Ludwig Meyer von Knonau (statesman)

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Ludwig Meyer von Knonau (born September 12, 1769 in Zurich ; † September 21, 1841 there ) was a Swiss statesman and historian .

Life

Education and early career

The Meyer von Knonau family had been part of the citizenship of Zurich and the patriciate of the city since 1363 . Ludwig Meyer von Knonau, a grandson of the poet Ludwig Meyer von Knonau (1705–1785), grew up in Zurich and Eglisau . In Eglisau his father, a Zurich councilor, was bailiff from 1771 to 1777. Meyer von Knonau initially received private tuition and then graduated from high school in Zurich. In 1789 he went to study at the University of Halle , made a long trip in Europe and in 1791 became a medical clerk. In 1793 he was appointed permanent city ​​judge . In 1795 he was given the office of notary . He was a member of the Natural Research Society in Zurich and temporarily held the office of secretary of their agricultural department. In 1794 he took part in a private colloquium given by Johann Gottlieb Fichte .

Judge and jurist

Meyer von Knonau was a district judge at the Zurich District Court in 1798. From 1799 to 1800 he was a member of the municipality of Zurich, from 1800 to 1802 a member of the Cantonal Court and from 1803 to 1805 a member of the Zurich Higher Court . In 1804 he was president of the marriage court and in this position he revised the matrimonial code. In February 1807 he was one of the founders of the Political Institute , a kind of law faculty that was one of the institutions from which the University of Zurich emerged. At this he worked alongside Hans Conrad Escher von der Linth and Heinrich Escher as a professor of law until 1813 . During this time he worked out a draft for a penal code. In 1836 he was awarded for his services from the Zurich University of the honorary doctorate (Dr. phil. E. C.) .

Political career

Meyer von Knonau was a member of the Education Council from 1799 to 1831 and as such was involved in the reforms of the educational system. From 1820 he held the office of Vice President of the Commission. In 1803 he was the Zurich cantonal parliament and remained a member of the Council until 1839. He worked from 1805 to 1830 as Kleinrat, 1829-1831 as the State Council and from 1831 to 1839 as Councilor of the Canton of Zurich . In the years 1830 and 1831 he was a member of the Constitutional Commission and in 1811, 1830 and 1831 he was also a member of the Diet .

He turned down the office of mayor of Zurich. After the Zurich coup in 1839, he resigned from all his political offices. He was one of the politicians of the liberal wing. Although he believed that Switzerland could change without French help, he served as a politician and legal scholar of the Helvetic Republic .

The archivist and historian Gerold Meyer von Knonau was his son, the historian Gerold Meyer von Knonau his grandson.

Works (selection)

Among other things, he wrote several historical contributions, including contributions to the General Encyclopedia of Sciences and Arts by Johann Samuel Ed and Johann Gottfried Gruber . He also published:

  • Instructions for viticulture. Zurich 1794.
  • Handbook of the History of the Swiss Confederation. 2 volumes. Orell and Füssli, Zurich 1826–1829.
  • Farewell words to my dear canton citizens. Zurich 1841.
  • Life memories. Huber, Frauenfeld 1883 (edited by Gerold Meyer von Knonau ).

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Edgar Bonjour :  Meyer von Knonau (family article). In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 17, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1994, ISBN 3-428-00198-2 , p. 381 ( digitized version ).
  2. ^ Gerold Meyer von Knonau :  Meyer von Knonau, Joh. Ludwig . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 21, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1885, pp. 619-621.
personal data
SURNAME Meyer von Knonau, Ludwig
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss statesman and historian
DATE OF BIRTH September 12, 1769
PLACE OF BIRTH Zurich
DATE OF DEATH September 21, 1841
Place of death Zurich