Hans Ernst von Kottwitz

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Hans Ernst von Kottwitz (born September 1, 1757 in Tschepplau (today Krzepielów , district of Sława ) near Glogau , Lower Silesia ; † May 13, 1843 in Berlin ) was a German philanthropist and leading figure in the revival movement .

Life

Kottwitz, a descendant of the noble family of Kotwitz in Silesia , was 13 years old Page at the court of Frederick II. In Potsdam and studied briefly in 1777 Jura at the University of Frankfurt / Oder . He then undertook extensive trips through Germany. In Hamburg he met Matthias Claudius . Through contacts with the Moravian Brethren and their Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg , he decided around 1788 to devote his life to the realization of an active Christianity and to use labor and wealth for the poor. By marrying Charlotte Helene Countess von Zedlitz (1756–1829) he had gained additional goods. A first attempt to employ the troubled weavers in factories for flax processing on his estates in Silesia ended in bankruptcy.

In 1806 Kottwitz moved to Berlin. There, too, he immediately began to employ the craftsmen who had become unemployed during the turmoil of the Napoleonic Wars on spinning wheels and looms. This resulted in a “voluntary employment institution” at Alexanderplatz, which was run by King Friedrich Wilhelm III. was financially supported and existed after Kottwitz's death. The king encouraged Kottwitz to establish further spinning and weaving mills in Silesia, for example in Grüssau in 1812 and later in Glatz and Spiller. All of these factories remained dependent on subsidies and ultimately unsuccessful. Kottwitz 'social projects were shaped by Enlightenment thinking and focused more on social work and job creation measures than on conversion , because for him work was one of the most important prerequisites for "happiness". With them he also influenced the pioneers of the early Protestant diakonia or Inner Mission . Johann Hinrich Wichern met Kottwitz while studying theology in Berlin from 1829 to 1832 and later often referred to his example. He corresponded with Theodor Fliedner about the founding of the Berlin Association for the Improvement of Prisoners (1830).

In Berlin, Kottwitz belonged to the circle of the revival movement, which was initially rooted in the nobility. He was involved in the founding of the Prussian Main Bible Society (1814) and the Society for the Promotion of Christianity among the Jews (Berlin Israel Mission) and befriended the brothers Leopold , Ernst Ludwig and Otto von Gerlach as well as the theologians Johannes Jaenicke , August Neander and Johannes Evangelista Goßner . He was able to shape numerous young theologians such as Wichern, Ewald Rudolf Stier , Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg , August Tholuck , Richard Rothe and Claus Harms in the sense of a revival piety.

Works

  • About poor people . 1809
  • About public penal institutions, and the most expedient means of inciting common men to activity . 1810
  • Baron Hans Ernst von Kottwitz and the revival movement in Silesia, Berlin and Pomerania. Correspondence , included. u. ed. v. Friedrich Wilhelm Kantzenbach , 1963

Remembrance day

May 13th in the Evangelical Name Calendar .

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Article on Hans Ernst von Kottwitz in the ecumenical dictionary of saints

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Kottwitz, Hans Ernst von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German philanthropist
DATE OF BIRTH September 1, 1757
PLACE OF BIRTH Tschepplau (today part of Sława ) near Glogau , Lower Silesia
DATE OF DEATH May 13, 1843
Place of death Berlin