Gillis Bildt

Didrik Anders Gillis Bildt Baron (* October 16, 1820 in Gothenburg, † October 22, 1894 in Stockholm) was a Swedish lieutenant general, diplomat, politician and Prime Minister.

Family and military career

The son of a lieutenant colonel suggested also a military career. First, he graduated from the Military Academy at Karlberg Castle ( Militärhögskolan Karlberg ). Then he joined in 1837 as an officer cadet in the artillery regiment of Götaland a. In 1842 he finished his officer training and attracted the attention of Crown Prince Oskar up. After his graduation he was tutor of mathematics for several years. Even as a lieutenant, he was adjutant in 1851 by King Oscar I. This resulted in the following years to his rapid promotion to Major and Chief of Artillery Staff in 1854, lieutenant-colonel in 1856 and colonel in 1858.

After the death of Oscar I. He was the successor to Karl XV. 1859 promoted to Major General and the First Aide - de-camp. For his services he was knighted in 1864 for Baron. In 1875 he became lieutenant general.

His great-grandson is the politician, former Prime Minister and current Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.

Political career

Member of Parliament

Bildt began his political career in 1847 with the election of the members of the noble house stands in the Reichstag. This he first belonged until 1867. During this time he represented the conservative aristocratic party ( Junkerpartiet ), which called for a free trade policy. On the other hand, advocated for social issues such as health care and schooling of women.

As the House of Lords he was a member from 1848 to 1860 Rapporteur of the Main Committee ( Statsutskottet ). In 1863, he was a strong supporter of electoral reform by Louis De Geer the Elder and the introduction of universal suffrage. As such, he was instrumental in the dissolution of the Reichstag stands in favor of a two-chamber Reichstag. His support went so far that he kept troops in reserve to maintain law and order in Stockholm with a possible rejection of the reform maintain.

After the parliamentary reform of 1867 to 1874 he was a member of the First Chamber of the Diet. Here he was elected with the most votes as a member in the first Bylaws Committee. Later, he also sat on the Defence Committee.

From 1887 until his death he was again a member of the First Chamber. This re- appointment by the protectionist MPs was, however, against the wishes of Oscar II, that there were no close friend of the royal family was faced with party policy and opposition to the ruling government, with its pro- free trade policy. Bildt, promised the king to remain politically independent. Actually, however, he took part in meetings with the protectionist faction in the House of Lords, although he did represented a moderate protectionism.

Government President

In addition to his military career and his deputies, he took up positions within the state administration. From 1858 to 1862 he was the first President of the Government and military commanders of Gotland and then from 1862 to 1874 the Stockholm County. During this tenure, he advocated for the expansion of the railway network, which he particularly promoted the military and economic importance in Stockholm. For this, he received wide support from the Reichstag, the city council of Stockholm, the Stockholm stock exchange, but also by the citizenry. In addition, he was shareholder and director of the Company who wanted to operate a railway line between Stockholm and the mines of Västmanland.

Ambassador in Berlin

In 1874 he was appointed Ambassador of Sweden in the German Reich. In this office he held until 1886, he strengthened the links between Sweden and the young German nation-state. In particular, bilateral agreements on postal, telegraph, delivery and sailors were closed. At the same time he was able to follow the protectionist policies of Otto von Bismarck in Germany, especially in the field of agriculture.

After his return from Germany he was in 1886 as Head of Reich Marshal of the Royal Court. This office he held until his death.

Prime Minister 1888-1889

At the same time was based in Sweden after the falls for cereals, the Protectionist Party. She demanded protective tariffs to support the local farmers, which was oriented on the Free Trade Government Themptander Robert ( 1884-88 ) rejected. In March 1887, the majority of the Second Chamber decided cereals and protective tariffs, sparked Themptander the Reichstag and achieved in the following election a majority that supported free trade.

However, these decreased in the Reichstag elections in the autumn of 1887, especially since the Supreme Court declared the election of the 22 free-trade representatives Stockholm on a technicality invalidated and the representatives of the protective policy for selected. Also in the First Chamber, the number of followers of grain duties grew. Therefore, the Ministry Themptander resigned after the opening of the new Reichstag in January, 1888. The king commissioned in light of the not yet finally decided attitude of the majority of both chambers Gillis Bildt putting together a moderately schutzzöllnerisches Cabinet, which he achieved on February 6, 1888. Because of its gained firsthand experience in Germany with the protectionism of agriculture, not least because of his own sympathies for the protection of domestic products, Bildt was thus an ideal successor Themptanders after the former speaker of the parliament chambers, Archbishop Anton Niklas Sundberg, the had declined over the office.

The Cabinet Bildt, the one half belonged to proponents of free trade and protectionism, soon increased the price of food and tools, while revenue from the protective tariffs to reduce government debt, for construction of railway lines and armor were used.

On October 12, 1889 Gillis Bildt resigned as Prime Minister.