Jules Greindl

Jules Xavier Charles Joseph Léonard Graf Greindl (born September 7, 1835 in Mons , Hainaut , † July 30, 1917 in Forest , Brussels-Capital Region ) was a Belgian diplomat and sculptor .

biography

Early diplomatic career and General Secretary of the AIA

Jules Greindl, 1901. Photo by JC Schaarwächter.

Greindl was the son of Lieutenant General Léonard Greindl , who was Minister of War from 1855 to 1857.

He himself studied after school attendance law and graduated in 1857 with the promotion of Doctor of Law from. His childhood friend, then Crown Prince and later King Leopold II , encouraged him to join the diplomatic service because of his language skills .

In 1858 he was first secretary at the embassy in Italy , then in 1859 at the embassy in the Ottoman Empire and finally in 1860 at the embassy in France . After another activity as embassy secretary in the Russian Empire from 1862 to 1864, he became secretary at the embassy in Switzerland in 1864 .

The Crown Prince Leopold, impressed by Greindl's achievements, appointed him Minister Plenipotentiary in Switzerland shortly after his accession to the throne in 1865. He was then Minister Plenipotentiary in Greece and in the Ottoman Empire from 1867 to 1869, and in Bavaria between 1869 and 1872 . This was followed by his accreditation as Minister Plenipotentiary in Spain during the Carlist Wars . He was in this post from 1872 to 1876 and tried, albeit ultimately unsuccessfully, on behalf of King Leopold II to sell the Philippines from Spain to Belgium in order to establish a colony .

After this mission failed, he was recalled from Madrid and, on his return, was appointed Secretary General of the Association Internationale Africaine (AIA). It was an organization that was founded by the king in 1876 to carry out humanitarian projects in what would later become the Congo Free State . On the other hand, the AIA commissioned the Africa explorer Henry Morton Stanley to carry out extensive expeditions in this area. In contrast to King Leopold II, Greindl viewed his colonization plans critically and therefore asked for a return to the diplomatic service.

Longstanding ambassador to Germany and awards

In 1879 he was therefore first authorized minister in Mexico and then from 1881 to 1888 in Portugal .

In 1888 he was finally appointed Extraordinary Envoy and Plenipotentiary Minister in the German Empire and held this post for 24 years until 1912. In 1911 he wrote a memorandum on a possible threat of war emanating from Germany, which in 1913 served as the basis for the introduction of general compulsory military service in Belgium .

Greindl has received several awards for his special services and in 1907 received the honorary title of Minister of State . In addition to the Grand Cross of the Leopold Order in 1910, he was also awarded the Order of Merit of the Prussian Crown on May 24, 1912 . When he left the diplomatic service, Baron Greindl was given the title of Count by King Albert I.

Greindl also worked as a sculptor for many years and exhibited his works at the General Art Exhibition in Brussels in 1878. He practiced sculpture until he was appointed Minister Plenipotentiary in Germany in 1888.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Hendrik Lodewijk Wesseling: Divide and rule: the division of Africa 1880–1914 (=  contributions to colonial and overseas history . Volume 76 ). Franz Steiner Verlag, 1999, ISBN 3-515-07543-7 , ISSN  0522-6848 , p. 85 ( limited preview in Google Book search).

Web links

• Belgian representative in Germany

predecessor	Office	successor
	Belgian envoy to Switzerland 1865–1867
	Belgian envoy to Greece 1867–1869
Gabriel Auguste van der Straten-Ponthoz	Belgian envoy to Bavaria 1869–1872	Office dissolved
Gabriel Auguste van der Straten-Ponthoz	Belgian envoy to Spain 1872–1876	Théodore de Bounder de Melsbrueck
	Belgian envoy to Mexico 1879–1881
Charles de Pitteurs-Hiegaerts	Belgian envoy to Portugal 1881–1888
Jean-Baptiste Nothomb	Belgian envoy to Germany 1888–1912	Eugène Beyens