Peter Christian Knudtzon (19 March 1789–17 November 1864) was a

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 ...

businessman and ship-owner. He was one of the largest traders in

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

in the middle of the 19th century. He owned

Amaliegade 14 Amaliegade 14 is a Rococo-style building in the Frederiksstaden neighbourhood of central Copenhagen, Denmark. It was listed on the Listed buildings in Copenhagen Municipality, Danish registry of protected buildings and places in 1918. History 18t ...

in Copenhagen. He was the father of Governor of the Bank of Denmark .

Early life and family background

Knudtzon was born on 19 March 1789 in Kristiansund,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

, the son of merchant Nicolay Heinrich Knudtzon (1751–1842) and Janicke Fasting (1762–1848). His father was one of the town's leading merchants. His paternal uncle,

Hans Carl Knudtzon Hans Carl Knudtzon (29 January 175116 December 1823) was a Norwegian merchant, ship-owner and politician. Born in the north of Germany to a mercantile family, he travelled to Trondheim, Norway, where he had success in the trading business. He was a ...

, was also a successful merchant. Knudtzon was raised in Slesvig, from which his father had emigrated to Norway in 1780. After moving 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 ...

at the age of 16, he initially worked for J. J. Holbech.

Career

In 1810, Knudtzon started his own business. He engaged in a number of speculative investments, especially on the property market in Copenhagen, with considerable success. In 1814, Knudtzon and two brothers-in-law took over his father-in-law's trading business in Iceland. The turbulent times during the war years of 1807 to 1814 brought him many difficulties, bringing him close to bankruptcy in 1818 and 1820, but both times with quick comebacks. In the 1830s, he completely dominated trade on the southern part of the island. A fleet of smaller fishing vessels picked up salt in Spain and returned with

dried and salted cod Dried and salted cod, sometimes referred to as salt cod or saltfish or salt dolly, is cod which has been preserved by drying after salting. Cod which has been dried without the addition of salt is stockfish. Salt cod was long a major export ...

for the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

market. In 1842, he was hit a third time by economic difficulties but again managed to recover fairly quickly. In 1855, P. C. Knudtzon & Søn's fleet consisted of the brigs ''Wilhelmine'' and ''Johanne'', the

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

s ''Harriet'', ''Louise'', ''Lucinde'' and ''Marie'', the

galleass Galleasses were military ships developed from large merchant galleys, and intended to combine galley speed with the sea-worthiness and artillery of a galleon. While perhaps never quite matching up to their full expectations, galleasses neverthel ...

''Emmy'', and the yachts ''Anna Helena'', ''Cathinca'', ''Christiansgave'', ''Kis'' and'' Orøven.''

Politics and public offices

In 1824, Knudtzon was elected to the Council of 32 Men. In the 1830s, he was elected to the Roskilde Constituent Assembly in the first election period (1835–1840). From 1847 to 1848, he was a member of the Grossist Society's committee. In 1831, he was instrumental in establishing the Grossist Society's relief fund (), together with his friend

Christian Rønnenkamp Christian Rønnenkamp (20 December 1785 – 27 December 1867) was a Denmark, Danish businessman, landowner and philanthropist. He constructed the listed property at Amaliegade 4 in Copenhagen and owned the estates of Næsbyholm and Bavelse from 183 ...

and the firm

Hambro & Søn Hambro is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Calmer Hambro (1747–1806), Danish merchant and banker * Carl Joachim Hambro (1807–1877), Danish-born founder of the British bank Hambros Bank * C. J. Hambro (1885–1964), Norweg ...

Personal life

Knudtzon married Marie Thomsen (1 October 1788–25 July 1831) on 24 June 1810. She was daughter of merchant Jess Thomsen (1734–1816) and Engel Knutzen (c. 1748–1829). She bore him one son, Jes Nicolai Knudtzon (1811–1840). Following the death of his first wife on 13 November 1839, Knudtzon married Lucinde Gotschalk (17 March 1818–17 December 1888) in St. Peter's Church in Copenhagen. She was the daughter of merchant Frederik (Friedrich) Gotschalk (1786–1869) and Marie Frederikke Kierulf (1791–1870). From 1757, Knudtzon was the owner of the property at

in Copenhagen. He died on 17 November 1864 and is buried in the

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. ...

. He was survived by the following children: * Nicolay Henrich Knudtzon (31 July 1841–18 July 1925) * Frederik Gotschalk Knudtzon (11 January 1843–14 May 1917) * Søren Christian Knudtzon (16 July 1844–12 August 1913) * Jørgen Bailli Knudtzon (15 September 1847–29 March 1909) * Bertha Knudtzon (24 February 1850–4 May 1923) * Marie Lucinde Knudtzon (26 October 1851–28 April 1926) * Harriet Knudtzon (16 February 1855–24 May 1927), married dermatologist Ludvig Nielsen. * Benedicte Knudtzon (23 September 1856–14 May 1940), married zoologist Jonas Collin.

References

External links

Ships

Nikolai Henrik Knudtzon

Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knudtzon, Peter Christian 19th-century Danish businesspeople Danish businesspeople in shipping Economic history of Iceland Danish company founders 1789 births 1864 deaths People from Kristiansund