Peder Brønnum Scavenius (6 January 1795 - 4 December 1868) was a Danish landowner and politician. He was the owner of Gjorslev on the

Stevns Peninsula Stevns Peninsula is a peninsula on Zealand in Denmark. It is separated from Zealand Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size ...

, Klintholm on

Møn Møn () is an island in south-eastern Denmark. Until 1 January 2007, it was a municipality in its own right but it is now part of the municipality of Vordingborg Municipality, Vordingborg, after merging with the former municipalities of Langeb ...

and Petersgaard at

Vordingborg Vordingborg () is a market town and old ferry town on the south coast of the island of Zealand in Denmark. Because of three large estates surrounding the town, a coherent urban development has not been possible, which is the reason why three sat ...

. He was an also involved in politics and by royal appointment a member of the Danish Constituent Assembly.

Early life and career

Scavenius was born on 6 January 1795 in

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 ...

, the eldest son of Jacob Brønnum Scavenius and Karine L. Debes. His father had purchased Gjorslev, Erikstrup and Søholm on Stevns from the Lindencrone family in 1793 after spending 14 years in the service of the

Danish Asiatic Company Danish Asiatic Company (Danish language, Danish: Asiatisk Kompagni) was a Denmark-Norway, Danish trading company established in 1730 to revive Danish-Norwegian trade on the Danish East Indies and China following the closure of the Danish East Ind ...

in Bengal. Peder Brønnum Scavenius earned a law degree (cand.jur.) in 1816 and then worked for the Treasury until 1834.

Property and titles

Scavenius inherited Gjorslev and the other estates on Stevns upon his mother's death in 1825. He purchased Klintholm Manor on

from his younger brother in 1926. He purchased Petersgaard at Vordingborg[ in 1864. He was appointed as ''Kammerjunker'' in 1818 and chamberlain (''Kammerherre'') in 1840. He was ennobled in 1843. He was made a Order of the Dannebrog">Knight in the Order of the Dannebrog in 1945 and a Commander in the Order of the Dannebrog in 1854.

Politics and public offices

In June 1837, Scavenius was elected as one of 15 board members of a committee that worked for the creation of the Thorvaldsen Museum in Copenhagen. He was for a while president of Præstø Amts Landøkonomiske Forening and a member of Præstø County Council in 1842–54. He instigated the construction of Rødvig, Rødvig Harbour9. He was a member of Roskilde Constituent Assembly (Roskilde Stænderforsamling) in 1835– 48 and was later appointed by the king for the Danish Constituent Asscembly in 1848–49. He was a defensor of the estate owners' rights, arguing in favour of a model which only converted half of all copyholds into freeholds while the other half should remain in the free ownership of estate owners. He opposed the idea of a free constitution, arguing in favour of keeping kongeloven in a modified form and describing the king's position in the new constitution as "an automat... ....a decorated Puppet which for festive occasions could be displayed in Processions for the amusement of the public". Scavenius' proposal was only supported by six votes. He was not elected for the new ''rigsdag'' but was appointed for '' rigsrådet'' by the king in 1854–59. He was one of the founders of the October Association in 1865.

Personal life

Scavenius married Charlotte Sophie Meincke (8 December 1811 – 24 June 1872) on 12 May 1837 in the Church of Our Lady in Copenhagen. She was a daughter of military prosecutor Carl Henrik Lydius Meincke (1787–1862) and Anna Elisabeth Dorothea Falck (1784–1863). He was the father of Jacob Scavenius (1838–1915). Scavenius was an amateur astronomer and the owner of an extensive collection of maps and books. He died on 4 December 1868 and is buried at Holtug Cemetery. His eldest son Jacob Scavenius inherited Ghorslev, his second son Carl Scavenius inherited Klintholm and the youngest son inherited Petersgaard. Klintholm is still owned by the family.

References

External links

Peder Brønnum Scavenius
at geni.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scavenius, Peder Bronnum 19th-century Danish landowners 19th-century Danish politicians University of Copenhagen alumni Commanders of the Order of the Dannebrog Scavenius family 1795 births 1868 deaths