Wilhelm von Schleinitz

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Wilhelm Johannes Heinrich Karl Freiherr von Schleinitz (born June 4, 1794 in Blankenburg , † November 3, 1856 in Braunschweig ) was a leading minister in the Duchy of Braunschweig for many years . In particular, as Minister of the Interior and Justice, he pursued a policy of reform.

origin

He came from the old Meissen noble family of Schleinitz , which in the 16th century in the realm baron was raised, and was the son of Blankenburger provincial government and later Duke of Brunswick Minister Karl Ferdinand Freiherr von Schleinitz (1,756 to 1,837) and Barbara von Hochstetter (1768 -1819). On December 20, 1853, as ducal Braunschweig Minister of State, he received the Braunschweiger Freiherrnstandsbesticherung . He was the eldest brother of the Prussian government president Julius von Schleinitz (1806–1865) and of the Prussian state minister Alexander von Schleinitz (1807–1885), who was raised to the rank of count .

family

Since 1824 he was married to Charlotte von Schrader (1802-1884). There were four sons and three daughters from the marriage, including:

  • Wilhelm (October 15, 1826 - March 21, 1881) ∞ 1857 Countess Rosa Toldallagi von Nagy-Ertse (October 18, 1834 - February 3, 1908)
  • Helene (* December 28, 1824) ∞ 1846 Carl Albert von Kamptz (* October 21, 1808 - June 15, 1870), Privy Councilor
  • Charlotte (June 22, 1828 - May 27, 1913) ∞ 1856 August von Geyso (1802–1861)
  • Albert (* December 20, 1838), Prussian lieutenant general zD ∞ 1874 Sophie von Muschwitz (* October 4, 1846)
  • Werner (born September 6, 1842; † September 5, 1905) ∞ 1876 Selma Bresselau von Bressensdorf (born July 26, 1844; † June 16, 1902)

Life

Schleinitz first attended school in his hometown. After his father was transferred to Halberstadt during the Kingdom of Westphalia , he attended the cathedral grammar school there. From 1812 von Schleinitz studied law in Göttingen . The study was interrupted from 1813 by participating as a volunteer in the Wars of Liberation . In 1814 he was promoted from ensign to lieutenant. A year later he took part in the Battle of Waterloo . At his own request, Schleinitz was put on waiting allowance in 1816 and resumed his studies.

After completing his studies, Schleinitz became an assessor at the regional court in Wolfenbüttel in 1818 . In 1823 he became a councilor and thus a full member of the regional court.

Reform policy

After Duke Karl was expelled , Schleinitz was brought into the government by Duke Wilhelm in 1830. Initially only a consultative member of the State Ministry, he played an important role from the start. On October 12, he was appointed Ministerial Councilor and was given the responsibility for justice and foreign affairs. He soon gave up the management of external affairs and instead took over the internal affairs department. In 1831 he was appointed secret council and in 1843 minister of state.

Schleinitz supported the reform of the constitution at home. This led to a new version of the landscape regulations of 1832, in which the minister was involved. In addition, he began to put the state finances in order. For this purpose, the relationship between the sovereign and the domains was regulated by law. After that, he no longer had direct access, but only received a civil list . Schleinitz was also active in numerous other areas in the sense of reforming the state.

This includes in particular the reform of the organization of the judiciary. The enforcement of the new Criminal Code of 1840 belongs in this context. A code of criminal procedure followed in 1849 and a code of civil procedure in 1850.

Schleinitz endeavored to remove the remnants of the feudal order. For this purpose, among other things, the replacement and common division order as well as a law on the allodification of fiefs served. Through these and similar measures Schleinitz drew the hatred of parts of the nobility. Their attempts to force him out of office failed because the Duke retained his minister's confidence.

The enactment of a town code and, a little later, a community code was also important. This gave the individual municipalities self-administration competencies that only existed to this extent in a few German states.

Road and railroad construction was promoted economically. In Braunschweig there was freedom of belief under von Schleinitz, and he was also open to the efforts of the German states to unite.

Revolution and Reaction Era

Because of his acknowledged progressive attitude, Schleinitz was the only minister in Germany to survive the March Revolution of 1848 unscathed. After the resignation of Count von Veltheim, Schleinitz took over the Foreign Ministry again in 1848 and, from 1851, the Department of Military Affairs. For this he gave up the interior department. In 1850 he was a member of the state house of the Erfurt Union Parliament .

During the reaction era he continued his policy in essence, but had to make some concessions, especially to his powerful neighbor Prussia . On June 1, 1856, he celebrated the 25th anniversary of uninterrupted ministerial activity. Such an event was unique in Germany at that time. On November 3, 1856, he died of a nervous attack.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels , Adelslexikon Volume XII, p. 466, Volume 125 of the complete series, CA Starke Verlag, Limburg (Lahn) 2001, ISBN 3-7980-0825-6 .
personal data
SURNAME Schleinitz, Wilhelm von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Schleinitz, Wilhelm Johannes Heinrich Karl Freiherr von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German politician, Minister in the Duchy of Braunschweig
DATE OF BIRTH June 4, 1794
PLACE OF BIRTH Blankenburg (Harz)
DATE OF DEATH November 3, 1856
Place of death Braunschweig