Claës Efraim Günther (29 or 30 December 1799 – 23 July 1861) was a Swedish politician and jurist who served as Prime Minister for Justice between 1856 and 1858.

Biography

Günther was born into a noble family in

Örebro Örebro ( ; ) is the seventh-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Örebro Municipality, and capital of Örebro County. It is situated by the Närke Plain, near the lake Hjälmaren, a few kilometers inland along the small river Svartån, and ...

, as the son of Christian Ernst Günther and Agneta Charlotta Carpelan. The family was of

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

n origin and had been raised to the untitled nobility in 1720. He received his education at

Uppsala University Uppsala University (UU) () is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. Initially fou ...

, obtaining a

Master of Philosophy A Master of Philosophy (MPhil or PhM; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. The name of the degree is most often abbreviated MPhil (or, at times, as PhM in other countries). MPhil are awarded to postgraduate students after completing at leas ...

in 1824. Upon finishing his studies he went on to work as a

notary A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems. A notary, while a legal professional, is distin ...

at the

Svea Court of Appeal Svea Court of Appeal (), located in Stockholm, is one of six appellate courts in the Swedish legal system, as well as the oldest Swedish court currently in use (the Supreme Court being constituted only in 1789, over 150 years later). It is loca ...

. Günther first entered politics acting as a representative of the nobility at the

Riksdag of the Estates Riksdag of the Estates (; informally ) was the name used for the Estates of Sweden when they were assembled. Until its dissolution in 1866, the institution was the highest authority in Sweden next to the King. It was a Diet made up of the Fou ...

in 1828. During the Riksdag of 1844–1845, Günther came to be known as an avid advocate for reforming the penal code as well as one of few members in the House of Nobility to argue in favour of equal inheritance rights between men and women. In 1845, he became a member of a legislative committee whose task was to draft a new statute of laws regarding the inheritance of property and family law. In response to the March Unrest of 1848, king Oscar I appointed Günther to serve as minister without portfolio in the

Council of State A council of state is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head ...

. He resigned from the council in 1851, and was subsequently made a judge at the

supreme court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. In 1856, Günther was reinstated in the government, this time as Prime Minister for Justice, an office he held until 1858 when he was forced to resign due to pressures from the Crown Prince. He was the paternal grandfather of Christian Günther.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunther, Claes 1799 births 1861 deaths Ministers for justice of Sweden 19th-century Swedish nobility People from Örebro