Charles William Siemens
| Sir Charles William Siemens | |
|---|---|
Carl Wilhelm Siemens
|
|
| Born |
4 April 1823 Gehrden |
| Died | 19 November 1883 (aged 60) |
| Nationality | German/British |
| Occupation | Engineer |
| Known for | Siemens-Martin process |
| Spouse(s) | Anne Gordon |
| Parent(s) | Christian Ferdinand Siemens and Eleonore Deichmann |
| Relatives | Ernst Werner von Siemens, Carl Heinrich von Siemens, Alexander Siemens |
| Awards |
Albert Medal (1874) Bessemer Gold Medal (1875) |
Sir Charles William Siemens FRSA (originally Carl Wilhelm Siemens; 4 April 1823 – 19 November 1883) was a German-born engineer and entrepreneur who for most of his life worked in Britain and later became a British subject.
Siemens was born in the village of Lenthe, today part of Gehrden, near Hanover where his father, Christian Ferdinand Siemens (31 July 1787 – 16 January 1840), a tenant farmer, farmed an estate belonging to the Crown. The Siemens family is an old family of Goslar which has been documented since 1384. His mother was Eleonore Deichmann (1792–8 July 1839), and William, or Carl Wilhelm, was the fourth son of a family of fourteen children. Of his siblings, Ernst Werner Siemens, the fourth child, became a famous electrician and was associated with William in many of his inventions. He was also the brother of Carl Heinrich von Siemens and a cousin of Alexander Siemens.
On 23 July 1859, Siemens was married at St James's, Paddington, to Anne Gordon, the youngest daughter of Mr Joseph Gordon, Writer to the Signet, Edinburgh, and brother to Mr Lewis Gordon, Professor of Engineering in the University of Glasgow and became a naturalised British subject. He used to say that on March 19 of that year he took oath and allegiance to two ladies in one day – to The Queen and to his betrothed. He was knighted – becoming Sir William – a few months before his death. He died on the evening of Monday 19 November 1883, at nine o'clock and was buried on Monday 26 November, in Kensal Green Cemetery, London. A glass window installed in Westminster Abbey in his honor commemorated him.
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