Johann Wiegand Christian Erdmann

Johann Wiegand Christian Erdmann (born July 2, 1764 in Nordenham , † April 19, 1842 in Zwischenahn ) was a German administrative lawyer and Chamber Secretary of the Duke of Oldenburg . During the French occupation of the duchy he was appointed Mayor of Oldenburg and later rose to the position of Privy Councilor .

Career

Erdmann was the only son of the auction manager Johann Gottfried Levin Erdmann (1718–1775) and Eleonore Louise nee. Rademacher (1729-1800). He attended the old grammar school in Oldenburg and studied law and camera studies at the University of Göttingen from 1784 to 1787 .

After graduating he became a lawyer licensed in Oldenburg. His practice gave him enough time for his scientific and literary interests as well as for an intensive social life. He had already become a Freemason in Göttingen and in Oldenburg he joined the small circle of enlighteners around Gerhard Anton von Halem . In 1788 he became a member of the Literary Society and founded a journal reading society himself . He also published some smaller scientific articles and became an external member of the Natural Research Society in Göttingen . With Halem and Johann Friedrich Cordes he undertook an extensive journey through Germany and Switzerland to Paris in 1790 , where the three Oldenburgers were enthusiastic about the ideas of the French Revolution .

After his return, Erdmann tried to be accepted into the Oldenburg civil service and in 1791 was appointed secretary at the government chancellery of the Lübeck bishopric in Eutin, which belongs to Oldenburg . At his urging, he was transferred to the government chancellery in Oldenburg as assessor in 1795 and four years later assigned to the court chamber . Like many other officials, he joined after the occupation of the Duchy by the French Empire in French services and was in July 1811 for mayor of the city of Oldenburg and a member of the Consiels ( State Council ) of the Weser departments appointed. When French rule in north-west Germany apparently wavered in March 1813, he resigned his post as mayor and supported the proposals of the Albrecht Ludwig von Berger chancellery to set up an administrative commission to maintain order after the French authorities had left.

After the return of the French, Erdmann managed to conceal his connection to this commission, whose leading members were sentenced to death and shot - including Berger. Erdmann was also arrested and brought before an extraordinary court in Bremen , which, however, acquitted him due to his skilful defense .

After the end of French rule, he tried in vain for a job in his old sphere of activity. In the autumn of 1814 he was appointed bailiff in the Zwischenahn office. He accepted this post only reluctantly, as it tore him from his circle of friends and from the familiar social environment. However, he quickly familiarized himself with his new service area, was promoted to Oberamtmann in 1828 and was awarded the title of Privy Councilor in 1838. Erdmann died in Zwischenahn in 1842.

family

Erdmann was married to Margarethe Dorothea Elisabeth born on January 29, 1793. Ranniger (1771–1849), the daughter of the Eutinian innkeeper and wine merchant Wulf Heinrich Ranniger and Katharina Elisabeth born. Wiesener. Of the couple's four children, Theodor (1795-1893) became the district president of the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg . The daughter Louise Sophie Elisabeth (1793–1880) married the personal physician and State Councilor Daniel Bruel (1786–1858).

Literature and Sources

• Erdmann, Johann Wiegand Christian. In: Hans Friedl u. a. (Ed.): Biographical manual for the history of the state of Oldenburg . Edited on behalf of the Oldenburg landscape. Isensee, Oldenburg 1992, ISBN 3-89442-135-5 , pp. 178-179 ( online ).