Albrecht von Bernstorff

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Albrecht von Bernstorff
Memorial plaque for Albrecht von Bernstorff in the St. Abundus Church in Lassahn

Albrecht Graf von Bernstorff (born March 22, 1809 in Dreilützow, today a part of Wittendbod , † March 26, 1873 in London ) was a Prussian diplomat and 1861/1862 Foreign Minister.

origin

His parents were the Danish chamberlain Friedrich Graf von Bernstorff (1773-1838) and his wife the Freiin Ferdinandine von Hammerstein-Equord (1783-1853).

Live and act

Count Bernstorff studied law in Göttingen , where he - like many Mecklenburgers - became a member of the Corps Vandalia in 1827 . He finished his studies at the Friedrich Wilhelms University .

After the exams he entered the Prussian civil service. In 1832 he became an attaché at the Prussian legation in Hamburg . A year later he was appointed Secretary of the Legation in The Hague . In 1837 he was transferred to St. Petersburg and appointed Legation Councilor. Because of the death of his father, he returned to Germany in the same year to take care of family matters.

He then moved to Paris in 1838 . There he married Anna von Könneritz (born May 23, 1821 in Dresden ), daughter of the Saxon ambassador to the French court, Hans Heinrich von Könneritz (1790–1863). In 1840 Bernstorff became chargé d'affaires in Naples and in 1841 in Paris.

Subsequently, from 1842 he was a lecturer in the political department in the Foreign Ministry. At times he also had to represent the Foreign Minister. In 1843 he was promoted to the secret legation councilor. Bernstorff went to Munich in 1845 as envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary . Between May 1848 and 1851 he was the Prussian envoy in Vienna . During the revolution of 1848/49 he campaigned for a close alliance between Prussia and Austria. When the differences between the two countries increased under Felix zu Schwarzenberg , Bernstorff was dismissed from his post at the express request of the Austrian side.

In the years 1851 and 1852 Bernstorff was a member of the first chamber of the Prussian state parliament in the Alvensleben faction . With the title of a real secret council, he was appointed Prussian ambassador to Naples in 1852 . He then served as ambassador to London from 1854 .

As early as 1848 and 1850, King Friedrich Wilhelm IV. Bernstorff offered the office of Foreign Minister in vain. In 1861 and 1862 he was the Prussian Foreign Minister under Prime Minister Karl Anton von Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen . He replaced the old liberal Alexander von Schleinitz and strengthened the more conservative forces around August von der Heydt and Albrecht von Roon in the cabinet .

During this time, considerations about the reorganization of the German Confederation fell . Bernstorff spoke out in favor of a small German , Prussian-led union without these plans initially being pursued. Bernstorff achieved a quick recognition of the new Kingdom of Italy . In the German Confederation this meant a clear rejection of a customs union with Austria.

At the beginning of the Prussian constitutional conflict, the government and Wilhelm I faced the decision to continue to govern without a constitutional budget. Von der Heydt, Bernstorff and Minister of Commerce Heinrich Wilhelm von Holtzbrinck rejected this as a breach of the constitution and resigned. Other ministers were ready to move on. In this situation, War Minister Roon prevailed as successor to Bernstorff and as Prime Minister Otto von Bismarck .

Then Bernstorff was again Prussian and, after the establishment of the German Empire, also German ambassador in the rank of Minister of State in London. Among other things, he was the Prussian representative at the London Peace Conference of 1864, which ultimately led to the Peace of Vienna . As ambassador of the North German Confederation, he was involved in regulating the status of Luxembourg at the London Conference in 1867 .

family

In 1839 he married Anna von Könneritz (born May 23, 1821 in Dresden ), the daughter of the Saxon ambassador to the French court, Hans Heinrich von Könneritz (1790–1863). The couple had five sons and 2 daughters, including:

  • Percy (June 17, 1858 - December 18, 1930)
⚭ Olga Jacobs (April 16, 1869 - April 11, 1920)
⚭ Waldtraut Pia Augusta Christa von Koenneritz (born December 9, 1907, † June 24, 1991)
  • Johann Heinrich (born November 14, 1862; † October 6, 1939) ⚭ 1887 Jeanne Luckemeyer (born December 13, 1867; † April 25, 1943)

literature

  • Karl Ringhoffer (ed.): In the fight for Prussia's honor: from the estate of Count Albrecht v. Bernstorff, Minister of State and Imperial German Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary in London and his wife Anna née. Freiin v. Koenneritz. Berlin: ES Mittler, 1906
Digitized

Web links

Commons : Albrecht von Bernstorff  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Kösener corps lists 1910, 87 , 172
  2. ↑ Acta Borussica vol. 5 p. 30
  3. ↑ Thomas Nipperdey: German History 1800-1866. Citizen world and strong state. CH Beck, Munich 1998, ISBN 3-406-44038-X , p. 707.
  4. ^ Hans-Ulrich Wehler: German history of society. Vol. 3: From the German double revolution to the beginning of the First World War. 1849-1914. Munich 1995, ISBN 3-406-32490-8 , p. 228.
  5. ↑ Acta Borussica vol. 5 p. 3, p. 30.
personal data
SURNAME Bernstorff, Albrecht von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bernstorff, Albrecht Graf von (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Prussian diplomat and foreign minister
DATE OF BIRTH March 22, 1809
PLACE OF BIRTH Dreilützow, today part of Wittendbod
DATE OF DEATH March 26, 1873
Place of death London