Christoph Merian
Christoph Merian ( born January 22, 1800 Basel, † August 22, 1858 ibid ), son of Christoph Merian senior ( 1769-1849 ) and Valeria Hoffmann ( 1773-1834 ) was a large landowner, reindeer and founder of the Christoph Merian Foundation.
Life
Christoph Merian -Burckhardt came from one of the noblest families of Basel. His father was a prosperous merchant of the same name and first operation of raw cotton trade, and later all kinds of freight forwarding, banking and speculative businesses. He was considered the richest Swiss of his time. Particularly large gains achieved his company " Frères Merian " by bypassing the Napoleonic Continental System, which even led to diplomatic intervention of France in Switzerland. The risky trading business was the father 1810; henceforth he invested in Alsatian industrial plants or made banking transactions.
After leaving school, Merian graduated Although an apprenticeship, which enabled him, even picking up his father's profession. But he also showed a keen interest in agriculture and settled in 1818-1821 at the Agricultural Institute in Hofwil Münchenbuchsee and in the Agricultural Academy of Hohenheim near Stuttgart trained as agronomists. This was an unusual for a young patrician son Basler career; However, even the Father, through the purchase of goods at Basel and Lorraine showed an increasing tendency to land. In addition, the mentioned schools had a downright excellent reputation. In particular Hofwil attracted the sons of European citizens and noble elite.
In 1824, Christoph Merian married the industrialist 's daughter Margaretha Burckhardt ( 1806-1886 ). With Merian's parents lived in their town house. As a wedding gift they got from Merian's father the comprehensive approximately 56 acres of land Brüglingen seat, with the manor house Villa Merian in Basel, Merian in 1829 left farming by a farmer. Although he initially did not have much equity, he began quite soon to acquire additional parcels and when his mother died in 1835, he was with the inherited money or increase its acquisitions. All purchases were intended to extend the Good Brüglinger and round. At the end of his life, his property included along with some other land in the near Baden 325 hectares, which was unusually large by Swiss standards.
The agronomic operation Merian was not simply an expression of a romantic interest in the country or a departure from his father's money transactions. Merian laid emphasis on a modern land management and was quite an entrepreneurial-minded investors, however, the emphasis on soundness put in contrast to the speculative possibilities during the Napoleonic Wars. He preferred safe securities and gave loans to artisans, farmers and tradesmen.
Christoph Merian left behind no personal records, which makes it difficult to interpret the motives of his actions. Certainly he had a traditional worldview that let him appear the Industrial Revolution and its impact on society concern. He was influenced by Pietism, which was particularly prevalent in Basel ( Basel Fromme ). From a strong personal piety and a deep-rooted class consciousness sprang from both a reclusive, emphasizes Christian way of life as well as a paternalistic sense of responsibility for the poor and needy. So Merian donated already during his lifetime considerable sums, for example, for the town hospital, to reduce the cost of bread for residents of Basel and the surrounding area and much more.
On August 22, 1858 Christoph Merian died. The core of his will were the Articles 26 and 27, with whom he made the surviving wife and after her death the "dear native town " sole heir. As Margaretha Merian died in 1886, about twelve and a half million francs went to Basel. To manage the assets, the Christoph Merian Foundation was created. The exclusive preference Basel may have been in a patriotic feeling which was related to the forcible separation of Canton in 1833. Determine the open and very adaptable formulated products that in the capital of a foundation income to " alleviate the suffering and misfortune ," to "promote the well-being of the people" and for the " implementation of our urban communities incumbent or generally useful and expedient devices " is to be used. From the subsequent interaction of the widow, it is clear that the unusual legacy based on common will of the childless couple. Margaretha Merian Burckhardt led the start of Christoph Merian obligations on. So the St. financed by him Elisabethen church was completed and handed over to the Church of Basel City. The church is through their naming ( the hl. Elisabeth is the patron saint of the poor ) and conservative design language ( it is one of the most important neo-Gothic monuments in Switzerland) a stone credo of Mr. and Mrs. Merian, which is buried under the building in its own tomb.