Julius Wilhelm von Oppel

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Julius Wilhelm von Oppel (born November 16, 1766 in Freiberg , † February 11, 1832 in Gotha ) was a German statesman.

Life

The son of the Electoral Saxon chief miner Friedrich Wilhelm von Oppel and Juliane Sophie, née Freiin von Hartitzsch, lost his father at the age of four and was raised by his mother together with his brother Carl Wilhelm with the support of friends.

education

In 1782 von Oppel began studying at the Bergakademie Freiberg on the recommendation of Abraham Gottlob Werner , who had already taught him . There was one Alexander von Humboldt to his fellow students. In the same year, the Prussian Oberbergrat von Stein began his studies in Freiberg, which he completed in the spring of 1783 with a mining trip through the Ore Mountains . Julius Wilhelm von Oppel was added to him by Werner as a travel companion and during this time a close friendship developed between Stein and Oppel.

In 1784 Oppel began studying law at the University of Leipzig .

Career

After completing his studies, he joined the mining administration of the Electoral Saxony mining administration as an assessor at the Schneeberg Mining Authority in 1787 . A rapid rise followed and in 1793 Oppel received his appointment to the secret finance council. In 1811 Oppel was appointed to the management of the First Department in the Secret Finance College, which included mining, metallurgy and saltworks. When Oppel saw himself at a disadvantage in the appointment of a new director to Georg August Ernst von Manteuffel (1765–1842), a favorite of Camillo Marcolini , he resigned his office and devoted himself to the administration and management of the family's Krebs bei Dohna manor and toured Italy.

Oppel, who had already submitted proposals for an administrative reform of Saxony in 1811, was appointed by von Stein on October 21, 1813 to the General Gouvernement of the High Allied Powers , which he directed , which took over the administration of Saxony instead of the fled government. During his tenure as head of the department, Oppel was primarily concerned with reducing the oppressive burden of war. He also made the decisions regarding the construction of the stairs on the Brühlsche Terrasse in Dresden, the design of the Great Garden and the acquisition of the mineral collection left by Abraham Gottlob Werner by the tax authorities.

Together with Dietrich von Miltitz and Hans Georg von Carlowitz he opposed Stein's plans to incorporate all of Saxony into Prussia and was able to prevent this after intensive negotiations with Stein, Repnin-Wolkonski and Hardenberg . He also tried to prevent the separation of large areas was established by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 and in the same year von Oppel withdrew into private life.

In 1815, at Stein's express request, he applied for an office in the Prussian state administration which he was not interested in taking over. After he had complied with Stein's request, he claimed highly exaggerated personal freedoms and was no longer given consideration. In the same year he gave his brother Carl Wilhelm his share of the inherited manors Wellerswalde near Torgau , Modelwitz and Krebs in order to travel to Europe from 1816. He met in Paris with Humboldt, whom he knew from his studies in Freiberg.

In 1824 von Oppel returned to Krebs, where he had a house built in order to devote himself to linguistic work and the organization of his 30,000-volume library. In addition, he made preparations for the establishment of the Sophia School for the poor from the rural population.

Gotha time

In 1829, at the suggestion of Ernst Friedrich von Schlotheim , Oppel accepted an invitation from Duke Ernst I to succeed Schlotheim, who was appointed Oberhofmarschall. For his office as Privy Councilor, President of the Chamber and Minister in the Duchy of Saxony-Coburg and Gotha, he asked for a three-year time limit and the promise of an annual four to six-week vacation to look for cancer from his foundation of 20,000 thalers and the Sophia School in the summer months to be able to dedicate. On August 7, 1830, the Sophia School named after his mother was opened. During his tenure in Gotha, he mainly reformed the forestry and renting system . Von Oppel died of an inflammation of the spleen with no offspring before his term in office was over .

literature

personal data
SURNAME Oppel, Julius Wilhelm von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German statesman
DATE OF BIRTH November 16, 1766
PLACE OF BIRTH Freiberg
DATE OF DEATH February 11, 1832
Place of death Gotha