Karol Łazarz Henckel von Donnersmarck (March 5, 1772 – July 12, 1864) was a German businessman who, among other things, founded the mines founding amongst others the mines of

Katowice Katowice ( , , ; szl, Katowicy; german: Kattowitz, yi, קאַטעוויץ, Kattevitz) is the capital city of the Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland and the central city of the Upper Silesian metropolitan area. It is the 11th most popul ...

, which now house the

Silesian Museum Silesian Museum in Katowice ( pl, Muzeum Śląskie w Katowicach) is a museum in the City of Katowice, Poland. History The museum was founded in 1929 by the Silesian Sejm, while the region was recovering from the Silesian Uprisings. In the inte ...

Life

Karol Henckel von Donnersmarck was a member of the

Henckel von Donnersmarck The House of Henckel von Donnersmarck is an old Austro-German noble family that originated in the former region of Spiš in Upper Hungary, now in Slovakia. The founder of the family was Henckel de Quintoforo in the 14/15th century. The original ...

Austro-German noble family. Donnersmarck was the youngest son of Baron Erdmann Gustaw von Donnersmarck and Barroness Rudolphina von Dyherrn. Karol was married to Countess Julia von Bohlen. Among his children was

Guido Henckel von Donnersmarck Guido Georg Friedrich Erdmann Heinrich Adalbert Graf Henckel von Donnersmarck, from 1901 Prince (''Fürst'') Henckel von Donnersmarck (born 10 August 1830 in Breslau, died 19 December 1916 in Berlin) was a German nobleman, industrial magnate, mem ...

(1830-1916), who would become a prince and industrial magnate.

Early career

During the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

, Henckel founded and led a regiment of

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

hussar A hussar ( , ; hu, huszár, pl, husarz, sh, husar / ) was a member of a class of light cavalry, originating in Central Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely ...

Following the death of his brother Gustav Adolf in 1813, Henckel inherited the family estate in

Świerklaniec Świerklaniec (; german: Neudeck) is a village in Tarnowskie Góry County, in the Silesian Voivodeship of southwestern Poland. Formerly, from 1975—1998, Świerklaniec was a part of the Katowice Voivodeship. Geography Świerklaniec lies approx ...

Honors and awards

He was awarded the Order of

Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by Frederick the Great, King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Or ...

and the highest Prussian

Order of the Black Eagle The Order of the Black Eagle (german: Hoher Orden vom Schwarzen Adler) was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg (who became Friedrich I, King ...

with Diamonds. He was the Commander and Senior of the Order of St. John (Protestant equivalent of the Order of Malta). In 1840 he became a hereditary national senior grandfather in the Duchy of Silesia with the title of "Excellency". As a free statesman, he was a member of the Prussian House of Lords.

References

1772 births 1864 deaths German mining businesspeople Carl Lazarus Members of the Prussian House of Lords People from Bytom Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Tarnowskie Góry County People from the Province of Silesia {{Germany-noble-stub