Joachim Melchior Magens (2 July 1775 3 June 1845) was a Danish jurist who served as ''notarius publicus'' and public prosecutor in the

Danish West Indies The Danish West Indies () or Danish Virgin Islands () or Danish Antilles were a Danish colony in the Caribbean, consisting of the islands of Saint Thomas with , Saint John () with , Saint Croix with , and Water Island. The islands of St ...

. He played a key role in the case against Peter von Scholten. He was the grandson of Joachim Melchior Magens (1715–1783).

Early life and education

Magens was born on St. Thomas in the Danish West Indies on 2 July 1775, the son of Johannes (Johan) Magens (1745–1801) and Anna Helena Hoff. His paternal grandfather was Joachim Melchior Magens (1715–1783). Magens' mother died when he was just a few years old. His father was subsequently married to Else Margrethe Schmidt.. His father worked as bookkeeper and customs officer () on Saint John. The family moved to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

in the 1790s. His father owned the property at Rådhusstræde 6. Magens became ''exam. juris'' in 1795. He was still residing in his father's building on Rådhusstræde at the time of the 1801 census. He lived there with his father, stepmother, and four half-siblings. Their staff comprised a housekeeper, a female cook, a coachman, two black seamstresses (aged 16 and 19) and three male servants (aged 12 to 18, one of them black). His father died on 19 May that same year. He is buried at

Assistens Cemetery An Assistens Cemetery () is a cemetery that functions as an expansion of another, older cemetery often in relation to a city church. Already by the end of the 17th century, Danish authorities deemed that the conditions for inner-city cemeteries we ...

. Else Margrethe Magens kept the property after her husband's death. The property was still owned by Magens' mother in 1806. Magens' half-sister Jacobine Severine Magens (1786–1812) was married to (1780–1954), owner of

Hørbygaard Hærbygaard is a manor house and estate located on Tuse Næs, Holbæk Municipality, some 80 kilometres west of Copenhagen, Denmark. The current main building was constructed for Melchior Grevenkop-Castenskiold in 1861-62 and later expanded with a ...

and

Store Frederikslund Store Frederikslund is a manor house and estate located eight kilometres northeast of Slagelse, Slagelse Municipality, Denmark. It is one of several estates that was established when Antvorskov Cavalry District was sold in public auction. It was e ...

. Another half-sister, Petronella (1778), who had stayed on Saint Thomas, was married to George Brown (1773–1818), son of

John Brown John Brown most often refers to: *John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia, in 1859 John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to: Academia * John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...

Career

Magens would later return to the Danish West Indies where he initially worked as a lawyer. From 12 February 1817 until 15 October 1825, he served first as captain and then as major in the Civil Militia () on

Saint Croix Saint Croix ( ; ; ; ; Danish language, Danish and ; ) is an island in the Caribbean Sea, and a county and constituent Districts and sub-districts of the United States Virgin Islands, district of the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), an Unin ...

(Ostende Quarter Company). On 1 November 1825, he was appointed as prosecutor () and on St. Thomas. In 1826, he was appointed as a member of the Royal Council on St. Thomas as royal bookkeeper. Magens contributed to the rebuilding of the Lutheran church in 1826–27. Pastor Ortved thanked him at the inauguration of the church. In 1827, he was appointed as head of a commission tasked with construction of an army barracks in Charlotte Amalia. It was constructed in 1829 on a peninsula south of the fortress. On 9 October 1830, he was appointed as bailiff (''

landfoged A ''Landfoged'' (Icelandic: ; Danish: ; Faroese: ) was a civil servant who saw to the finances of the Danish king in islands such as Iceland and the Faroe Islands, collecting revenue for the whole country. The usual English translation is 'sheriff' ...

''), auction director (),

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 ...

, and customs officer () on St. John. Magens played a key role in the legal proceedings against Governor-General Peter von Scholten. He filed a complaint to the king against Scholten. Together with various other documents related to the case, it was published as (Copenhagen, 1840; 17 November 1842; Fædrel. III. 1842; ''

Berlingske Tidende ''Berlingske'', previously known as ''Berlingske Tidende'' (, 'Berling's Times'), is a Danish national daily newspaper based in Copenhagen. It is considered a newspaper of record for Denmark. First published on 3 January 1749, ''Berlingske'' is ...

'', 1842, No. 309). Magens published ''.'' (Copenhagen, 1843).

Personal life

Magens was married to Maria Rohde (1782–1823). They had five children: Anny Margrethe Magens; Johannes Jürgen Magens; Edward William Magens; Jacobine Elisabeth Magens and Carl Rohde Magens. In 1830, Magens struggled with increasingly poor health. In July 1830 he travelled to Copenhagen to undergo medical treatment. On 8 May 1831, Doctor Rahlff stated that it was still not wise for him to return to the West Indies. He died on 3 June 1834.

References

External links

Joachim Melchior Magens
at geni.com
Source
{{DEFAULTSORT:Magens, Joachim Melchior 1775 births 1825 deaths 19th-century Danish jurists People from the Danish West Indies 1820s in the Danish West Indies 1830s in the Danish West Indies 1840s in the Danish West Indies