Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky (21 November 1710 – 9 August 1775) was a

bills of exchange. Moreover, he acted as a diplomat and important art dealer. His paintings formed the basis and the beginning of the collection in the Hermitage Museum
. Gotzkowsky died impoverished and having left behind an autobiography: Geschichte eines patriotischen Kaufmanns (1768), which was translated into French and reprinted three times in the 18th century.

Biography

Gotzkowsky was born in

haberdashery.[1][2] He established him in his jewel and trinket shop and he quickly acquired customers in the highest circles; Sophia Dorothea of Hanover was his best client. After he met with Frederick the Great
Gotzkowsky became royal warrant. In 1741 he became a Freemason. In 1745, he married the daughter of the rich lace maker Blume. Gotzkowsky persuaded his father-in-law to start a velvet factory, which he managed and inherited in the year after. Then Frederick II commissioned Gotzkowsky to promote the silk trade to compete with France; since 1752/3 Gotzkowsky ran a silk factory employing 1,500 persons. Frederick also followed his recommendations in the field of toll levies and import restrictions.

Gotzkowsky lived at Brüderstraße 13, Berlin, Mitte
The merchant Gotzkowsky asks the Russian commander lying on the sofa (Tottleben?) to indulge the city of Berlin

During the

Heinrich von Tottleben to reduce the levy to 1.5 million thalers.[3][4] with only 500,000 thalers, collected among the city's merchants, payable immediately in prewar coins?[5] Tottleben moved into his house but left on the 13th. Later that month, Gotzkowsky traveled to Königsberg in Prussia as a guarantor for the redemption money. He was arrested, and released after promising a deposit of 62.000 (or 150.000 thaler)?[6] Gotzkowsky succeeded to involve a Hamburg bank, owned by Philipp Heinrich II von Stenglin (1718–1793) to pay the amount, but the Russians received only 57.437 thaler in debased Saxonian coins. Again Gotzkowsky traveled to Danzig to bribe the Russian generals with 24 golden snuff boxes.[7]
In February 1761 Von Tottleben was accused of treason. (The sources are confusing.)

Gotzkowsky mentions that Ephraim & Itzig sent him loads of (debased) coins at the beginning of October, which he stored in his cellar.[8] According to himself, the production of more debased coins began at the end of October to pay off the Russians and the Austrians.[9] At the same time Gotzkowsky supported Saxony to pay its war contribution to Prussia.[10] In the summer of 1761 he ordered 400.000 thaler in debased coins not from the Prussian mint masters, but from Heinrich Carl von Schimmelmann.[11] Since August Schimmelmann produced debased coins in Rethwisch, and sent for 100.000 thaler to Leipzig.[12] As the (foreign) debased coins, like Plöner and Zerbster, Bernburger coins were not accepted (by Frederick and Ephraim & Itzig) Gotzkowsky suggested to spread half of the amount under the Allies.[13] The men were arrested in Bielefeld and the money was confiscated and melted down.[14][15] Gotzkowsky was not impressed, in January 1762 he helped Leipzig for the second time.[16] In September 1762 he travelled to Hamburg in order to borrow money for the distressed city of Berlin.[17]

Auerbachs Hof in Leipzig where Gotzkowsky and Streckfuss ran a jewelry shop
Early 1763 Gotzkowsky bought Palais Marschall (with the blue roofs) at Wilhelmsstraße 78, but had to sell it a few months later. To the left the Königliche Gold- und Silbermanufaktur (Wilhelmsstraße No. 79), rented by Ephraim

In January Gotzkowsky remarried a 25-year-old ballet-dancer. In April 1763 Gotzkowsky and

bankrupt.[21][22] Gotzkowsky had also an impressive number of paintings in stock which he had not sold to Frederick during the war and managed a silkworks, a jewelry business in Leipzig with J.R. Streckfuss, a porcelain factory (now KPM
) that was not running at his satisfactory, all at the same time.

Gotzkowsky was clearly relying on De Neufville to pay his share of the purchase of the Russian magazine. De Neufville was, in turn, relying on people like Aron Joseph. When Joseph went bankrupt on 25 July, the chain unraveled. This caused a general loss of confidence in bills from Hamburg, Berlin, etc. by Amsterdam merchants. Loss of funding from Amsterdam then forced many merchants in Germany into bankruptcy.[citation needed]

On 2 August the infamous Amsterdam company De Neufville was not able to assist and borrow the money from the banks in Amsterdam. The next day De Neufville asked for a postponement of payment. On 4 August Gotzkowsky asked for a

Veitel-Heine Ephraim and Daniel Itzig under the absolute condition to support Gotzkowsky with 400,000 thaler.[29] Ephraim and Itzig refused and were of the opinion that the bankruptcy of Gotzkowsky was inevitable.[30]
On Monday 22 August Frederick set up an "Immediate Exchange Commission", a special court for the tricky bill bankruptcy whose origin he simply could not explain.[31] On 24 August Frederick offered Gotzkowsky to buy his silk- and porcelain factory for 460.000 thaler.[32] On 30 August Gotzkowsky protested against the bankruptcy of De Neufville; it could take many years to solve the question. On 30 January 1764, Gotzkowsky applied for his bankruptcy. In April 1764, Gotzkowsky offered 50% compensation to his creditors.

