Privy Councillor Simon Heinrich Sack Family Foundation
Corporate brand
UnclaimedA German family foundation established in 1781 to support designated descendants of Simon Heinrich Sack's family.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The Privy Councillor Simon Heinrich Sack Family Foundation is a historic German family foundation established in 1781 by Simon Heinrich Sack, a lawyer and senior Prussian official in Silesia. It was created to provide continuing support for descendants of Sack's father, Friedrich Ernst Sack, as well as for members of related family lines and Sack's legally adopted daughter, Louise Ernestine Biesler, later Louise Ernestine Cramer. Simon Heinrich Sack came from a clerical family. His father was Friedrich Ernst Sack, a royal court chaplain, and his wider family included several preachers and other officials. After studying law in Halle and Frankfurt an der Oder, Sack became a Court and Justice Councillor in Glogau and subsequently served as a Privy Councillor to Frederick the Great of Prussia. His reputation for integrity and impartiality brought him into complicated property and ownership negotiations following the Silesian Wars and the Seven Years' War. Through his legal career and official responsibilities, he accumulated substantial wealth. Sack never married and had no acknowledged biological children. He raised Louise Ernestine Biesler, the daughter he legally adopted in 1774, as a foster daughter. After the death of his elder brother Friedrich Leberecht Sack in 1777, he also assumed responsibility for his brother's children. The foundation therefore served both as a family-support institution and as a mechanism for preserving assets across several lines of descent. Its beneficiaries were associated with the Ernestinian line descended from Friedrich Ernst Sack, the Wilhelm line associated with August Friedrich Wilhelm Sack, and the Cramer line descended through Louise Ernestine Cramer. The foundation received formal state recognition in 1789. Its wealth later attracted the attention of the Prussian monarchy, particularly during efforts to finance the state and military position of Prussia in the period surrounding the Napoleonic Wars. Negotiations resulted in part of the foundation's assets remaining available for its beneficiaries while another portion was directed toward the construction of early state-supported industrial schools in Silesia. This episode, remembered in accounts of the foundation as an 'embarras de richesses', connected a private dynastic endowment with the development of public education. The foundation lost most of its assets over the course of later political and economic changes but survived as an institution. Since 1945 its official seat has been in Bückeburg, in what is now Germany. It continues to be administered by descendants of the founder. Its activities are primarily genealogical, archival, cultural, and family-oriented rather than commercial. The foundation maintains historical records and has supported the preservation and presentation of objects connected with the Sack family and its historical environment. The foundation's archival holdings are stored in part at the Prussian Museum in North Rhine-Westphalia, where some materials have been displayed. A notable object associated with the collection is Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein's portrait of Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, later Queen Louise of Prussia. The family also publishes genealogical and historical material. The Silver Book of the Sack family records the foundation's history and genealogy, while the family magazine Die Taube has reportedly appeared, with interruptions, approximately twice a year since 1886. The Silver Book edition published in 2010 documented more than 17,500 descendants. The foundation is therefore best understood as a long-lived hereditary endowment and archive, not as a consumer-facing commercial brand.
