Simon

Edler Edler () was until 1919 the lowest rank of nobility in Austria-Hungary and Germany, just beneath a '' Ritter'' (hereditary knight), but above untitled nobles, who used only the nobiliary particle ''von'' before their surname. It was mostly given t ...

von Lämel (August 1766 – 18 April 1845) was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

merchant who devoted his life to bettering the lives of his fellow Jews.

Biography

He was born in Tuschkau (now

Město Touškov Město Touškov (; ) is a town in Plzeň-North District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,400 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones ...

), near

Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

. His father died early on, so Lämel quickly developed an interest in the

mercantile Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cred ...

business. By the age of twenty-one, he had his own wholesale warehouse in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. This soon became one of the nation's most important. Lämel was a great supporter of reforms. He encouraged improvements in sheep raising, and created new ways to card and manufacture their wool. During the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

, he sought to help

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

in any way he could. He bought all the supplies from magazines captured by the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

, and later all the captured artillery pieces as well. In all, he saved the empire over 3,000,000

florins The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

. In 1809, he bought 450 tons of biscuits for the troops, declining any profits or commissions. On top of that, he loaned the government considerable sums of money, which culminated in 1809, with his lending the state his entire fortune to speed the withdrawal of French troops from

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. As a result of his actions for his country, he asked to be allowed to buy a house in Vienna, but in March 1811 the emperor refused his permission. Later that year, however, Lämel was elevated to the hereditary

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

, which gave both him and his children the right to live in Vienna—where Jews were barely tolerated. In 1813, he was appointed commissary of the army by Field Marshal

Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg Karl Philipp, Fürst zu House of Schwarzenberg, Schwarzenberg (or Charles Philip, Prince of Schwarzenberg; 18/19 April 1771 – 15 October 1820) was an Habsburg monarchy, Austrian Generalissimo and former Field Marshal. He first entered milita ...

, which released him from having to quarter soldiers. Besides Austria,

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

also benefited from Lämel's services. Several letters from the kings there describe their respect for him. His work was one of the causes of the end to the

body-tax The Leibzoll (German language, German: "body tax") was a special tariff, toll that Jews had to pay in most European states from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. Rate of the toll The origin of the Leibzoll may be traced to the political po ...

(''Leibzoll'') in that kingdom. His entire life, Lämel always tried to raise the living-conditions of his fellow Jews. In 1817, he succeeded in getting the Bohemian Jews' taxes reduced, and was told they would soon be completely abolished. Even so, he never tried to escape the taxation himself, even after he moved to Vienna. Shortly before his death, he tried to get the medieval Jewish oath abolished. Lämel's daughter, Elise Herz, founded a school in the

Zikhron Moshe Zikhron Moshe (, lit. ''Memorial for Moses'') is a Haredi Judaism, Haredi neighborhood in central Jerusalem. The neighborhood is bordered by Geula to the north, Mekor Baruch to the west, David Yellin Street to the south, and Mea Shearim to the eas ...

neighborhood of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

in his memory, the Lämel School, supported by a foundation, the ''Simon Edler von Lämel's Stiftung''.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lamel, Simon von 1766 births 1845 deaths Edlers of Austria German people of the Napoleonic Wars Merchants from the Austrian Empire Austrian people of Jewish descent People from Plzeň-North District 18th-century Austrian businesspeople 19th-century Austrian businesspeople Merchants from the Holy Roman Empire