Jean Henri Desmercières (8 May 1687 – 8 March 1778) was a French-Danish merchant, banker and major landowner in
Holstein
Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...
where he reclaimed large areas along the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
coast.
Early life
Born in Paris, Desmercières was the illegitimate son of Jean Henri Huguetan by a woman in the fashion industry. He was named for the fashion street Rue des Merciers. He was apprenticed to his father's trading house in Paris and later led its office in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. He then moved to
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 ...
where he became a chamberlain for
Frederick William I of Prussia
Frederick William I (german: Friedrich Wilhelm I.; 14 August 1688 – 31 May 1740), known as the "Soldier King" (german: Soldatenkönig), was King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until his death in 1740, as well as Prince of Neuch ...
.
Career in Denmark
In 1736, Desmercières moved to
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
where his father had arranged for him to become a member of the
Kammerkollegiet. He was responsible for issues related to fishing from 1753 but was apart from that mainly engaged in banking and trade. He remained a member of Kammerkollegiet until 1768 and from January through March 1767 served as its president. He was involved in the establishment of Kurantbanken, was a major stakeholder in the Danish Asiatic Company and the first director of the Danish Africa Company which was founded in 1755.
He belonged to
Count Johann Hartwig Ernst von Bernstorff's social circle but was apparently not held in very high regard by him. It is believed that Desmercières was critical to Bernstorff's policy of subsidizing industrial enterprises.
Holdings in Holstein
![Denkmal Desmercieres](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Denkmal_Desmercieres.JPG)
Desmercières was a major landowner in
Holstein
Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of German ...
. He owned
Quarnbek
Quarnbek is a municipality in the district of Rendsburg-Eckernförde, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Eur ...
as well as
Emkendorf
Emkendorf is a municipality in the district of Rendsburg-Eckernförde, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
The location of Emkendorf is south of the municipality of Osterrönfeld, Schülldorf, Haßmoor or Westensee
Westensee () is a municipality in ...
from 1743 to 1764.
He was a pioneer in
land reclamation
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamati ...
in the Holstein area where he reclaimed the bay at
Bredstedt
Bredstedt ( nds, Bredstedt; da, Bredsted; North Frisian: ''Bräist'', ) is a town in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated near the North Sea coast, approximately 20 km northwest of Husum.
Notable pe ...
. The new area was named Desmerciereskoog after him (''koog'' meaning '
polder
A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as dikes. The three types of polder are:
# Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a lake or the seabed
# Flood plains s ...
'). Another reclaimed area was named
Elisabeth-Sophien-Koog
Elisabeth-Sophien-Koog is a municipality in the district of Nordfriesland, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It occupies a small part in the northwest of Nordstrand peninsula.
The municipality is located in and named after the polder (german: Koog) ...
after his wife. The work was continued by Heinrich XLIII, Count Reuss of Ebersdorf, a nephew of Desmercières' half sister Marguerite Huguetan, Countess Gyldensteen. A memorial to Desmercières was unveiled in the area in 2004.
Personal life
Being an illegitimate son, Desmercières neither inherited his father's titles nor the Countship of Gyldensteen at the event of his death in 1749. He did, however, receive his town mansion in
Bredgade
Bredgade ( lit. "Broad Street") is one of the most prominent streets in Copenhagen, Denmark. Running in a straight line from Kongens Nytorv for just under one kilometre to the intersection of Esplanaden and Grønningen, it is one of the major stre ...
(now
Hotel Phoenix Copenhagen
Hotel Phoenix Copenhagen is a hotel located at the corner of Bredgade (No. 37) and Dronningens Tværgade (No. 1-3) in Copenhagen, Denmark. The first Hotel Phoenix opened at the site in 1848 but closed when it was confiscated by the Nazi Germany, ...
) as well as the country house Tusenborg at
Kongens Lyngby
Kongens Lyngby (, Danish for "the King's Heather Town"; short form Lyngby) is the seat and commercial centre of Lyngby-Taarbæk Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Lyngby Hovedgade is a busy shopping street and the site of ...
. Desmercières was an active member of the
French Reformed congregation in Copenhagen and supported it in several ways.
![Kirche St](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Kirche_St._Georg_%26_Mauritius_Quarnbek-Flemhude.JPG)
He married Elisabeth Sophie Frijs at
Frijsenborg on 25 June 1751. She was the daughter of General-Lieutenant Count Christian Friis (1691–1763) and Countess Øllegaard Gersdorff (1687–1734). She became the holder of the countship of Frijsenborg upon the death of her sister Christine Sophie Friis in 1787.
He was appointed ''Konferensråd'' in 1727 and ''Gehejmeråd'' in 1745. He was created
Knight of the Order of the Elephant in 1768 and ''Gehejmekonferensråd'' in 1775. On 22 February 1886, he was naturalized and ennobled by
letters patent
Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, titl ...
. Having no sons, the Desmercières noble family died with him just two years later. He is buried at Church of St. George and Mauritius in Flemhude, part of
Quarnbek
Quarnbek is a municipality in the district of Rendsburg-Eckernförde, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Eur ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Desmercières, Jean Henri
1687 births
1778 deaths
18th-century Danish businesspeople
Danish bankers
Danish merchants
French emigrants to Denmark
Naturalised citizens of Denmark