History
Simon Heinrich Sack was born into a family connected with the Protestant clergy. His father, Friedrich Ernst Sack, served as a royal court chaplain, and other relatives pursued religious or public careers. Sack studied law in Halle and Frankfurt an der Oder. At the age of 27 he became a Court and Justice Councillor in Glogau and later attained the rank of Privy Councillor in service to Frederick the Great of Prussia. His professional reputation was based on legal competence, integrity, and impartiality. In the aftermath of the Silesian Wars and the Seven Years' War, property ownership and jurisdiction in Silesia underwent difficult changes. Sack participated in the associated legal and administrative work and accumulated considerable personal wealth. Because he was unmarried and had no children of his own, succession and family provision became central concerns. Sack raised Louise Ernestine Biesler, who was legally adopted in 1774 and later married the Glogau Privy Councillor Carl Cramer. After his elder brother Friedrich Leberecht Sack died in 1777, Sack also took responsibility for his brother's children. In 1781 he established the family foundation to benefit descendants of his father Friedrich Ernst Sack, descendants of August Friedrich Wilhelm Sack, and descendants of Louise Ernestine Cramer. The foundation's purpose was consequently broader than a simple personal bequest: it organized continuing support for several connected family lines. The foundation was formally recognized through state consent in 1789. Its assets became unusually significant in relation to the small number of original beneficiaries. Prussian authorities later considered using part of the wealth for state purposes, especially in the context of military and fiscal pressures associated with the Napoleonic period. The resulting negotiations preserved one part for the foundation's beneficiaries and directed another part toward the construction of early state industrial schools in Silesia. Accounts of this episode describe it as an embarrassment of riches, because the foundation's accumulated resources appeared disproportionate to its immediate beneficiary base. Although the foundation subsequently lost most of its assets, it was not dissolved. After the political upheavals of the twentieth century, its official seat was established in Bückeburg in 1945. It remains administered by descendants of the founder. Its continuing identity rests on family governance, genealogical recording, archival custody, and the maintenance of historical publications rather than on commercial operations. The foundation has maintained a substantial family archive. Parts of its holdings are stored at or associated with the Prussian Museum in North Rhine-Westphalia. Among the better-known objects connected with the foundation is a Tischbein portrait of Louise of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who became the wife of Frederick William III of Prussia. The foundation's Silver Book documents family history and descent, and the family periodical Die Taube has been published approximately twice annually since 1886, in German and English according to the referenced account. A 2010 edition of the Silver Book recorded more than 17,500 descendants in a volume of approximately 566 pages. These publications make the foundation an important source for the study of the Sack family and its descendants.
- 2010
New Silver Book edition published
[1]A 2010 edition of the family's Silver Book documented more than 17,500 descendants and continued the foundation's genealogical publishing tradition.
- 1945
Official seat moves to Bückeburg
[1]After the Second World War, the foundation's official seat was established in Bückeburg, Germany.
- 1886
Die Taube family magazine begins publication
[1]The family magazine Die Taube began its long-running publication history, appearing approximately twice a year according to the referenced account.
- 1789
State recognition granted
[1]The foundation received formal recognition through a state consent known in German as landesherrlicher Konsens.
- 1781
Foundation established
[1]Simon Heinrich Sack established the family foundation for designated descendants of his father, related Sack family lines, and the descendants of his adopted daughter Louise Ernestine Cramer.
- 1777
Sack assumes responsibility for his brother's children
[1]Following the death of his elder brother Friedrich Leberecht Sack, Simon Heinrich Sack took responsibility for his brother's children, reinforcing the family-support purpose later formalized by the foundation.
- 1774
Louise Ernestine Biesler is legally adopted
[1]Simon Heinrich Sack legally adopted Louise Ernestine Biesler, who later married Carl Cramer and became the progenitor of the Cramer line recognized by the foundation.
Products and positioning
A hereditary German family foundation focused on intergenerational support, genealogy, historical documentation, and preservation of family cultural assets.
Genealogical publication · 2010
Silver Book of the Sack Family
The Silver Book is the foundation's principal genealogical and historical record. It documents the development of the foundation, the Sack family lines connected with it, and the descendants eligible or historically connected to its beneficiary structure. The 2010 edition recorded more than 17,500 descendants and was described as a substantial illustrated or archival volume. It functions as a long-term family register rather than a commercial book product.
Family magazine · 1886
Die Taube
Die Taube is the Sack family magazine associated with the foundation. It has reportedly been published approximately twice annually, with a history extending back to 1886. The magazine supports communication among family members and records genealogical, historical, and foundation-related information. The referenced material states that it is published in both German and English.
Brand decisions
1789
State recognition of the family foundationOtherBackground
The privately established foundation required formal state recognition to operate as a legally acknowledged hereditary institution.
Action taken
The foundation received landesherrlicher Konsens, or consent from the territorial sovereign authority.
Aftermath
Recognition established the foundation's formal legal standing and enabled its continuing administration for the designated family lines.
- Partial redirection of foundation assets toward public educationStrategy
Background
The foundation's accumulated wealth attracted Prussian government interest because the original beneficiary group was relatively small and the assets had grown substantially.
Action taken
Following negotiations with the Prussian king, part of the assets remained dedicated to the beneficiaries while another part was used to establish early state industrial schools in Silesia.
Aftermath
The settlement reduced the foundation's assets but linked its history to the development of state-supported education in Silesia.
Sources3 sources
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