![Jean Pierre Frédéric Ancillon, Jentzen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Jean_Pierre_Fr%C3%A9d%C3%A9ric_Ancillon%2C_Jentzen.jpg)
Johann Peter Friedrich Ancillon (30 April 1767 – 19 April 1837) was a
Prussia
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 em ...
n historian and statesman. He provided
Frederick William III of Prussia with strong ideological support against political reforms that might restrain monarchical power.
Early life
Ancillon was born in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
,
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...
, and was the great-grandson of French jurist and diplomat
Charles Ancillon
Charles Ancillon (28 July 16595 July 1715)"Ancillon, Charles" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 378. was a French jurist and diplomat.
Life
Ancillon was born in Metz into ...
. After studying theology at
Geneva University
The University of Geneva (French: ''Université de Genève'') is a public research university located in Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded in 1559 by John Calvin as a theological seminary. It remained focused on theology until the 17th centur ...
, he was appointed minister to the French community in Berlin.
Career
At the same time, his reputation as a historical scholar secured him the post of professor of history at the military academy. In 1793, he visited
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, and in 1796 France, publishing the impressions gathered during his travels in a series of articles which he afterwards collected under the title of ''Mélanges de littérature et de philosophie'' (1801).
Ancillon took rank among the most famous historians of his day by his next work, ''Tableau des révolutions du système politique de l'Europe depuis le XV
e siècle'' (1803, 4 volumes), which gained him the praise of the
Institute of France
The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute m ...
, and admission to the
Military Academy of Berlin. It was the first attempt to recognize psychological factors in historical movements, but otherwise its importance was exaggerated. Its "sugary optimism, unctuous phraseology and pulpit logic" appealed, however, to the reviving pietism of the age succeeding the Revolution, and these qualities, as well as his eloquence as a preacher, brought Ancillon to the notice of the court. In 1808 he was appointed tutor to the royal princes, in 1809 councillor of state in the department of religion, and in 1810 tutor of the crown prince (afterwards
Frederick William IV of Prussia), on whose sensitive and dreamy nature he was to exercise a powerful but far from wholesome influence. In October 1814, when his pupil came of age, Ancillon was included by
Prince Hardenberg in the ministry, as privy councillor of legation in the department of foreign affairs, with a view to utilizing his supposed gifts as a philosophical historian in the preparation of the projected Prussian constitution. But Ancillon's reputed liberalism was of too invertebrate a type to survive the trial of actual contact with affairs. The practical difficulty of the constitutional problem gave the "court parson", as
August von Gneisenau
August Wilhelm Antonius Graf Neidhardt von Gneisenau (27 October 176023 August 1831) was a Prussian field marshal. He was a prominent figure in the reform of the Prussian military and the War of Liberation.
Early life
Gneisenau was born at Schil ...
had contemptuously called him, excuse enough for a change of front which, incidentally, would please his exalted patrons. He covered his defection from Hardenberg's liberal
constitutionalism
Constitutionalism is "a compound of ideas, attitudes, and patterns of behavior elaborating the principle that the authority of government derives from and is limited by a body of fundamental law".
Political organizations are constitutional ...
by a series of "philosophical" treatises on the nature of the state and of man, and became the soul of the reactionary movement at the Berlin court, and the faithful henchman of
Klemens von Metternich in the general politics of Germany and of Europe.
In 1817, Ancillon became a councillor of state, and in 1818 director of the political section of the ministry for foreign affairs under Count Bernstorff. In his chief's most important work, the establishment of the Prussian
Zollverein
The (), or German Customs Union, was a coalition of German states formed to manage tariffs and economic policies within their territories. Organized by the 1833 treaties, it formally started on 1 January 1834. However, its foundations had b ...
, Ancillon had no share, while the entirely subordinate role played by Prussia in Europe during this period, together with the personal part taken by the sovereign in the various congresses, gave him little scope for the display of any diplomatic talents he may have possessed. During this time he found plentiful leisure to write a series of works on political philosophy, such as the Nouveaux essais de politique et de philosophie (Paris, 1824). In May 1831 he was made an active privy councillor, was appointed chief of the department for the principality of
Neuchâtel, in July became secretary of state for foreign affairs, and in the spring of 1832, on Bernstorff's retirement, succeeded him as head of the ministry.
By the German public, to whom Ancillon was known only through his earlier writings and some isolated protests against the "demagogue-hunting" in fashion at Berlin, his advent to power was hailed as a triumph of liberalism. They were soon undeceived. Ancillon had convinced himself that the rigid class distinctions of the Prussian system were the philosophically ideal basis of the state, and that representation "by estates" was the only sound constitutional principle; his last and indeed only act of importance as minister was his collaboration with Metternich in the Vienna Final Act of 12 June 1834, the object of which was to rivet this system upon Germany forever. When he died, he was the last of his family. His historical importance lies neither in his writings nor in his political activity, but in his personal influence at the Prussian court, and especially in its lasting effect on the character of Frederick William IV.
Honours
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of the Red Eagle
The Order of the Red Eagle (german: Roter Adlerorden) was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful se ...
, 1st Class.
[Indépendance Belge (L') 16-09-1836]
* Knight in the
Order Of The Iron Cross (1st Class).
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of Fidelity
The Order of Besa ( sq, Urdhëri i Besës) was established by Ahmet Zogu (later King Zog I) when he was President of Albania. Founded on 22 December 1926, it was initially awarded in four classes (1. Grand Cordon with star–''Kordon i Madh me ...
, Baden.
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of the Crown of Bavaria
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Legion of Honour
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...
.
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of the Lion of Hesse.
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary
The Order of Saint Stephen ( hu, Szent István rend) was an order of chivalry founded in 1764 by Maria Theresa. In 1938, Miklós Horthy took the rights and activities of Grand Master as Regent of Hungary. The name of the Order changed to the Roy ...
.
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of Alexander Nevsky
The Order of Alexander Nevsky ( ''orden Alexandra Nevskogo'') is an order of merit of the Russian Federation named in honour of saint Alexander Nevsky (1220–1263) and bestowed to civil servants for twenty years or more of highly meritorious ser ...
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of Saint Anna
The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Hol ...
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of Merit of Saxony-Anhalt
* Knight Grand Cross in the
Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus
* Knight Grand Cross in the
* Commander of the
Order of the Polar Star
The Royal Order of the Polar Star ( Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden'') is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order of the Sword and the Order of the Seraphim.
The Order of t ...
Literature
Niels Hegewisch: Die Staatsphilosophie von Johann Peter Friedrich Ancillon (2010).
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ancillon, Friedrich
1767 births
1837 deaths
Politicians from Berlin
People from the Margraviate of Brandenburg
Prussian politicians
Foreign ministers of Prussia
German Calvinist and Reformed Christians
University of Geneva alumni
Members of the Prussian Academy of Sciences