Poul Christian (von) Stemann (14 April 1764 – 25 November 1855) was a Danish state official and leading minister from 1827 to 1848.
Early life and education
Born in Copenhagen, Stemann belonged to an old civil service family of German origin that has created many Danish local officials.
Career
As a young man he was relatively liberal, later becoming a deep conservative. As the son of a supporter of
Ove Høegh-Guldberg, his early state career was hampered for political reasons. Instead, he made himself a career in the
Supreme Court
In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
besides establishing himself as a squire. Between 1798 and 1827, he was ''amtman'' (prefect) of
Sorø
Sorø () is a town in Sorø municipality on the island of Zealand (Denmark), Zealand in east Denmark with a population of 8,433 (2025). and showed himself a very industrious, masterful and active local official who attracted the attention of King
Frederick VI.
In 1827, Stemann was appointed President of Danish Chancellery (Home Office) and Minister of Juridical Affairs and from then he was for twenty years the last ”prime minister” of
Danish absolutism (though not officially presiding in the State Council until 1842). His work fell in an age of growing opposition and reform demands of which he (like his royal employer) clearly disapproved. He reluctantly accepted the creation of Assemblies of Estates in the 1830s, but tried to limit their influence as much as possible, counteracting the moderate conservative wing of the government as well as concessions to the liberal opposition. To the latter Stemann stood as the reactionary, an unimaginative and authoritarian
bureaucrat
A bureaucrat is a member of a bureaucracy and can compose the administration of any organization of any size, although the term usually connotes someone within an institution of government.
The term ''bureaucrat'' derives from "bureaucracy", wh ...
himself. Later historians have varied this verdict but on the whole he is still regarded as a very traditional representative of the non-enlightened absolutism regarding the squires as the foundation of the state. He was also an enemy of the
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 ...
movement but it is still discussed whether this was due to his national feelings or to his disapproval of all opposition.
During the reign of
Christian VIII
Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814.
Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Fred ...
, Stemann continued in office but with less influence. At the fall of absolutism in March 1848, he was dismissed together with the other cabinet ministers, which marked the end of his direct political power. However, for some years he played a minor role behind the scenes as a councillor of conservative politicians.
Property
He owned
Benzonslund from 1791 to 1800 and
Valbygård from 1805 to 1846.
Personal life
He married Cathrine Elisabeth Wasserfall (1767 - 29 August 1850) in
1788. They had three children: Catharina Elisabeth Stemann (1789–1870), Christian Ludvig von Stemann (1791–1857) and Christiane Louise Stemann (1807–1837).
References
*''Dansk Biografisk Leksikon'', vol. 14, 1983.
*''Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon'', vol. XXII, 1927.
*Svend Thorsen: ''De danske ministerier'', vol 1., Copenh. 1967.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stemann, Poul Christian
1764 births
1855 deaths
19th-century Danish people
Government ministers of Denmark
Politicians from Copenhagen