Clement de Lassaulx

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Clement de Lassaulx

Clemens Karl Christian Peter Ernst de Lassaulx (born December 11, 1809 in Diez , † January 5, 1906 in Adenau ) was a German forest official in the Rhine Province , a province of the Kingdom of Prussia . He is known as the "father of the Eifel forest ".

Life

Clemens de Lassaulx comes from a family that originally came from Lorraine . He attended elementary school and high school up to middle school. According to family tradition, he wanted to become a forester like his father Adam de Lassaulx, but initially could not get a job, as at the time in the Prussian state soldiers were preferred to civilians when filling vacancies.

So from 1828 to 1842 he worked in various professional fields, including as a surveyor , rentmaster and post office keeper .

In 1836 he married Christina Wirz (died 1895).

In 1842 he qualified as head forester and in 1844 received the district forester position in Adenau . After 42 years of service, he retired at the age of 76. After 20 years in retirement, District Forester Clemens de Lassaulx passed away in Adenau in 1906. He is buried in the Adenau churchyard.

Special merits

Clemens de Lassaulx campaigned for sustainable forest management that went far beyond the short-term use of the forest as construction, furniture and firewood.

A lot of wood had been stolen out of poverty in the communities where the forest hardly provided the necessary firewood. Then the sparse vegetation was also grazed by flocks of sheep , which led to the desertification and karstification of large areas - especially in cold and draughty altitudes.

In his 42-year service as a district forester in Adenau (1844–1886), de Lassaulx had more than 3000 hectares of wasteland afforested. By creating forests, the soil was protected from drying out and washing away, the climate and the water balance improved and, in the long term, the prerequisites for successful land use even under the unfavorable climatic conditions of the Eifel were created. His commitment to large-scale reforestation has earned him the nickname “Father of the Eifel Forest”.

Honors

In 1861 Clemens de Lassaulx received the Red Eagle Order IV class , in 1885 the Crown Order III. Kl. He was also awarded the Great Silver State Medal for his services.

In honor of the district forester Clemens de Lassaulx, a circular hiking trail and a barbecue hut in the woods around Adenau have also been named after him.

literature

  • Walther Ottendorff-Simrock: Clemens von Lassaulx. A contribution to the life story of the "father of the Eifelwald" . In: Eifeljahrbuch 1959, Bonn 1959, pp. 100-104.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Lassaulx, Clemens de
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Lassaulx, Clemens Karl Christian Peter Ernst von (full name); Father of the Eifelwald (nickname)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German forester
DATE OF BIRTH December 11, 1809
PLACE OF BIRTH Diez
DATE OF DEATH January 5, 1906
Place of death Adenau