Bruck, Karl Ludwig, Freiherr von

STATESMAN (HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE)
BORN 8 Oct 1796, Elberfeld, Nordrhein-Westfalen (now: Wuppertal) - DIED 23 Apr 1860, Wien
CAUSE OF DEATH suicide by cutting the carotid artery
GRAVE LOCATION Wien: Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf, 10. Triesterstraße 1 (Gruft 20)

Karl Ludwig von Bruck was the son of a bookbinder. He went to Trieste in 1821 to participate in the Greek War of Independence. He remained in Trieste where he became a successful merchant. In 1833 he founded the Trieste Lloyd, a combination of insurance companies that was known as Österreichischer Lloyd in later years.

In 1848 he entered the parliament in Frankfurt and after the revolution in Vienna in that same year he became Minister of Commerce and Public Works under Schwarzenberg. In 1849 the emperor gave him the title of baron, but in 1851 he was forced to resign from his position although he had realised important telegraph lines and railroads.

In 1855 he became Minister of Finance, but the financial problems after the war with were huge in 1859 and he was also suspected of enriching himself. He went to the emperor to resign in 1860 and committed suicide the day afterwards. One month after his dead he was officially declared innocent. His son Karl Ludwig von Bruck (1830-1902) was a diplomat.

Images

The grave of Karl Ludwig Freiherr von Bruck at the Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf, Vienna.
Picture by Androom (24 Aug 2005)

 

Sources
Karl Ludwig von Bruck (Politiker) – Wikipedia


Brugsch, Theodor

Published: 22 Apr 2018
Last update: 16 Jan 2022