Jacob Christian Jacobsen

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jacob Christian Jacobsen (born September 2, 1811 in Copenhagen , † April 30, 1887 in Rome ), often abbreviated as J. C. Jacobsen , was a Danish industrialist who was active as a philanthropist in the field of promoting the natural sciences and as a patron of the arts. With the Carlsberg Brewery, he founded one of the currently largest beer producers in the world, and with the Carlsberg Laboratory , the Carlsberg Foundation and the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek Museum , which was created from his private art collection , various institutions that promote scientific and cultural life in Denmark to the present day shape.

Life

Jacob Christian Jacobsen on a painting by August Jerndorff, created in 1886

Jacob Christian Jacobsen was born in Copenhagen in 1811 . He took over his father's brewery in 1835 and gradually expanded it into a large company for the industrial production of beer from 1844 under the name "Carlsberg-Bryggerier Kjøbenhavn" . In contrast to the small breweries that were predominant at the time, he focused in particular on the use of scientific knowledge to ensure consistent quality and efficient production as well as on German brewing traditions, which he had become familiar with during a stay in Munich . After Jacobsen's death, the company was continued by his son Carl Jacobsen and is currently one of the largest and best-known beer producers in the world.

In the social sphere, Jacobsen supported the national liberal tendency in Danish politics and represented it several times between 1854 and 1871 as a member of parliament. In addition, he was active in various areas philanthropically and as a patron of the arts . He financed the reconstruction of Frederiksborg Castle, which was badly damaged by fire in 1859 . His son converted his extensive private art collection into a museum in 1888 , which still exists as Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek to the present day .

In 1876 Jacobsen founded the Carlsberg Foundation by donating shares in the brewery , to which he later bequeathed his legacy. The purpose of the foundation, which according to his decision holds at least 51 percent of the capital shares in the Carlsberg Brewery, was initially to finance the Carlsberg Laboratory , a research facility in the field of chemistry and physiology, founded in 1875 . Later, the foundation also took on the maintenance of the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, the national history museum in Frederiksborg Castle, which has been in existence since 1878, and, since the merger with the Tuborg Foundation in 1991, also the promotion of social projects and other activities with social benefit.

Jacobsen died in Rome in 1887 while on vacation in Italy .

literature

personal data
SURNAME Jacobsen, Jacob Christian
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Danish industrialist, brewery founder, philanthropist and patron of the arts
DATE OF BIRTH September 2, 1811
PLACE OF BIRTH Copenhagen
DATE OF DEATH April 30, 1887
Place of death Rome