Koechlin family
Encyclopedia
The Koechlin family was an Alsatian
family which acquired its wealth in the textile industry and became leading industrialists and politicians of the region.
to Zurich
, both in Switzerland. His grandson Hartmann Koechlin (1572–1611) was the first of the Koechlins to move to Mulhouse.
. Dollfus left the company in 1765 to start his own firm. Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf
was an engraver in the firm of Samuel Koechlin.
in 1872, when the company became Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques
.
André Koechlin was mayor of Mulhouse from 1830 until 1843, and was elected a deputy in 1830, 1831, 1841 and 1846. He became a Kinght in the Legion of Honour in 1836.
in 1815 and between 1819 and 1821, and a deputy of France
for Haut-Rhin
.
Jacques Koechlin was mayor of Mulhouse until October 1820, and was reelected as a Deputy in November 1820. He was one of the leaders of the opposition.
He published a pamphlet against some French officials governing Alsace
, which was reprinted in a number of newspapers. The newspapers were convicted for printing this, but Koechlin was only taken to trial in 1823. He published a second pamphlet explaining why he refused to appear before the court. He was convicted in May, and on appeal in July, to six months imprisonment for writing and publishing the first pamphlet.
line and the Mulhouse-Thann
line in the 1830s. He was the head of the Mulhouse chamber of commerce
from 1828 until 1835.
During the Hundred Days
he organised a group of Partisans, and became a Knight in the Legion of Honour in 1814. He was a deputy from 1830 until 1837.
. He was most notable for his inventions related to the dyeing of cotton.
for a short while in 1871.
in Brittany, where he became known for his philanthropy, and a street was named after him after his death. Georges Koechlin (1872–1955), the eldest son of Rodoplhe Koechlin, was a military officer like his father. He also became a Knight in the Legion of Honour and received the Croix de guerre with Silver Star. Rodolphe Emile Koechlin (1874–1916) was the second son of Rodolphe Koechlin. He served in the French army as well, and became a Commander of the Legion of Honour, received the Croix de Guerre with Bronze Star and other war medals. His son, Robert Rodolphe Koechlin (1916–1971) also was a Commander of the Legion of Honour.
of André Koechlin. He was an engineer who worked closely together with Gustave Eiffel
. He was an officer in the Legion of Honour.
, Vincent Van Gogh
, Claude Monet
, Edgar Degas
, Auguste Renoir, Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
and Édouard Manet
, next to large collections of Oriental, Islamic, and medieval art, and was a benefactor of the Louvre Museum, a.o. as creator and director of the Friends of the Louvre, and as director of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris. He was director of the Réunion des Musées Nationaux from 1922 until 1931. Apart from his connections with artists like Auguste Rodin
, he was a longtime friend of the art dealer Samuel Bing
and American historian Royall Tyler
and also befriended other Americans like Edith Wharton
and French writers like Marcel Proust
. He wrote among other works 3 volumes about French Gothic ivories (1924) and a memoir, Souvenirs d'un vieil amateur d'art de l'Extrême-Orient in 1930. His bequest to the Louvre in 1932 included amongst many other pieces the Peacock dish, the "most famous of all dishes made at İznik
", and 11 Persian paintings and drawings. But he also donated works of art to many other French musea, like the Guimet Museum
and the Musée d'Orsay
.
. He collaborated with the Austrian pioneer Alfred de Pischof
in the creation of other planes. Later he participated in early aviation races between 1910 and 1912, and had an aviation school in Paris. He died at the Battle of the Somme in 1916.
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
family which acquired its wealth in the textile industry and became leading industrialists and politicians of the region.
Early family history
The first traces of the family can be found in 1440, when Jean Koechlin moved from Stein am RheinStein am Rhein
Stein am Rhein is a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland.The town has a well-preserved medieval centre, retaining the ancient street plan. The site of the city wall, and the city gates are preserved, though the former city wall now consists of houses...
to Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, both in Switzerland. His grandson Hartmann Koechlin (1572–1611) was the first of the Koechlins to move to Mulhouse.
