Count Friedrich Albrecht zu Eulenburg (29 June 1815 – 2 June 1881) was a
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 ...
diplomat
A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...
and politician. He led the
Eulenburg Expedition and secured the Prusso-Japanese Treaty of 24 January 1861, which was similar to other
unequal treaties
Unequal treaty is the name given by the Chinese to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China (mostly referring to the Qing dynasty) and various Western powers (specifically the British Empire, France, the ...
that European powers held Eastern Countries to.
''Japanese-German Relations, 1895-1945: war, diplomacy and public opinion''
By Christian W. Spang, Rolf-Harald. Wippich, p. 1
Biography
Eulenburg was born in Königsberg. He was the oldest surviving child of Friedrich Leopold Graf zu Eulenburg ( Prassen, 26 December 1787 - Königsberg
Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...
, 30 July 1845) and Amalie Julie Eleonore née von Kleist
The House of Kleist is the name of an old and distinguished Pomeranian Prussian noble family, whose members obtained many important military positions within the Kingdom of Prussia and later in the German Empire.
Notable members
*Henning Alexan ...
( Perkuiken, 26 May 1792 - Königsberg
Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...
, 16 November 1830).
Eulenburg studied law at the Universities of Königsberg and Bonn
The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...
[Biography]
at Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie
''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language.
It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...
and worked as a government official in Oppeln then in various ministries in Berlin. In 1852 he entered the diplomatic service
Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to ...
as the Prussian Consul-General in Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, . The expansion of Prussian trade led to the search of commercial partners in South-East and Eastern Asia and he was chosen to lead an extensive trade mission. Departing in October 1859 he set out for Japan, China and Siam
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 mi ...
.
On 24 January 1861, he concluded a Japanese-Prussian Treaty of Amity and Commerce with Muragaki Norimasa of the Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...
in Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...
, which was based on Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce
The was signed on 26 August 1858 by Lord Elgin and the then representatives of the Japanese government (the Tokugawa shogunate), and was ratified between Queen Victoria and the Tycoon of Japan at Yedo on 11 July 1859.
The concessions which Jap ...
. In September the same year, he concluded a commercial treaty with the Qing
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...
Empire, which was similar to the Treaties of Tianjin
The Treaty of Tientsin, also known as the Treaty of Tianjin, is a collective name for several documents signed at Tianjin (then romanized as Tientsin) in June 1858. The Qing dynasty, Russian Empire, Second French Empire, United Kingdom, and t ...
that Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
and France had concluded with China three years earlier.
Following his return he was appointed the Interior Minister of Prussia
This page lists Prussian Ministers of the Interior.
Prussian Ministers of the Interior, 1808–1934
* Count Alexander von Dohna-Schlobitten 1808–1810
* Count Karl August von Hardenberg 1810–1814
* Count Friedrich von Schuckmann 1814–1819
* ...
on 8 December 1862. Following the growth in the administrative area of Prussian state in 1864 and 1866, Eulenburg instituted comprehensive administrative reform also in the old provinces. However he was met by opposition by the Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
s in the west and the liberals in the east. He accompanied King Wilhelm I of Prussia
William I or Wilhelm I (german: Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 2 January 1861 and German Emperor from 18 January 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was th ...
in the negotiations with the French ambassador Count Benedetti
Vincent, Count Benedetti (29 April 181728 March 1900) was a French diplomat. He is probably best known as one of the central figures in the instigation of the Franco-Prussian War.
Life and career
Benedetti was born to a family of Greek origin a ...
at Bad Ems
Bad Ems () is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Rhein-Lahn rural district and is well known as a spa on the river Lahn. Bad Ems is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' (administrative community) Bad E ...
prior to the Franco-Prussian War.[
His plan to reform the municipal administration in Prussia was opposed by ]Otto von Bismarck
Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of J ...
and Eulenburg resigned on 30 November 1878 to be succeeded by his first cousin once removed Botho zu Eulenburg
Botho Wendt August Graf zu Eulenburg (31 July 1831 – 5 February 1912) was a Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian politician, statesman.
Early life and career
Eulenburg was born in Wicken near Bartoszyce, BartensteinKönigsberg
Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...
on 23 October 1811. He was the brother of
*Adalbert Graf zu Eulenburg (10 November 1812 - 17 June 1814)
*Marie Gräfin zu Eulenburg (13 October 1813 - 10 February 1818)
*Eliese Gräfin zu Eulenburg (Königsberg
Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...
, 27 August 1817 - Berlin, 15 June 1853), who died unmarried and without issue, and
*Philipp Graf zu Eulenburg (Königsberg
Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...
, 24 April 1820 - Berlin, 5 March 1889), married in Berlin, 22 April 1846 Alexandrine Freiin von Rothkirch und Panthen ( Glogau, 20 June 1824 - Meran
Merano (, , ) or Meran () is a city and ''comune'' in South Tyrol, northern Italy. Generally best known for its spa resorts, it is located within a basin, surrounded by mountains standing up to above sea level, at the entrance to the Passeier ...
, 11 April 1902), the parents of Prince Philip of Eulenburg
Philipp, Prince of Eulenburg and Hertefeld, Count of Sandels (german: Philipp Friedrich Karl Alexander Botho Fürst zu Eulenburg und Hertefeld Graf von Sandels; 12 February 1847 – 17 September 1921) was a diplomat and composer of Imperial Germ ...
.
Eulenburg was not married and had no children.
Awards
*Knight of the Red Eagle
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the Christian denomination, church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood ...
, 2nd Class, ''1862''[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eulenburg, Friedrich Albrecht Von
1815 births
1881 deaths
Politicians from Königsberg
University of Königsberg alumni
Humboldt University of Berlin alumni
Prussian diplomats
Prussian politicians
German expatriates in China
Members of the Prussian House of Representatives
People associated with the Prussian Navy
19th-century diplomats
Interior ministers of Prussia