Baron Johann Ludwig von Knoop (15 May 1821, in
Bremen – 14 August 1894, in Bremen) was a
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...
merchant and entrepreneur from the city-state
Free Hanseatic City of Bremen
Bremen (), officially the Free Hanseatic League#Lists of former Hansa cities, Hanseatic City of Bremen (german: Freie Hansestadt Bremen; nds, Free Hansestadt Bremen), is the smallest and least populous of States of Germany, Germany's 16 states. ...
, who became one of the richest entrepreneurs in his time. He was created a
Baron by
Alexander II of Russia in 1877.
Early life
He was born as son of Gerhard Knoop (1782-1862) and Anna Rebecca Frerichs (1793-1878). He had three sisters and five brothers.
Life
He studied in Bremen, and learned the cotton business at
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
with the Bremen-born cotton exporter Johan Frerichs's company
De Jersey & Co. He went to
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
as assistant to the firm's agent Franz Holzhauer in 1840. That year he established the first power-driven
cotton mill
A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system.
Although some were driven b ...
in
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
.
In 1842, the British ban on the export of cotton machinery, imposed in 1775 to protect the country's
head start in technology, was lifted, allowing the manufacture of cotton to expand in Russia. Knoop used English credit to build and fit out mills with English equipment. The commissioning in 1847 of
Savva Vasilyevich Morozov's
Nikolskoye mill at
Orekhovo-Zuyevo
Orekhovo-Zuyevo (russian: Оре́хово-Зу́ево, ) is an industrial city in Moscow Oblast, Russia, located east of Moscow in a forested area on the Klyazma River (a tributary of the Oka). Orekhovo (russian: Оре́хово), often prono ...
, Knoop's sixth, was seen as a landmark in the industry's development in Russia.
In 1852, he founded L Knoop & Co, in association with De Jersey and the machinery manufacturer
Platt Brothers
Platt Brothers, also known as Platt Bros & Co Ltd, was a British company based at Werneth in Oldham, North West England. The company manufactured textile machinery and were iron founders and colliery proprietors. By the end of the 19th century ...
of
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham ...
,
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly.
The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...
. In 1857, he built the largest cotton spinning mill in Europe on the island of
Kreenholm
Kreenholm (german: Krähnholm for ''crow islet'') is a river island in Estonia, located in the Narva River, within the city limits of Narva.
The island is in area, and is long and wide. The island divides the Narva Waterfall into eastern an ...
at
Narva
Narva, russian: Нарва is a municipality and city in Estonia. It is located in Ida-Viru county, at the eastern extreme point of Estonia, on the west bank of the Narva river which forms the Estonia–Russia international border. With 54 ...
,
Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
, which employed 4500 people. The
Kreenholm Manufacturing Company's factory in Narva had nearly half a million spindles driven by water-power. It paid low wages, but took its responsibilities to its workforce seriously, introducing a
health insurance scheme and supplying workers with dwellings, kindergartens, and schools.
Eventually, he was responsible for equipping 187 cotton mills on Russian territory. However, Knoop came under attack from the ''
Russian Technical Society
The Russian Technical Society (RTS) was founded as the Imperial Russian Technical Society (IRTS) in 1866 bringing together scientists, engineers, and others in order to promote technological development. It was by the government Ministries of Educa ...
'' for retarding industrial development in the country. This was because he relied exclusively on English machinery and also supplied the factories with English managers, technicians, and supervisors.
Personal life
He was married to Luise Mathilde
Hoyer Hoyer or Høyer can refer to:
People
; Surname
* Anna Ovena Hoyer (1584-1655), German-born writer and poet, active in Sweden
* Arne Høyer (1928-2010), Danish sprint canoeist who competed in the 1960 Summer Olympics
* Bizzie Høyer (1888-1971), ...
(1824-1894). They had 3 sons and 3 daughters. Descendants of his daughter Luise Dorothea include
Ernst Albrecht,
Hans-Holger Albrecht
Hans-Holger Albrecht (born 29 July 1963) is a German businessman. He was CEO of Deezer until 2021, one of the largest music streaming services worldwide. Deezer offers more than 53 million tracks in over 180 countries to currently more than 14 mil ...
and
Ursula von der Leyen
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding suc ...
.
Death
He died on 16 August 1894 at St Magnus, Bremen, where a city park created from his estate is named after him.
References
The Russian Technical Society and British Textile Machinery Imports, by Stuart Thompstone
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knoop, Ludwig
19th-century businesspeople from the Russian Empire
Businesspeople from Bremen (city)
1821 births
1894 deaths
German emigrants to the Russian Empire
Barons of the Russian Empire
