Josef von Schmitt
Josef Ritter von Schmitt | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 14thPresident of Upper Franconia[de] | |
| In office 1900–1908 | |
| Preceded by | Theodor von Muncker[de] |
| Succeeded by | Alexander von Feilitzsch[de] |
| Regional Court President of Bamberg | |
| In office 1884–1905 | |
| Privy Councilor of Bavaria | |
| In office 1870–1907 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Josef Schmitt 4 March 1838 Bamberg,Kingdom of Bavaria |
| Died | 16 April 1907(aged 69) Bamberg,Bavaria,German Empire |
| Spouse |
Isabella Lindner (m.1865) |
| Relatives |
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Josef Ritter von Schmitt(born 4 March 1838 – 16 April 1907) was aBavarianpolitician and prominent jurist, who served as the 14thPresident ofUpper Franconiafrom the turn of the century until his death in 1907.
A prominent figure in Bavarian politics, von Schmitt served as thePresident of the Courtfor theKingdom of Bavariaunder the Bavarian Regency, as well as the primary advisor toPrince Luitpold of Bavaria.Josef's brother,Gottfried Ritter von Schmitt[de],served as President of the BavarianSupreme CourtinMunich.
Aside from politics, von Schmitt was a key industrial figure in Bavaria, holding positions on multiple largeConglomerates.He was on the board ofDresdner Bank,Arnhold Brothersand from 1898 until his death he served as chairman of the board of the Schweinfurt ball producer''Fries & Höpflinger A.G''[de],contributing decisively to its boom. In von Schmitt's later life, he served asprivy councilorand was awardedhonorary citizenshipof the city ofBamberg,a city which he had previously led.
Early life[edit]
Born intoa middle-class familyon May 4, 1838, to Joseph and Dorothea Schmitt inHofheim,Josef attended theMunnerstadt Gymnasium[de],completing his schooling in 1857, after which he attended theUniversity of Würzburg,where he was a member of theCorps Bavaria Würzburg[de].At University, von Schmitt read law, continuing towards his PhD at the University of Heidelberg, where he won the annual prize for his dissertation, allowing him to become aDoctor of Law.[1][2][3][4]
Career[edit]
By 1866, von Schmitt was serving as a professor at the University of Wurzburg, where he married Maria Isabella Lindner. From here, von Schmitt was assigned to theDistrict Court of Wurzburg,then onto Bamberg. Though he later served as Mayor of Bamberg, von Schmitt had a vast impact on the city itself. His efforts to relocate the5th Royal Bavarian Division,which was formed on October 1, 1890, inLandau,from Bamberg, as well as his expansion of municipal water and gas services largely transformed Bamberg; a city which he, at the time, represented in the Upper Franconian council.
Acting as a highly regarded defence attorney,prosecutorand judge in his home town ofBamberg,von Schmitt was enabled to later expand his legal practice and branch into politics. Appointed to the Upper Franconian parliament, von Schmitt served as its president for many years. von Schmitt's brother,Gottfried,followed a similar path, later becoming President of the BavarianSupreme Court.[5][6]
From 1870, Schmitt held the prestigious title of aRoyal Lawyerof Bamberg, working directly with the crown of Bavaria. The profession oflawyerwas at that time a state-assigned department. From 1884 to 1905 he wasRegional Court President in Bamberg.He later became a BavarianPrivy Councillor[7][8]
Business enterprises[edit]
Schmitt was also, notably, an extremely successful businessman. InGründerzeit,he was involved in numerous start-ups. He was on the board ofDresdner Bank,[9]Arnhold Brothers.From 1898 until his death he served as chairman of the board of the Schweinfurt ball producer "Fries & Höpflinger A.G[de]"[10]which later merged to become the conglomerateSKF,and Schmitt contributed decisively to the boom of the company.[11][12][13]
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Schmitt also performed a number of honorary functions, these included being chairman of the Community Plenipotentiary Collegium and president of the district administrators in Bamberg.[14]
Honours[edit]
On September 26, 1889, von Schmitt was grantedhonorary citizenshipof Bamberg for his extraordinary efforts. The main street inBamberg,"Dr.-von-Schmitt-Straße" also bears his name today.
In 1896 Prince RegentLuitpold, Prince Regent of Bavariaawarded him theRitterkreuzofOrder of Merit of the Bavarian Crown.With the award of thetitleand he was entered into Germannobilitywith the title of Dr. Josef Ritter von Schmitt;Ritteris a hereditary title roughly equivalent to theBritishBaronet.
In the week of his death, von Schmitt was presented a commemorative sheet by theLutzLord Mayor.
Notes[edit]
- Ritteris a German hereditary title of nobility, passed through male line descendants. It translates to Imperial Knight.
References[edit]
- ^Technical schools in Bamberg.Germany. 1856.
{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^Schneider, Dr (1871)."Bamberger Daily Newspaper 1871".
- ^Bamberg Newspaper 1877.Germany: Bamberg News. 1877.
- ^The Bamberger Journal.Germany: The Bamberg Journal. 1879.
- ^Kramer, Theodor (2002).Quellen und Forschungen zur Geschichte des Bistums und Hochstifts Würzburg.Würzburg: Kommissionsverlag F. Schöningh.ISBN9783877170649.
- ^History of Bamberg- Ritter von Schmitt.Germany: Kommissionsverlag Buchner. 2003.
- ^Government, Bavarian (1907).Bavarian Laws.Bavaria: Bavarian Government.
- ^Anton Bettelheim (Hrsg.):Biographisches Jahrbuch und deutscher Nekrolog von 1907–1908.Verlag G. Reimer, 1909 (Auszug)
- ^Handbook of german Stock companies.Germany: Unknown. 1943.
- ^Fuchs, Fabian (2013).Ein Faden Freude, ein Faden Leid: Die Hofer und Bamberger Textilindustrie von 1800-1920 im Vergleich.Hamburg: Disserta Verlag.ISBN9783954252428.
- ^Engelbert Fries:Geschichte der Kugelindustrie.Typoskript, Schweinfurt 1929, S. 27.
- ^Zeitung, Tonindustrie (1908).Tonindustrie-Zeitung and Keramische Rundschau.Bamberg: Tonindustrie-Zeitung.
- ^Werkstatt und Betrieb.Bamberg. 1908.
{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^Historischer Verein Bamberg.Kommissionsverlag Buchner, 1914, Seite 174 (Auszug)
Literature[edit]
- Heinz F. Fränkel:Bamberger Straßennamen.
- Werner Schubert (2007),"Schmitt, Gottfried von",Neue Deutsche Biographie(in German), vol. 23, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, p. 234;(full text online) (Nebeneintrag)
- Lothar Dorn:Zwei bedeutende Brüder aus Hofheim. Die Brüder Gottfried und Joseph Ritter von Schmitt.In:Chronik der Stadt Hofheim und ihrer Stadtteile.Arbeitskreis Hofheimer Stadtgeschichte.(Hrsg.). Hofheim 1993, S. 93–98.
External links[edit]
- Dr Heller und KollegenArchived4 March 2016 at theWayback Machine
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