Otto of Stolberg-Wernigerode
Graf ( since 1890 Prince ) Otto of Stolberg- Wernigerode ( born October 30, 1837 in Gedern, † November 19, 1896 at Schloss Wernigerode ) was a German politician of the Imperial period and Vice-Chancellor under Otto von Bismarck.
Life
Otto zu Stolberg - Wernigerode came on 30 October 1837 as the third and last child of Hereditary Count Hermann zu Stolberg - Wernigerode and Countess Emma Erbach- Fuerstenau at the castle in the Hessian Gedern to the world. The father died, only 39 years old, shortly before Otto's fourth birthday in despair over the loss of his eldest son Albrecht. Otto attended the Gymnasium in Duisburg, then studied at Göttingen and Heidelberg Law and Administrative Sciences and served from 1859 to 1861 as Seconde - Lieutenant in the regiment of the Gardes du Corps of the Prussian army. Two years later he married the 26- year-old Princess Anna Reuss, who bore him four sons and three daughters.
The political rise was not long in coming. He successfully ran from 1867 to 1873 as the first Governor- the fortunes of Hanover, a post which he received on the proposal of Bismarck. He succeeded to integrate the newly crowned province firmly into the Prussian state. Also in 1867 he reached a seat on the North German Reichstag, was four years later as a member of the moderate Conservative party in the German Reichstag ( to 1878 ) and elected in 1872 as President of the Prussian House of Lords, the First Chamber of the Prussian Landtag ( until 1877 ), in March 1876 - again at the behest of the Chancellor - appointed ambassador of the German Empire in Vienna and appointed on 1 June 1878 in the offices of Vice- Chancellor and Vice- President of the Prussian Ministry of State. This was Stolberg- Wernigerode Bismarck behind the second man in the Empire. His greatest achievement in this position undoubtedly succeeded in the autumn of 1879, with Austria as he could break the resistance of Kaiser Wilhelm I. against the proposed Dual Alliance, thus the important alliance of the two states was signed with Russia. In April 1880, he brought the illness prevented the Bismarck Samoa template in the Reichstag, which was however rejected by the deputies with 128 to 112 votes, which the German colonial policy dealt a setback. Due to frequent disagreements with the " Iron Chancellor " put the Earl, the Office of the Vice Chancellor on June 20, 1881 low.
However, he remained Prussia and the imperial residence connected faithful and in 1884 took over the post of Colonel Chamberlain ( to 1894 ). From 1885 to 1888 he was minister of the royal house. In 1890 he Kaiser Wilhelm II driving a Prince of the Empire title from 1742 was approved, on the assumption his ancestor Count Christian Ernst waived. In 1891 he became a member of the Astrolabe Company.
As a nobleman he was a member of the First Chamber of the Hessian Estates. In 1884 he was Corp. loop carrier Saxo - Borussia. He died 59 years old in Wernigerode.
The high regard in which he enjoyed life, is especially evident through the many offices he held outside politics: Chancellor of the Order of St. John (1872-1876) and the Black Eagle, Chairman of the Extraordinary General Synod (1875 ), the Central Committee of the German associations and the Prussian association of the Red Cross.
The Otto rock near Wernigerode was named after him.
Work
Even before Bismarck Otto of Stolberg- Wernigerode entered for a social policy with comprehensive care for the welfare of workers, their miserable living conditions he saw a. With concessions to the working class, he wanted to reduce the influence of social democracy and preserve the existing order. Just as a member of the Association for the Improvement of rural employment, which should maintain the economic conditions of his time in terms of the large landowners in the first place, it was a central concern of this. So he agreed Bismarck streamline socialist laws of 1878, but was not ardent supporters of this body of law, because he foresaw the failure probably.
Even the Count was one of those aristocratic circles which proved to be very attached to their home. He resided with his family in Wernigerode Castle. In the years 1862-1893 he had the castle built by the architect Carl spring in a big way to rebuild and thus created a model of the North German historicism. There, in the writing room he designed the Stolberg social legislation, for the first time einrichtete workers health insurance, pension and accident insurance in the county. He also contributed much to the economic development of the area. He owned 520 km ² land and numerous factories, including in Ilsenburg and Magdeburg, which brought him in the 1870s about 1.5 million marks. Since he had access to progressive circles of the upper classes, he was able to keep his property economically on the amount of time. He built, among other sugar factories; the products of his ironworks in Ilsenburg were internationally praised and received numerous awards, such as at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1867.
Family
He was married for 22 August 1863 with Anna Reuss to Koestritz. The couple had the following children:
- Christian Ernst (1864-1940), 2nd Prince of Stolberg- Wernigerode ∞ 1891 Countess Marie Castell- Rüdenhausen ( 1864-1942 )
- Elisabeth (1866-1928) ∞ 1885 Count Constantin of Stolberg- Wernigerode ( 1843-1905 )
- Hermann (1867-1913) ∞ 1910 Princess Dorothea of Solms- Hohensolms - Lich ( 1883-1942 )
- Wilhelm (1870-1931) ∞ 1910 Princess Elizabeth of Erbach - Schönberg ( 1883-1966 )
- Heinrich (1871-1874)
- Marie (1872-1950) ∞ 1902 Wilhelm Graf zu Solms - Laubach ( 1861-1936 )
- Emma (1875-1956) ∞ 1894 Prince Karl of Solms- Hohensolms - Lich ( 1866-1920 )