bricks were given the name "Lego bricks". Unfortunately, initial sales were poor, as the bricks were not very sturdy and did not stick together very well. In 1958, Godtfred played a pivotal role in the development of the modern Lego brick. On 28 January 1958, Godtfred sat in a meeting with his brother, Karl Georg, and Axel Thomson, the head of the sales office in Germany, and they discussed the complaints that they had received regarding the lack of sturdiness and clutch power of the bricks. After discussing several solutions, Godtfred sketched some ideas on paper and finally handed a design to Ove Nielsen, the head of the Lego moulding shop. The design was for a new brick with two inner clutch tubes. On his way back from the patent office, Godtfred then considered whether three inner tubes would work more effectively. He asked Ove Nielsen to create a new sample, which was sent to the patent office. This design featuring the three inner clutch tubes was finally patented on 28 January 1958 and became the iconic design for the modern Lego brick.

Godtfred is credited with defining the Lego System in Play, which became the cornerstone of the modern Lego construction toy. In 1954, he made a visit to a toy exhibition in Britain, where he met Troels Petersen, purchasing manager for the toy department of Magasin du Nord in Copenhagen. When Peterson commented that the toy industry had no system, Godtfred was inspired to invent a system that could be used in play and spent several months developing his idea. He defined six principles named the "Principles of Play" which included affordability, durability and suitability for boys and girls. Using these principles as a benchmark, he reviewed the company's portfolio of products and finally considered that the Lego brick conformed to all six principles and offered the most possibilities in terms of establishing a system of play. The Lego System in Play eventually became the core focus of the business. Godtfred explained the system by stating that, "all elements fit together, can be used in multiple ways, can be built together. This means that bricks bought years ago will fit perfectly with bricks bought in the future." The new park covered 14 acres and was built next to the Lego factory. Legoland Billund opened on 7 June 1968 and became a success, becoming one of the largest attractions in Denmark.

Christiansen died on 13 July 1995 at the age of 75 at his home in Billund; his son Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen took over the company after his death.