De Geer

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

De Geer (also de Geer) is a family of Walloon origin (the name possibly derived from the town of Geer^{[citation needed]}) which became notable in Sweden. They have played an important role in Swedish history since the early 17th century, mainly centered around the iron foundry company town Finspång, but often extending to science, art and national politics. The family retained its contacts with the Netherlands even after the main branch settled in Sweden, and Dutch prime minister Dirk Jan de Geer belonged to a branch which was long living in the Netherlands.

Some prominent members are:

• Louis De Geer (1587-1652), financier and industrialist, founder of the Swedish branch
  • son and grandsons by the same name.
• Charles De Geer (1720–1778), Swedish entomologist.
• Robert Wilhelm De Geer, lantmarskalk of the Noble estate at the Diet of Porvoo
• Louis Gerhard De Geer (1818–1896), Swedish statesman and writer.
• Karl Vilhelm Konstantin De Geer (1839-1904), Finnish general in the Imperial Russian army [1]
• Gerard De Geer (1858–1943), Swedish geologist.
• Dirk Jan de Geer (1870–1960), prime minister of the Netherlands.
• Carl Johan De Geer (1938- ), Swedish artist.