Peder von Cappelen (24 January 1763 – 11 March 1837) was a Norwegian merchant and politician. He was involved in

timber trade There are multiple market layers for wood products. Each country has its own domestic market that may be connected to a regional or global market. Timber supply to domestic markets in many tropical forest countries is largely provided by informal lo ...

and was an owner of

ironworks An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloome ...

. Cappelen was a member of the

Parliament of Norway The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list proportional represe ...

Personal life

Peder von Cappelen was born and raised at Mæla Manor in

Gjerpen Gjerpen is a former municipality in Telemark county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until its dissolution in 1964. The area is now part of Skien Municipality. The administrative centre was the village of Gjerpen, which is now part o ...

(''Mæla gård i Gjerpen'') in the municipality of

Skien Skien () is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Grenland, although historically it belonged to Grenmar/Skiensfjorden, while Grenland referred the Norsjø area and Bø. The administrative ...

Telemark Telemark () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway. Telemark borders the counties of Vestfold, Buskerud, Vestland, Rogaland and Agder. In 2020, Telemark merged with the county of Vestfold to form the county o ...

, Norway. He was one of the sons of the wholesaler, timber merchant and ship owner Diderich von Cappelen (1734–1794) and his first wife Petronelle Pedersdatter Juel (1737–1785). He was the brother of

Diderik von Cappelen Diderik von Cappelen (21 June 1761 – 3 April 1828) was a Norwegian wholesaler, merchant, shipowner, estate owner and politician in 1814. He is often referred to as Diderik von Cappelen but he spelt his name ''Didrich von Cappelen'' and is also ...

and Ulrich Fredrich von Cappelen.

Career

Cappelen attended Kingswood boarding school in Bristol, England (1780–1781). He received a business education both abroad and at the extensive family businesses in

. He settled as a wholesaler at

Strømsø Strømsø is a borough of Drammen, Buskerud, Norway. Strømsø is located at the southern side of the river Drammenselva. Until about 1600, Strømsø was an island surrounded by the Drammenselva, but was later made landfast. In 1728 Strømsø ...

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and villages such ...

during 1784. He purchased the trading facilities at Cappelengården from Peter Collett in 1784. He also acquired Austad farm through marriage. He had a seat at Eidsfos Manor (''Eidsfos Hovedgård''), which was his private residence. Cappelen acquired the

Eidsfos Iron Works Eidsfoss is a village in Holmestrand Municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The village is located at the southern end of the lake Eikeren, about north of the village of Hof and about southeast of the village of Vestfossen (in Øvre Eiker ...

at Hof in

Vestfold Vestfold () is a county and a current electoral district in Norway. Located on the western shore of the Oslofjord, it borders Buskerud and Telemark counties. The county administration is located in Tønsberg, Norway's oldest city, and the larg ...

during 1795, and Kongsberg Iron Works on

Numedalslågen Numedalslågen is a river in Norway. It is considered to be the second longest river in Southern Norway. It is located in the Numedal valley which runs through the counties of Vestfold, Buskerud and Vestland. At long, it is of the longest rivers ...

in 1824. In 1811 he donated 10,000 rigsdaler to the establishment of a University in Christiania (now University of Oslo). He represented

at the

from 1815. He was decorated Knight of the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry founded on 29 May 1772 by Gustav III, King Gustav III. It is awarded to Swedish citizens for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. His ...

in 1825.

Personal life

In 1784, he married Christine Marie Klein (1766–1849). Cappelen died at

Eidsfos Verk Eidsfos Verk () was an ironworks located at Eidsfoss in Vestfold county, Norway. Eidsfos Verk was established in 1697 when the first blast furnace was first put into operation. The ironwork, which was dependent on hydropower, ore and forest, ...

in 1837. Both of their two daughters had died before their parents. After his death, his affairs were managed by son-in-law, Jørgen von Cappelen Omsted and John Collet Bredesen.

References

1763 births 1837 deaths Politicians from Skien Norwegian merchants Knights of the Order of Vasa

Peder Peter is a common masculine given name. It is derived directly from Greek , ''Petros'' (an invented, masculine form of Greek ''petra,'' the word for "rock" or "stone"), which itself was a translation of Aramaic ''Kefa'' ("stone, rock"), the new na ...

18th-century Norwegian businesspeople 19th-century Norwegian businesspeople Members of the Storting 1815–1817 {{Norway-business-bio-stub