Samuel Koechlin
In 1745, Samuel Koechlin (1719–1776), together with Jean-Henri Dollfus and Jean-Jacques Schmaltzer, started a cloth printing firm in MulhouseMulhouse
Mulhouse |mill]] hamlet) is a city and commune in eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. With a population of 110,514 and 278,206 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2006, it is the largest city in the Haut-Rhin département, and the second largest in the Alsace region after...
. Dollfus left the company in 1765 to start his own firm. Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf
Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf
Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf was a French naturalized German industrialist. He became famous for founding the royal manufacture of printed cottons of Jouy-en-Josas where the toile de Jouy was manufactured....
was an engraver in the firm of Samuel Koechlin.
Josué Koechlin
Josué was a son of Samuel, and the father of Joseph Koechlin-Schlumberger. He was the first of six Koechlins to become mayor of Mulhouse, from 1811 to 1814.André Koechlin
André Koechlin (1789–1875) was a grandson of Samuel Koechlin and the son-in-law of Daniel Dollfus-Mieg, head of the Dollfus-Mieg textile company. Under his lead, between 1818 and 1826, the company became the leading textile company of Mulhouse. Turning in 1826 to the building of machinery for the textile industry, Koechlin became knowledgeable in the fabrication of steam machines and started making railroad equipment. The firm prospered and in 1839 already employed 1,800 people. By 1842, they were the largest French locomotive maker, having built 22 of them by then. This rose rapidly, and in 1857 alone, they made 91 locomotives. They stayed one of the six large French locomotive constructors until the merger with Elsässische Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft GrafenstadenElsässische Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden
The Elsässischen Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Grafenstaden was a heavy industry firm located at Grafenstaden in the Alsace, near the city of Strasbourg....
in 1872, when the company became Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques
Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques
The Société Alsacienne de Constructions Mécaniques [Society of Alsatian mechanical engineering] was an engineering company with its headquarters in Mulhouse, Alsace which produced railway locomotives, textile and printing machinery, diesel engines, boilers, lifting equipment, firearms and mining...
.
André Koechlin was mayor of Mulhouse from 1830 until 1843, and was elected a deputy in 1830, 1831, 1841 and 1846. He became a Kinght in the Legion of Honour in 1836.
Fritz Koechlin
Fritz was the younger brother of André. He was responsible for a number of cotton mills, and owned large cotton plantations in Senegal.Jacques Koechlin
Jacques or Jean-Jacques Koechlin (1776–1834) was mayor of MulhouseMulhouse
Mulhouse |mill]] hamlet) is a city and commune in eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. With a population of 110,514 and 278,206 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2006, it is the largest city in the Haut-Rhin département, and the second largest in the Alsace region after...
in 1815 and between 1819 and 1821, and a deputy of France
Chamber of Deputies of France
Chamber of Deputies was the name given to several parliamentary bodies in France in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries:* 1814–1848 during the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the Chamber of Deputies was the Lower chamber of the French Parliament, elected by census suffrage.*...
for Haut-Rhin
Haut-Rhin
Haut-Rhin is a département of the Alsace region of France, named after the Rhine river. Its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less populated of the two departements of Alsace, although is still densely populated compared to the rest of France.-Subdivisions:The department...
.
Jacques Koechlin was mayor of Mulhouse until October 1820, and was reelected as a Deputy in November 1820. He was one of the leaders of the opposition.
He published a pamphlet against some French officials governing Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
, which was reprinted in a number of newspapers. The newspapers were convicted for printing this, but Koechlin was only taken to trial in 1823. He published a second pamphlet explaining why he refused to appear before the court. He was convicted in May, and on appeal in July, to six months imprisonment for writing and publishing the first pamphlet.
Nicolas Koechlin
Nicolas (or Nicholas) Koechlin (1781–1852) was a brother of Jacques Koechlin and a grandson of Samuel Koechlin. He created the company Nicolas Koechlin et Frères, which branched out of the textile industry. He was instrumental in promoting the installation of railway lines in Alsace, with the Strasbourg-BaselBasel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
line and the Mulhouse-Thann
Thann, Haut-Rhin
Thann is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.Its inhabitants are known as Thannois.-Geography:...
line in the 1830s. He was the head of the Mulhouse chamber of commerce
Chamber of commerce
A chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
from 1828 until 1835.
