Stiftsgården, Trondheim, Noruega, 2019-09-06, DD 41

Cecilie Christine Schøller, born Sidsel Kirstine Frølich (16 March 1720 – 19 April 1786), was a Norwegian

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

, land owner and businessperson. She was builder and owner of

Stiftsgården Stiftsgården is the royal residence in Trondheim, Norway. It is centrally situated on the city’s most important thoroughfare, Munkegaten. At 140 rooms constituting 4000 m² (43000 ft²), it is possibly the largest wooden building in N ...

, now the royal residence in

Trondheim, Norway Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, a ...

. Cecilie Christine Schøller
''Norsk Biografisk Leksikon '' Retrieved November 1, 2020
''Kongehuset'' Retrieved November 1, 2020

Biography

She was born in Tønsberg to Johan Frederik Frølich (1681–1757) and Hilleborg von Wettberg. Her father had

Prussian Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

roots, while her mother had

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish ance ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

origin. The family moved to Trondheim in 1740 when Johan Frederik Frølich became commanding general for

Nordenfjells Nordenfjells or Nordafjells ("North of the Mountains") is currently a name for the area of Norway north of mountain range of Dovrefjell. The term is largely used when referring collectively to Central Norway and Northern Norway. Until around 1800 th ...

, the northern half of Norway. In 1742 she married the wealthy chamberlain and merchant Stie Tønsberg Schøller (1700–1769). He became county governor (''stiftamtmann'') in Trondheim and also a member of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters from 1766 to his death in 1769. Cecilie Christine Schøller continued her husband's business after his death. She continued his extensive business interests, including the sawmill at Leira near Nidelva. She inherited her parents's farm at Munkegata in 1771 and bought several of the neighbouring properties. In 1774–1776, she built the largest wooden palace in Scandinavia,

in Trondheim, which has been the official royal residence in Trondheim since 1800. She was also a financier and benefactor of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letter, and regarded as an important representative of the cultural golden age in Trondheim during the 18th century. She was made Dame de L'union parfaite in 1769, and given the title Councilor (''geheimerådinne'') in 1776: this was the highest title ever given a non noble Norwegian woman, and the first time the title was given a woman at all in her own right. She moved permanently to Copenhagen in 1783 and died there in 1786. She is buried at

Assistens Cemetery Assistens Cemetery ( da, Assistens Kirkegård) is the name of a number of cemeteries in Denmark. The common nominator is, as the first part of the name implies (Latin: ''assistens'' meaning assisting), an assisting cemetery for a town's churches. ...

References

Other sources

*Andersen, Eystein M.(2006) ''Stiftsgården - Det kongelige palé i Trondheim'' (Andrimne Forlag: Oslo) {{DEFAULTSORT:Scholler, Cecilie Christine 18th-century Norwegian businesspeople 1720 births 1786 deaths People from Tønsberg Norwegian socialites Norwegian people of German descent Norwegian people of Danish descent Burials at Assistens Cemetery (Copenhagen)