Christian Rønnenkamp (20 December 1785 – 27 December 1867) was a Danish businessman, landowner and philanthropist. He constructed the listed property at Amaliegade 4 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 ...

and owned the estates of Næsbyholm and Bavelse from 1835.

Early life and education

Rønnenkamp was born in

Flensburg Flensburg (; Danish language, Danish and ; ; ) is an independent city, independent town in the far north of the Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. After Kiel and Lübeck, it is the third-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein. Flensburg's ...

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...

. He was the son of merchant and hospital superintendent Nicolaj Christian Rønnenkamp (1757–1832) by his first wife Catharina (Tine) Rønnenkamp née Todsen (1763–1787). He was the brother of Hanna Rönnenkamp Müller (1783–1868).

Career in Copenhagen

He moved to Copenhagen when he was 15 years old where he first became a merchant's apprentice. Rønnenkamp subsequently established his own grocery business on

Store Kongensgade Store Kongensgade (; ) is the longest street in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It extends northeast from Kongens Nytorv to Esplanaden, Copenhagen, Esplanaden, running parallel to Bredgade, where it breaks left, continuing northwest to Grønningen, ...

. He later established himself as a wholesaler and expanded his business with a sugar refinery in c. 1819. He moved his business to the corner of

Sankt Annæ Plads Sankt Annæ Plads (English language, English: St. Ann's Square) is a Town square, public square which marks the border between the Nyhavn area and Frederiksstaden neighborhoods of central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is a long narrow rectangle which e ...

and

Amaliegade Amaliegade () is a street in central Copenhagen, Denmark, which makes up the longer of the two axes on which the Rococo district Frederiksstaden is centred. Amaliegade extends from Sankt Annæ Plads to Esplanaden, passing through the central pl ...

after acquiring the former St. Croix House in auction in late 1828. St. Croix Sugar House was likely established by the Baltic Sea Guinea Trading Company (). Rønnenkamp constructed the building at present-day Amaliegade 4 located in the Frederiksstaden Quarter of central

between 1828 and 1829. He sold sugar from the premises and also expanded the activities to comprise refining and sale of salt.

Næsbyholm and Bavelse

Rønnenkamp purchased the estates of Næsbyholm and Bavelse from the Danish government in 1835. From then on he spent most of his time running his estates. He implemented agricultural reforms and refurbished many of the buildings.

Titles

Rønnenkamp was awarded the title Council of State (''

etatsråd was a Danish and Norwegian title, which was conferred by the king until 1909 and entailed a third-class rank in the order of precedence, and thus the right to enroll one's daughters in Gisselfeld Convent and Vemmetofte Convent. It was awarded to ...

'') in 1852 and Chamberlain () in 1858. In 1856, he was made a Knight of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

Family and legacy

On 19 January 1822, Rønnenkamp married Jessy Caroline Howden in Helsingør (1796–1872). The couple had no children. They created a number of charities and grants. These included a home for 16 men and women from their two estates in Næsby (), a home for old seamen in

, a grant for purchase of paintings and sculptures and Christiansdal kloster with residences for 24 women. Rønnenkamp's widow left an additional DKK 500,000 to Christiansdal kloster. Rønnenkamp left the estates at Næstbyholm and Bavelse to his sister Hanna's grandson, Peter Christian Müller (1854–1930), who adopted the surname Howden-Rønnenkamp.

References

External links

Næsbyholm website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rønnenkamp, Christian 1785 births 1867 deaths People from Flensburg 19th-century Danish businesspeople 19th-century Danish landowners Danish sugar industry businesspeople Danish philanthropists 19th-century philanthropists Knights of the Order of the Dannebrog