Baron Bernhard August von Lindenau (11 June 1779 – 21 May 1854) was a German

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, and art collector. Lindenau was born in

Altenburg Altenburg () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located south of Leipzig, west of Dresden and east of Erfurt. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district and part of a polycentric old-industrial textile and metal production region betw ...

, the son of Johann August Lindenau, a regional administrator (''Landschaftsdirektor)''. In 1793, Lindeau began studying law and mathematics at

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

, and beginning in 1801 he worked at the astronomical observatory in Seeburg. In 1830 he was the Minister of the Interior during a turbulent period in the history of

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

. Late in the year he oversaw measures to calm violent protests demanding political reform. From 1831 to 1843 he was

Minister-President A minister-president or minister president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments with a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government where they preside over the council of ministers. It ...

. He created a collection of Italian artwork from the 14th and 15th centuries by Florentine painters in an effort to create artistic awareness. He gave his art collection to the city of Altenburg on the condition that they create a museum to display the pieces. This museum was finished in 1875, and became the

Lindenau-Museum The Lindenau-Museum is an art museum in Altenburg, Thuringia, Germany. It originated as the house-museum of baron and collector Bernhard August von Lindenau. The building was completed in 1876. The museum's main attraction is its collection o ...

. Lindenau edited the ''Monatliche Correspondenz zur Beförderung der Erd- und Himmels-Kunde'' starting in 1807. The Journal was founded by

Franz Xaver von Zach Baron Franz Xaver von Zach (''Franz Xaver Freiherr von Zach''; 4 June 1754 – 2 September 1832) was a Hungarian astronomer born at Pest, Hungary (now Budapest in Hungary). Biography Zach studied physics at the Royal University of Pest, and s ...

in 1800 and existed until 1813. In 1809 he became correspondent of the Royal Institute of the Netherlands, when that became the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...

in 1851 he joined as foreign member. Lindenau was elected a Foreign Honorary Member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

in 1822. He died in

Windischleuba Windischleuba is a municipality in the district Altenburger Land, in Thuringia, Germany. History Within the German Empire (1871–1918), Windischleuba was part of the Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg. References

Altenburger Land Duchy of Saxe-Al ...

Awards and honors

Asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere. ...

9322 Lindenau was named for him. *

Lindenau (crater) Lindenau is a lunar impact crater. It is located beside the east-southeastern rim of the crater Zagut, and to the northeast of Rabbi Levi. To the northeast is the slightly smaller crater Rothmann and the Rupes Altai scarp. The rim of this cra ...

on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

was named for him. * Lindenau Museum in Altenburg was named after him. *

Lalande Prize The Lalande Prize (French: ''Prix Lalande'' also known as Lalande Medal) was an award for scientific advances in astronomy, given from 1802 until 1970 by the French Academy of Sciences. The prize was endowed by astronomer Jérôme Lalande in 180 ...

in 1812

References

1780 births 1854 deaths People from Altenburg People from Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg 19th-century German astronomers Ministers-President of Saxony Jurists from Thuringia German art collectors 19th-century art collectors Members of the Frankfurt Parliament Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Leipzig University alumni Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Foreign Members of the Royal Society Honorary members of the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences Recipients of the Lalande Prize {{Germany-astronomer-stub