Von der Heydt (family)
The von der Heydts are a German family from Elberfeld . It produced politicians, bankers and patrons and was promoted to the rank of baron in 1863 .
History up to the middle of the 19th century
The family called themselves Heidt bei Barmen after the place where they lived . From there they moved to Elberfeld. Members of the name first appear in 1597. In the course of the following centuries it achieved a certain level of prosperity. Johannes von der Heydt (1730–1810) ran a bakery that specialized in making waffles.
The sons Daniel Heinrich (1767–1832) and Johann Abraham Wilhelm (1771–1850) received commercial training. Daniel Heinrich married Wilhelmine Kersten in 1794 and entered the banking business of his father-in-law Abraham Kersten . He soon became a partner in this. He was also mayor, commercial judge and was active in the Reformed community. The marriage resulted in nine children, some of whom died early. One of the daughters married the court preacher Friedrich Strauss .
The son August von der Heydt (1801–1874) was like his father a banker, active in the Reformed community and a local politician. As a representative of Rhenish liberalism , he was a member of the Prussian National Assembly and became Prussian Minister of Commerce and later Minister of Finance. He was raised to the hereditary baron status in 1863. One of the sons, Bernhard von der Heydt (1840–1907), was the district administrator of the Obertaunus district . Robert von der Heydt (1837–1877) was district administrator for the Eupen and Essen districts , as well as district president of Upper Alsace .
August's brother Daniel von der Heydt (1802–1874) was also active in the banking and trading business. He was also an opponent of the church union and, although politically conservative, stood up for the freedom of the church. He was instrumental in founding the free Dutch Reformed community in Elberfeld . He was also significantly involved in the introduction of the Elberfeld system of poor relief. The third brother Carl von der Heydt (1806–1881) also thought in terms of church politics like his brothers. He was a partner in his father's bank and also wrote some theological works.
The von der Heydt-Kersten & Söhne banking house , one of the first of its kind in Germany, became an important industrial financier in the first half of the 19th century and was involved in railway construction and similar projects.
Since the middle of the 19th century
In the second half of the 19th century, the family branched out into several branches. August von der Heydt (1851–1929) son of the father of the same name and grandson of the grandfather of the same name joined the family's bank and ran it together with his cousin Karl von der Heydt. From 1891 he managed the bank alone. Politically, he was free-conservative and was a city councilor in Elberfeld. As a patron he endeavored to beautify Elberfeld. He bought forests, which he later donated to the city, was a co-founder of the stock corporation Zoologischer Garten (today: Zoo Wuppertal) and chairman of the beautification association . He financed numerous monuments, wells and similar facilities. He also promoted the theater and the concert society. As an important art collector, he was the founder of the museum association in 1892, which later became the Von der Heydt Museum .
The cousin Karl von der Heydt (1858–1922) lived in the villa of the Minister von der Heydt in Berlin, where he initially ran a branch of the family bank, which later became completely independent. He was a supporter of the German colonial efforts. He has also supported authors such as Rainer Maria Rilke and emerged as a writer himself.
Eduard von der Heydt (1882–1964) was politically right after the First World War . In 1926 he bought the site of the former life reform and artist colony Monte Verità in Switzerland. He became a National Socialist and, after the Second World War, was charged with dodgy business, but not convicted. He donated parts of his collections to the city of Zurich , others went to the museum in Wuppertal. The von der Heydt bank became part of the Commerzbank .
In the course of 200 years, eight members of the Elberfeld city council or city council and five mayors emerged from the family.
Descendant table
Daniel Heinrich von der Heydt | Wilhelmine Kersten 1771–1854 |
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Wilhelmine von der Heydt 1795–1797 |
Juliana von der Heydt 1796–1804 |
Wilhelmine von der Heydt 1797–1872 |
Johannes Wichelhaus 1794–1874 |
Johanna von der Heydt 1799–1857 |
Friedrich Strauss 1786–1863 |
August Freiherr von der Heydt 1801–1874 |
Julie Blank 1804-1865 |
Daniel von der Heydt 1802–1874 |
Bertha Rosalia Wülfing 1806–1857 |
Friedrich von der Heydt 1804–1817 |
Carl von der Heydt 1806–1881 |
Julie von der Heydt 1810–1883 |
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August Freiherr von der Heydt 1825–1867 |
Maria Helene Boeddinghaus 1828–1899 |
Eduard Freiherr von der Heydt 1828–1890 |
Alice Rosalie Schmidt 1830–1898 |
Robert Freiherr von der Heydt 1837–1877 |
Mathilde Anna Elisabeth Amalie von Balan 1847–1907 |
Bernhard Freiherr von der Heydt 1840–1907 |
Annie Luise Mathilde Loeschigk 1849–1922 |
Berta Johanna von der Heydt 1828–1902 |
Alwine von der Heydt 1831–? |
Selma von der Heydt 1833–1885 |
Pauline von der Heydt 1836–? |
Daniel Heinrich von der Heydt 1838–1861 |
Emilie von der Heydt 1843–1860 |
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August Freiherr von der Heydt 1851–1929 |
Selma Haarhaus 1862–1944 |
Marie Mathilde Freiin von der Heydt 1850–1889 |
Emil Weyerbusch 1846–1909 |
Eduard Freiherr von der Heydt 1858–1862 |
Alice Freiin von der Heydt 1861–1864 |
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August Freiherr von der Heydt 1881–1943 |
Eduard Freiherr von der Heydt 1882–1964 |
Vera von Schwabach 1899–1996 |
Robert Bernhard Freiherr von der Heydt 1889–1889 |
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literature
- Sabine Fehlemann & Rainer Stamm (eds.): The von der Heydts. Bankers, Christians and Patrons. Müller and Busmann, Wuppertal 2001, ISBN 3-928766-49-X