Gotfried Becker (1681–1750) was a Danish pharmacist. He owned Elefant Apotek in

Købmagergade Købmagergade is a pedestrian shopping street in the Old Town of Copenhagen, Denmark. It connects Amagertorv on Strøget to Nørreport station, although the last section, north of Kultorvet, is part of Frederiksborggade, which continues on the ot ...

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 ...

from 1708 and served as royal court pharmacist from 1712.

Early life and education

Becker was born in

on 24 January 1681, the eldest son of pharmacist Johann Gottfried Becker and Sophie Iversdatter Bath. His two younger brothers and two younger sisters did not survive childhood. His father was the owner of Elefant Apotek in

. Becker was taught the trade by his father and then continued his studied abroad in 1702–5.

Career

In 1708 Becker took over the pharmacy in Købmagergade after his father. He was appointed to field pharmacist (''feltapoteker'') in 1709 and accompanied the army to first

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

and later Pommeria. He was present with his field pharmacy at the

Battle of Gadebusch The Battle of Gadebusch or Wakenstädt (20 December 1712) was Sweden's final great victory in the Great Northern War. It was fought by the Swedes to prevent the loss of the city of Stralsund to Danish and Saxon forces. Prelude During 1712, ...

in 1712. Later that same year he was appointed to royal court pharmacist. His pharmacy in Købmagergade was completely destroyed in the

Copenhagen Fire of 1728 The Copenhagen Fire of 1728 was the largest fire in the history of Copenhagen, Denmark. It began on the evening of 20 October 1728 and continued to burn until the morning of the 23rd of October 1728. It destroyed approximately 28% of the city (me ...

but reopened in a new building in 1737. He was also engaged in large-scale trade with other goods. He was appointed to ''Kammerassessors'' in 1749,

Personal life

6 May 1712, Becker married Cathrine Schupp f(10 Avgust 1693 - 30 June 1713), a daughter of merchant Christian Schupp, but she died in June next year just one week after giving birth to their first child, Johan Christian Becker (23 June 1713 – 3+ April 1755). Becker married second time Johanna Heinricca Nørck (28 October 1694 - 31 January 1765), a daughter of merchant Johan Heinrich Nørck, on1 4 October 1714. They had 16 children, of which four girls and three boys survived to adulthood. The family in a large house next to the pharmacy in Købmagergade. He died on 19 February 1750. His widow then operated the pharmacy until 1756 when it was passed on to their son Johan Gottfried Becker (17 July 1723 – 20 April 1790).

References

External links

Gotfried Becker
at geni.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Becker, Gottfried 1681 births 1750 deaths 18th-century Danish pharmacists