William Duntzfelt (8 September 1762 - 20 October 1809) was a Danish merchant and ship-owner.

Early life

Duntzfelt was born on 1762 in Negapatnam, then the capital of the Dutch Coromandel, to Johann Friedrich Düntzfeld (1725–1785), an engineer lieutenant in the Dutch East India Company, and Anna Abigael Krøckel. Duntzfelt's father left his wife and son when Duntzfelt was just two years old. A relative, Ole Bie, took care of the boy and secured him a position as a reserve assistant in Tranquebar and in 1777 as an assistant in Frederiksnagore. Over the years he was promoted through the ranks, initially in the service of the Danish Asiatic Company and later in the local government. He was also active in overseas trade between the East Indies and Europe as a partner in the firm ''Duntzfelt, Bloom og Kierulff''.

Career in Denmark

Duntzfelt visited Denmark in 1788 and married the daughter of the wealthy merchant Frédéric de Coninck on the Dronninggård estate in July 1790. He briefly returned to Danish East India before in February 1791 settling permanently in Copenhagen. He became a managing partner in the firm Pingel, Meyer, Prætorius & Co. which had been initiated by his father-in-law in 1787 as a replacement for the Baltic African Company. Duntzfelt also established his own trading house that traded on East India. He was granted citizenship (') as merchant (') in 1795 and, in 1796, Duntzfelt and de Coninck decided to dissolve the consortium and transfer the activities to their personal firms. He was also active as a banker and in the market for insurances. François le Chevalier and

Johannes Søbøtker Johannes Søbøtker (9 May 1777 – 23 March 1854) was a Danish merchant, planter and colonial administrator who served as of St. Thomas and St. John in the Danish West Indies. His former country house Øregård in Hellerup now serves as an ...

joined his firm as partners in 1799 and 1804. At the turn of the century, Duntzfelt was the largest ship-owner in the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...

. He had profited immensely from Denmark's neutrality but many of his ships were still captured by English and French privateers and subsequently confiscated by court order. Duntzfelt & Co.'s losses from British confiscations alone was estimated at £144,660. He also suffered great losses during the war with England and the 1807 bombardment of Copenhagen. Duntzfelt was a member of the managing board of Speciebanken from 1796 and of Depositokassen from 1799. He was a member of Grosserersocietetet's governing body from 1802.

Personal life

Duntzfelt owned a house in Amaliegade in Copenhagen and later the

Dehn Mansion The Dehn Mansion is one of two identical but mirror-imag Rococo-style town mansions on Bredgade, flanking the entrance to Amalienborg via Frederiksgade, in the Frederiksstaden district of Copenhagen, Denmark. It takes its name after Friedrich Ludw ...

in Norgesgade. He also owned the country house Ankersminde (later Ordruphøj) in Ordrup. He died during a visit to Paris in 1809. In spite of the great losses that he had suffered during the last decade of his career, he still died as one of the wealthiest merchants in the country. Duntzfelt's two sons, William Frederik Duntzfelt and Frederik Duntzfelt, joined Duntzfelt & Co. after their father's death. It was declared bankrupt in 1833.

References

External links

William Duntzfelt
at geni.com
William Duntzfelt
at oldenburgbusiness.net

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duntzfelt, William 18th-century Danish businesspeople 19th-century Danish businesspeople Danish businesspeople in shipping Danish merchants Danish shipbuilders Businesspeople from Copenhagen 1762 births 1809 deaths People from Nagapattinam district Burials at Père Lachaise Cemetery