Friedrich von Gerolt
Encyclopedia
Friedrich Karl Joseph Freiherr von Gerolt (5 March 1797 Bonn
- 27 July 1879 Linz am Rhein
) was Prussian Privy Councillor, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in the United States
.
. He descended from the Gerolt family, which was founded on 3 January 1558 in Prague, and was awarded the coat of arms on 16 April 1614, knighted in the Castle of Linz in Austria by Emperor Matthias.
He married on 28 August 1837 in Bonn, Huberta Josephine Henriette Walter, daughter of Privy Councillor at the former Court of Appeal in Wetzlar, Walter Francis Martin, and his wife Anna Maria de Noel.
.
In March 1824, he traveled to Mexico
, prospecting for silver mines, and published a geological map in 1828.
King Friedrich Wilhelm III invested, him and his brothers in 1830, with the Leyen manor (now Castle Ockenfels in Ockenfels
).
In 1837, he was charge d'affaires in Mexico and at the suggestion of Alexander von Humboldt
in 1844, made Extraordinary Envoy and Minister of the Kingdom of Prussia to the United States of America. In October 1848, he was superseded by Friedrich Ludwig von Rönne
.
He sought comment on a German constitution from John C. Calhoun
.
From 1849 to 1868, he was again sent as ambassador of Prussia to Washington from 1868 until the empire was founded in 1871, he was then working for the North German Confederation
as an envoy in Washington.
In 1852, he negotiated an extradition
treaty with Daniel Webster
.
In 1858, Gerolt was elevated to Freiherr
.
Gerolt was consistently 27 years as a diplomat in the United States and is still regarded as the longest serving ambassador of Germany in the U.S.
During his time in Washington, he maintained good contacts with many politicians, including several presidents and government ministers.
In the quarter century of service, Gerolt saw Presidents James K. Polk
, Zachary Taylor
, Millard Fillmore
, Franklin Pierce
, James Buchanan
, Abraham Lincoln
, Andrew Johnson
, and Ulysses Grant.
Millard Fillmore
was the only incumbent U.S. president, who visited Germany in the 19th century. In 1855, he met with Alexander von Humboldt and King Friedrich Wilhelm IV together in Berlin. In this period 1.5 million German emigrated to the U.S., and there were a total of 14 German consulates in New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Charleston, New Orleans, St. Louis, Galveston, Savannah, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Louisville, Milwaukee, Chicago, Boston and New Bedford.
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
- 27 July 1879 Linz am Rhein
Linz am Rhein
Linz am Rhein is a municipality in the district of Neuwied, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the river Rhine near Remagen, approx. 25 km southeast of Bonn and has about 6,000 inhabitants...
) was Prussian Privy Councillor, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in the United States
German Ambassador to the United States
The United States has had diplomatic relations with the nation of Germany and its predecessor nation, the Kingdom of Prussia, since 1835. These relations were broken twice while Germany and the United States were at war....
.
Family
Gerolt was born the son of the German jurist and politician Bernard Franz Josef of Gerolt and his wife, Anna Katharina Josepha Caroline v. Bouget from OdenkirchenOdenkirchen
Odenkirchen is a former town in Germany, presently part of the city Mönchengladbach. It is situated on the river Niers, 21 miles by rail south-west of Düsseldorf. It has a railway station , on the line from Mönchengladbach to Grevenbroich and Cologne. Pop...
. He descended from the Gerolt family, which was founded on 3 January 1558 in Prague, and was awarded the coat of arms on 16 April 1614, knighted in the Castle of Linz in Austria by Emperor Matthias.
He married on 28 August 1837 in Bonn, Huberta Josephine Henriette Walter, daughter of Privy Councillor at the former Court of Appeal in Wetzlar, Walter Francis Martin, and his wife Anna Maria de Noel.
Life
He studied mining and geology in 1823, and was listed as Mining Office secretary in DürenDüren
Düren is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, capital of Düren district. It is located between Aachen and Cologne on the river Rur.-Roman era:Celts inhabited Düren's area before the Romans. They called their small settlement Durum . After the Celts other Germanic tribes settled this area...
.
In March 1824, he traveled to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, prospecting for silver mines, and published a geological map in 1828.
King Friedrich Wilhelm III invested, him and his brothers in 1830, with the Leyen manor (now Castle Ockenfels in Ockenfels
Ockenfels
Ockenfels is a municipality in the district of Neuwied, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
).
In 1837, he was charge d'affaires in Mexico and at the suggestion of Alexander von Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt
Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander Freiherr von Humboldt was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister, philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt...
in 1844, made Extraordinary Envoy and Minister of the Kingdom of Prussia to the United States of America. In October 1848, he was superseded by Friedrich Ludwig von Rönne
Friedrich Ludwig von Rönne
Friedrich Ludwig von Ronne was a Prussian jurist, politician, diplomat and German Ambassador to the United States.-Early Life:Ronne was the son of Johann Georg von Ronne....
.
He sought comment on a German constitution from John C. Calhoun
John C. Calhoun
John Caldwell Calhoun was a leading politician and political theorist from South Carolina during the first half of the 19th century. Calhoun eloquently spoke out on every issue of his day, but often changed positions. Calhoun began his political career as a nationalist, modernizer, and proponent...
.
From 1849 to 1868, he was again sent as ambassador of Prussia to Washington from 1868 until the empire was founded in 1871, he was then working for the North German Confederation
North German Confederation
The North German Confederation 1866–71, was a federation of 22 independent states of northern Germany. It was formed by a constitution accepted by the member states in 1867 and controlled military and foreign policy. It included the new Reichstag, a parliament elected by universal manhood...
as an envoy in Washington.
In 1852, he negotiated an extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
treaty with Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster was a leading American statesman and senator from Massachusetts during the period leading up to the Civil War. He first rose to regional prominence through his defense of New England shipping interests...
.
In 1858, Gerolt was elevated to Freiherr
Freiherr
The German titles Freiherr and Freifrau and Freiin are titles of nobility, used preceding a person's given name or, after 1919, before the surname...
.
Gerolt was consistently 27 years as a diplomat in the United States and is still regarded as the longest serving ambassador of Germany in the U.S.
During his time in Washington, he maintained good contacts with many politicians, including several presidents and government ministers.
In the quarter century of service, Gerolt saw Presidents James K. Polk
James K. Polk
James Knox Polk was the 11th President of the United States . Polk was born in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. He later lived in and represented Tennessee. A Democrat, Polk served as the 17th Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 12th Governor of Tennessee...
, Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
, Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...
, Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...
, James Buchanan
James Buchanan
James Buchanan, Jr. was the 15th President of the United States . He is the only president from Pennsylvania, the only president who remained a lifelong bachelor and the last to be born in the 18th century....
, Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
, and Ulysses Grant.
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore
Millard Fillmore was the 13th President of the United States and the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office of president...
was the only incumbent U.S. president, who visited Germany in the 19th century. In 1855, he met with Alexander von Humboldt and King Friedrich Wilhelm IV together in Berlin. In this period 1.5 million German emigrated to the U.S., and there were a total of 14 German consulates in New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Charleston, New Orleans, St. Louis, Galveston, Savannah, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Louisville, Milwaukee, Chicago, Boston and New Bedford.
Sources
- Dr. Ralph Lutz, Die Beziehungen zwischen Deutschland und den Vereinigten Staaten während des Sezessionskrieges, Heidelberg 1911th
- Enno Eimers, Preussen und die USA 1850 bis 1867. Transatlantische Wechselwirkungen, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3428115775