Hellmuth Eduard Ferdinand Lucius von Stoedten, (14 July 1869 Estate Klein Ballhausen,

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

- November 14, 1934 in Berlin) was a German diplomat during

WWI World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Life

His father was Robert Lucius, Prussian Minister of Agriculture, and a confidant of

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 ...

. Lucius married in 1896 Bertha von Stumm-Halberg, daughter of a gun manufacturer. Lucius von Stoedten was initially attaché in Paris 1898-1900 and till 1906 secretary. In 1911 he was a counsellor in St. Petersburg. From 1914 he was a diplomatic agent and consul general in Durazzo, Albania. From 1915 to 1920 he was the German ambassador in Stockholm. Von Stoedten was very instrumental in the preservation of Swedish neutrality in World War I. During the war he had a different view on the German policy towards Russia after the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...

than the military leadership.

Erich Ludendorff Erich Friedrich Wilhelm Ludendorff (9 April 1865 – 20 December 1937) was a German general, politician and military theorist. He achieved fame during World War I for his central role in the German victories at Liège and Tannenberg in 1914. ...

accused the messenger even of disloyalty. However, Lucius was protected by the

German Foreign Office , logo = DEgov-AA-Logo en.svg , logo_width = 260 px , image = Auswaertiges Amt Berlin Eingang.jpg , picture_width = 300px , image_caption = Entrance to the Foreign Office building , headquarters = Werderscher Mark ...

. In addition to other embassies in Stockholm he was largely responsible for the contacts with

Alexander Protopopov Alexander Dmitrievich Protopopov (; 18 December 1866 – 27 October 1918) was a Russian publicist and politician who served as Minister of the Interior from September 1916 to February 1917. Protopopov became a leading liberal politician in Russi ...

, and the Russian opposition and revolutionaries. As such, he played a role in 1917 in the transport of

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

from the German sphere of influence over Sweden to Russia. Between 1921-1927 he was envoy in

The Hague The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...

till he became sick. Lucius of Stoedten is known a patron of the arts. By

Auguste Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...

, with whom he was friends, he acquired the marble sculpture "The Kiss".

Gerhart Hauptmann Gerhart Johann Robert Hauptmann (; 15 November 1862 – 6 June 1946) was a German dramatist and novelist. He is counted among the most important promoters of literary naturalism, though he integrated other styles into his work as well. He recei ...

also counted among his friends. Von Stoedten possessed an important collection of letters of

Heinrich Heine Christian Johann Heinrich Heine (; born Harry Heine; 13 December 1797 – 17 February 1856) was a German poet, writer and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of '' Lied ...

Rainer Maria Rilke René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), shortened to Rainer Maria Rilke (), was an Austrian poet and novelist. He has been acclaimed as an idiosyncratic and expressive poet, and is widely recogni ...

dedicated Lucius von Stoedten in 1922 an opportunity poem that led

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th centur ...

to the question: "Why poet?"Hindrek M. Emrich: ''Texte zu Rilke''. Göttingen 2008, S. 89 Lucius was the owner of a manor in Stödten

Straußfurt Straußfurt is a municipality in the Sömmerda district of Thuringia, Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and ...

, inherited the family estate Ballhausen after the death of his eldest brother Otto Baron Lucius of Ballhausen (1932). Since then Hellmuth was the "Baron Lucius of Ballhausen".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lucius von Stoedten, Hellmut 1869 births 1934 deaths Ambassadors of Germany to Sweden Ambassadors of Germany to the Netherlands Ambassadors of Germany to Albania