Gotzkowsky died in 1775 in Berlin.

Art collector

Ahasverus and Haman at the feast of Esther, Rembrandt (1660), 73x94cm, Pushkin museum. The painting is rather dark, because of the varnish that once has been used

Around 1750 Gotzkowsky started to collect

Jan J. Hinlopen. It is possible that De Neufville sold some of his paintings to Gotzkowsky by hand.[37]

A focal point of Berlin society during the war years was the residence of Gotzkowsky, whose gardens and paintings were admired both by the old nobility and new bourgeoisie.[38] In 1764 James Boswell came to him on a visit and called him: a gallant German, stupid, comely, cordial.[39] In 1767 Gotzkowsky went bankrupt for the second time.[40]

KPM

In 1761, Frederick ordered Gotzkowsky to take over the porcelain factory of Wilhelm Caspar Wegely, which had struggled because of the Seven Years' War.[41] Gotzkowsky attracted competent staff from Meissen, which was occupied in 1760 by the Prussian army. A relief on Meissen porcelain was named after him.[42] Frederick the Great took over the factory on 24 August 1763 when Gotzkowsky was in serious trouble. The company is still known as the

Reichstag stood, during the German Empire
.

A street, a bridge and a school in Berlin are named in honor of Gotzkowsky.

References

  1. ^ Greenfeld, Liah (30 June 2009). "The Spirit of Capitalism". Harvard University Press. Retrieved 29 August 2023 – via Google Books.
  2. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 13
  3. ISBN 978-0-582-29272-7
    .
  4. ^ N. Schepkowsky, p. 261-262
  5. ^ L. Greenfeld, p. 107
  6. ^ "SYW - Берлинская экспедиция 1760 г".
  7. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 263-264
  8. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 21
  9. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 29-30
  10. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 135, 140-142
  11. ^ L. Beutin, p. 264, 281
  12. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 111
  13. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 267
  14. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 113
  15. ^ Meyer, Ferdinand (29 August 1876). "Berühmte Männer Berlins und ihre Wohnstätten: Friedrichs des Großen Zeitalter". Weile. Retrieved 29 August 2023 – via Google Books.
  16. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 268
  17. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 130-132; H. Rachel & P. Wallich, p. 448
  18. ^ E. Ris, p. 37-38, 54; H. Rachel & P. Wallich, p. 448
  19. ^ E. Ris, p. 47
  20. ^ E. Ris, p. 38, 39, 45, 54, 56, etc
  21. ^ N. Schepkowski, pp. 340-343
  22. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 147-150
  23. ^ E. Ris, p. 57
  24. ^ Henderson, W.O. (1962) The Berlin Commercial Crisis of 1763. In: The Economic History Review, New Series, Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 89-102.
  25. ^ H. Sieveking (1933) Die Hamburger Bank 1619-1875, p. 71
  26. ^ H. Rachel & P. Wallich, p. 451
  27. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 306
  28. ^ S. Skalweit, p. 62, 90-91
  29. ^ H. Rachel & P. Wallich, p. 454-455
  30. ^ E.E. de Jong-Keesing, p. 211
  31. ^ https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/koenigliche-porzellan-manufaktur-der-lohn-der-edlen-tat-das-herz-einer-saechsin/219920.html Königliche Porzellan Manufaktur: Der Lohn der edlen Tat: das Herz einer Sächsin by ANDREAS CONRAD
  32. ^ N. Schepkowsky, p. 297 [1]; S. Skalweit, p. 88; H. Rachel & P. Wallich, p. 460
  33. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 71
  34. ^ N. Schepkowski, p. 104
  35. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 9 July 2018. Retrieved 3 June 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  36. ^ Christoph Frank (2002) Die Gemäldesammlungen Gotzkowsky, Eimbke und Stein: Zur Berliner Sammlungsgeschichte während des Siebenjährigen Krieges. In: Michael North (Hg.): Kunstsammeln und Geschmack im 18. Jahrhundert. Berlin, p. 117-194.
  37. ^ Schepkowski, Nina Simone (31 October 2012). "Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky. Kunstagent und Gemäldesammler im friderizianischen Berlin". Walter de Gruyter. Retrieved 29 August 2023 – via Google Books.
  38. ^ Henderson, W.O. (1962) The Berlin Commercial Crisis of 1763. In: The Economic History Review, New Series, Vol. 15, No. 1, p. 92.
  39. ^ Boswell, J. (1764) On the Grand Tour. Germany and Switzerland. Frederick A. Pottle, New York/London (1953), p. 97-9, 119-20.
  40. ^ Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (1879).
  41. ^ Gotzkowsky, p. 65
  42. ^ Photo auktionshaus-stahl.de
  43. ^ MacDonogh, G. (1999) Frederick the Great. A life in deed and letters, p. 140, 180, 294, 299-300, 317, 331, 354.

Sources

External links

New International Encyclopedia article about "Johann Ernst Gotzkowsky
".
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