Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff
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| Born | December 20, 1626 Herzogenaurach, near Erlangen, Holy Roman Empire
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| Died | December 18, 1692 (aged 65) Meuselwitz, Altenburg, Holy Roman Empire
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| Occupation | Statesman, Scholar |
| Known for | Contributions to German public law and economics |
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Notable work
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Teutscher Fürstenstaat, Der Christen Stat, Commentarius Historicus et apologeticus de Lutheranismo sive de Reformatione |
Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff (December 20, 1626 – December 18, 1692) was an important German statesman and scholar. He was part of the House of Seckendorff, a noble family. This family got its name from the village of Seckendorf, located between Nuremberg and Langenzenn.
The Seckendorff family was quite large. It was split into eleven different branches, with members living in many parts of Prussia, Württemberg, and Bavaria.
Contents
Veit Ludwig's Life Story
Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff was born in Herzogenaurach, near Erlangen. His father was Joachim Ludwig von Seckendorf. In 1639, when Veit Ludwig was 13, Duke Ernest the Pious became his special helper and supporter, known as his protégé. This meant the Duke helped him with his education. Veit Ludwig went to the Ernestine Gymnasium, Gotha school.
His father was involved in the Thirty Years' War. Sadly, he was executed in 1642 for dealing with the Imperialists of the Holy Roman Empire. After this, Swedish officers, who had been his father's friends, helped pay for Veit Ludwig's higher education.
University and Early Career
In 1642, Veit Ludwig started studying at the University of Strasbourg. He focused on history and jurisprudence, which is the study of law. After university, Duke Ernest gave him a job as a hofjunker at his court in Gotha. A hofjunker was a young nobleman serving in a royal court. Here, Veit Ludwig began collecting many historical documents. He also became very good at speaking the main modern languages.
In 1652, Veit Ludwig was given jobs in the legal system. He was also sent on important trips to other countries. By 1656, he became a judge in the Duke's court in Jena. He played a big part in many good changes the Duke made. In 1664, Duke Ernest made him his chancellor. A chancellor is a high-ranking official, often a chief minister.
Soon after, Veit Ludwig left his jobs in Jena. However, he remained good friends with the Duke. He then started working for Duke Maurice of Zeitz (Altenburg). He hoped this new job would have fewer official duties.
Retirement and Later Years
After Duke Maurice passed away in 1681, Veit Ludwig retired to his estate, Meuselwitz, in Altenburg. He gave up almost all his public jobs. Even though he was retired, he kept in touch with many important scholars of his time.
He was very interested in the efforts of Philipp Jakob Spener. Spener was a pietist, someone who wanted to make the German church more focused on personal faith and practical living. Veit Ludwig supported these ideas, even if he wasn't a pietist himself. In 1692, he was chosen to be the chancellor of the new University of Halle. However, he died just a few weeks later.
Important Books by Veit Ludwig
Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff wrote several important books:
- Teutscher Fürstenstaat (1656 and 1678): This was a guide to German public law. It was like a handbook for how a German state should be run.
- Der Christen Stat (1685): This book partly defended Christianity. It also offered ideas for how to improve the church. It was based on Pascal's Pensées and included Spener's main ideas.
- Commentarius Historicus et apologeticus de Lutheranismo sive de Reformatione (3 volumes, Leipzig, 1692): This was his most important work. He wrote it because of a book by the Jesuit Maimbourg called Histoire du Luthéranisme (1680). Veit Ludwig's book is still very useful for historians studying the Reformation because it contains so many real facts and details.
His Ideas on Economics
Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff is often seen as the "founder" of early economics in Germany. This field was called Cameralism. He lived through the terrible Thirty Years' War, which caused huge economic, political, and moral problems in society.
Because of this, Veit Ludwig imagined a complete science for public administration. This science would help rebuild the more than 300 independent German states that were recognized after the Peace of Westphalia. He believed this science should be both about ideas and practical actions. It would cover all the needs of a small state.
His own life showed this mix of thinking and doing. He managed the Court of Gotha and the University of Halle. He also wrote a "how-to" guide for small states, called Teutscher Fürstenstaat ("The German Principality"). And he wrote one of the most famous defenses of Lutheranism.
Veit Ludwig's Way of Thinking
In his main book, Teutscher Fürstenstaat, Veit Ludwig created what is considered the most important work of German Cameralism. This book was a guide for how to manage a state.
Managing a State
In his book, he described the situation of the country and how government institutions worked. He also gave advice on how a prince should manage his lands and businesses to make the most money for the state. This included the prince's own lands and special businesses that only the prince could run.
Veit Ludwig believed in a "paternalistic" view of the economy. This means he thought the state should act like a parent. It should be involved in helping the population grow, supporting education, preventing unfair lending (usury), controlling trade, setting rules for contracts, and deciding how resources are used.
The Prince's Role
Historian Albion Small called Veit Ludwig a "quasi-absolutist." This means Veit Ludwig didn't believe the old idea that the prince's will was exactly God's will. However, he did believe that God was the only power who could correct or guide the prince. When it came to economics, Small compared Veit Ludwig to Adam Smith for his importance in cameralism.
Veit Ludwig believed that government's job was to keep things good for everyone, both in spiritual and material ways. He thought the main goal of human actions was to bring glory to God. He saw rulers as "God's deputies" or helpers on Earth. This also included the religious duties of the prince, which were brought back by the Reformation.
According to Veit Ludwig, a prince had four main duties:
- To create power to stop disorder and chaos.
- To make good laws and rules that encourage fairness and peace.
- To act as the highest judge in the land.
- To use all necessary ways to set up systems that protect the state from enemies, both inside and outside the country.
Veit Ludwig also believed that people living in a state were not slaves to the ruler or the state. Instead, they were under the government of rulers chosen by God. This was so their well-being and their souls could be protected by both natural laws and the laws of the empire. He felt the government should "cherish" or care for its people. Still, he also thought that the importance of the government itself was a goal.