During the Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
he organised a group of Partisans, and became a Knight in the Legion of Honour in 1814. He was a deputy from 1830 until 1837.
Daniel Koechlin
Daniel Koechlin or Koechlin-Schouch (1785–1871) was a younger brother of Nicholas Koechlin. He was a chemist and inventor, and received the Legion of Honour for his work in the field. He studied from 1800 until 1802 under Antoine François, comte de FourcroyAntoine François, comte de Fourcroy
Antoine François, comte de Fourcroy was a French chemist and a contemporary of Antoine Lavoisier. Fourcroy collaborated with Lavoisier, Guyton de Morveau, and Claude Berthollet on the Méthode de nomenclature chimique, a work that helped standardize chemical nomenclature.-Life and work:Fourcroy...
. He was most notable for his inventions related to the dyeing of cotton.
Joseph Koechlin-Schlumberger
Joseph Koechlin-Schlumberger (1796–1863) was a grandson of Samuel Koechlin. He was mayor of Mulhouse from 1852 until 1863.Émile Koechlin
Émile Koechlin (1808–1883) was a great-grandson of Samuel Koechlin. He was mayor of Mulhouse from 1848 until 1852.Jean Mieg-Koechlin
Jean Mieg-Koechlin (1819–1904) was the son-in-law of Joseph Koechlin-Schlumberger. He was mayor of Mulhouse between 1872 and 1887.Alfred Koechlin-Steinbach
Alfred Koechlin-Steinbach (1825–1872), son of Daniel Koechlin-Schouch and uncle of the composer Charles Koechlin, was a deputy for Haut-RhinHaut-Rhin
Haut-Rhin is a département of the Alsace region of France, named after the Rhine river. Its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less populated of the two departements of Alsace, although is still densely populated compared to the rest of France.-Subdivisions:The department...
for a short while in 1871.
Alfred Koechlin-Schwartz
Alfred Koechlin-Schwartz (1829–1895) was a deputy for the region Nord.Rodolphe Koechlin and descendants
Rodolphe Koechlin (1847–1920) was a great-grandson of Nicolas Koechlin. Captain in the French Army, he became a Knight in the Legion of Honour and received the Médaille commémorative de la guerre 1870–1871. After his retirement he moved to BénodetBénodet
Bénodet is a commune in the Finistère département in Brittany in northwestern France.The name Benoded means in Breton, "mouth of the Odet". It is about 16 kilometres south of Quimper....
in Brittany, where he became known for his philanthropy, and a street was named after him after his death. Georges Koechlin (1872–1955), the eldest son of Rodoplhe Koechlin, was a military officer like his father. He also became a Knight in the Legion of Honour and received the Croix de guerre with Silver Star. Rodolphe Emile Koechlin (1874–1916) was the second son of Rodolphe Koechlin. He served in the French army as well, and became a Commander of the Legion of Honour, received the Croix de Guerre with Bronze Star and other war medals. His son, Robert Rodolphe Koechlin (1916–1971) also was a Commander of the Legion of Honour.
Paul Koechlin
Paul Koechlin (1852–1907) was the winner of one of the earliest automobile race's in the world, the 1895 Paris–Bordeaux–Paris race. Despite arriving third in his Peugeot, eleven hours after the first racer, he was declared the winner and received the 31.500 francs prize money since he drove the first four seater to arrive, as stipulated in the rules.Maurice Koechlin
Maurice Koechlin (1856–1946) was a first cousin once removedCousin
In kinship terminology, a cousin is a relative with whom one shares one or more common ancestors. The term is rarely used when referring to a relative in one's immediate family where there is a more specific term . The term "blood relative" can be used synonymously and establishes the existence of...
of André Koechlin. He was an engineer who worked closely together with Gustave Eiffel
Gustave Eiffel
Alexandre Gustave Eiffel was a French structural engineer from the École Centrale Paris, an architect, an entrepreneur and a specialist of metallic structures...
. He was an officer in the Legion of Honour.
Raymond Koechlin
Raymond Koechlin (1860–1931), son of Alfred Koechlin-Schwartz, was a journalist and art collector. He owned works by Eugène DelacroixEugène Delacroix
Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school...
, Vincent Van Gogh
Vincent van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh , and used Brabant dialect in his writing; it is therefore likely that he himself pronounced his name with a Brabant accent: , with a voiced V and palatalized G and gh. In France, where much of his work was produced, it is...
, Claude Monet
Claude Monet
Claude Monet was a founder of French impressionist painting, and the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement's philosophy of expressing one's perceptions before nature, especially as applied to plein-air landscape painting. . Retrieved 6 January 2007...
, Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas[p] , born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, was a French artist famous for his work in painting, sculpture, printmaking and drawing. He is regarded as one of the founders of Impressionism although he rejected the term, and preferred to be called a realist...
, Auguste Renoir, Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot was a French landscape painter and printmaker in etching. Corot was the leading painter of the Barbizon school of France in the mid-nineteenth century...
and Édouard Manet
Édouard Manet
Édouard Manet was a French painter. One of the first 19th-century artists to approach modern-life subjects, he was a pivotal figure in the transition from Realism to Impressionism....
, next to large collections of Oriental, Islamic, and medieval art, and was a benefactor of the Louvre Museum, a.o. as creator and director of the Friends of the Louvre, and as director of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris. He was director of the Réunion des Musées Nationaux from 1922 until 1931. Apart from his connections with artists like Auguste Rodin
Auguste Rodin
François-Auguste-René Rodin , known as Auguste Rodin , was a French sculptor. Although Rodin is generally considered the progenitor of modern sculpture, he did not set out to rebel against the past...
, he was a longtime friend of the art dealer Samuel Bing
Samuel Bing
Siegfried Bing , often referenced erroneously as "Samuel Bing", was a German art dealer who lived in Paris as an adult, and who helped introduce Japanese art and artworks to the West and was a factor in the development of the Art Nouveau style during the late nineteenth century.-Biography:Bing was...
and American historian Royall Tyler
Royall Tyler (historian)
Royall Tyler , was an American historian, who was a descendant of the American jurist and playwright Royall Tyler. He was born in Quincy, Massachusetts and educated at Harrow School in England. After a time at New College, Oxford, he moved to the University of Salamanca, where he became a friend...
and also befriended other Americans like Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton , was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, short story writer, and designer.- Early life and marriage:...
and French writers like Marcel Proust
Marcel Proust
Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust was a French novelist, critic, and essayist best known for his monumental À la recherche du temps perdu...
. He wrote among other works 3 volumes about French Gothic ivories (1924) and a memoir, Souvenirs d'un vieil amateur d'art de l'Extrême-Orient in 1930. His bequest to the Louvre in 1932 included amongst many other pieces the Peacock dish, the "most famous of all dishes made at İznik
Iznik pottery
İznik pottery, named after the town in western Anatolia where it was made, is highly decorated ceramics that was produced between the late 15th and 17th centuries....
", and 11 Persian paintings and drawings. But he also donated works of art to many other French musea, like the Guimet Museum
Guimet Museum
The Guimet Museum is a museum of Asian art located at 6, place d'Iéna in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France...
and the Musée d'Orsay
Musée d'Orsay
The Musée d'Orsay is a museum in Paris, France, on the left bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, an impressive Beaux-Arts railway station built between 1898 and 1900. The museum holds mainly French art dating from 1848 to 1915, including paintings, sculptures, furniture,...
.
Paul Koechlin
Paul or Jean-Paul Koechlin (1881–1916) was an aviation pioneer. He was a nephew of Paul Koechlin the race car driver. He created his first plane in 1908 and started the company "Aéroplanes P. Koechlin" in BillancourtBillancourt
Billancourt is a commune in the Somme department in northern France....
. He collaborated with the Austrian pioneer Alfred de Pischof
Alfred de Pischof
Alfred de Pischof was an Austrian aviation pioneer. From 1901–1907, he attended the Collége Chaptal and École Speciale des Traveaux publiques in Paris, France and studied road and railway engineering; his grandfather had been a railway specialist...
in the creation of other planes. Later he participated in early aviation races between 1910 and 1912, and had an aviation school in Paris. He died at the Battle of the Somme in 1916.
Further reading
- Michel Hau, L'industrialisation de l'Alsace (1803–1939), Universités de Strasbourg, 1987