Julius Ludwick Wiener was born in 1795 April 1st in Gdansk. He is a historical and prominent personality of Klaipeda region, great philanthropist who his whole life paid a lot of attention and sacrifice to the community of Klaipeda city.
J. L. Wiener was a German Jew, emancipated and modern European, stout businessman, a merchant who traded seeds. Although he was Jewish, he was not the one who read torahs: he was interested in culture and fate of the surrounding people, he performed Jewish worships only formally – on Saturdays and major holidays.
In Klaipeda J. L. Wiener encountered many problems while fighting for the right to become a citizen. In 1817 May 5th the city deputies announced: “The assembly no way will stay calm seeing how Jews here require citizenship. The assembly seriously decided to influence even the highest powers and asks the honorable magistrate to refuse Wiener’s request regarding the citizenship.” They addressed the state chancellor duke Hardenberg who gave a negative answer, and though in 1818 February the king himself by personally ordered to accept Wiener as a citizen, deputies of the city remained “firmly sure that giving citizenship to Jews is very harmful for this region”. And still in 1818 June 2nd Wiener became a citizen. Later the opinion of the city deputies towards the Jews changed. Wiener himself became a deputy and in 1833 even the member of the magistrate, also quite a long time he was a part of the tutorship of the asylum of the city.
After Wiener’s death the book “Memeler Dampfboote” showed up where he was described this way: “He was always elegantly dressed, he loved ladies, visited famous families, had lunch behind the common table, besides, for 6 silver mites daily, at this moment it costs twice as much. He also had not only an old housewife for 10 talers per month, but during his luxurious parties a pretty lady had serve (he didn’t forget her in her testament either). His apartment was at the councilor of commerce Mason in Turgaus street 48-49.
Probably he was a weirdo, but no way he was bad, but an honest, sincere person, otherwise he would have never became the biggest supporter of the city that didn’t appreciate him. His gravestone says: “Friends respect his memory, the poor bless him”.
Though Wiener loved to feast, still the most important that in people’s memories he remained not as feaster but as a patron who left his imprints not only in Klaipeda but also beyond its boundaries. During more than 150 years till today no other person appeared who would be not only willing but also capable to give that much to the city and its citizens.
J. L. Wiener, realizing the fact that after death we become, as the Scripture said: "from dust to dust" and there is no way that we can take our riches to the grave, all of his fortune, which is around 300 000 tallers he left for the city.
J. L. Wiener deceased in 1862 February 24th and in his will, which he made in 1855 June 16th, out of the whole sum of 313 789 tallers, despite big sums for his brothers and various sums to other persons, he left his fortune to:
500 tallers he gave to the catholic church of the city;
500 tallers - to Jewish synagogue with condition that Jewish community will not ask to burry him in Jewish cemetery;
2000 tallers to build a nice gravestone and 1500 tallers to the city for the continuous supervision of his grave;
2000 tallers - for the supervision and adornment of Wiener's promenade;
4000 tallers - for Charity Union for clothes and education of children of poor and decent parents;
2000 tallers - for asylum, the purpose of which is to help abandoned children of beggars and criminals, so that these children, given shelter, clothes, food and everything necessary for the body, would grow up hardworking and useful for the society craftsmen;
1000 tallers - for feeding of 100 poor people every year on the 1st of April;
28 000 tallers - for the shelter of poor-living merchants, with the supervision of the board of the merchants' community;
134 794 tallers were donated to the main heir of the testament - merchant Friedrich Wilhelm Richter. This money had to be used for the purpose of charity according to the decision of magistrate and the board of merchants' community;
45 000 tallers - for founding and support of the Girls' Tuition Institute;
10 000 tallers - for founding of the scholarship fund for studying artists and technicians (4 scholarships of 360 marks per year);
6000 tallers - For the increase of City Cahrity Fund (Stadthospital), 4000 tallers for the repairs of buidings of city charity fund;
6000 tallers - for the building of tower of St. John's Church;
5000 tallers - for increase of the charity fund (Rettungsanstali);
6000 tallers - to repairs for city hospital;
50 000 tallers left. Half of them were donated to magistrate as Wiener's Legacy Fund, others were left to the community of merchants.
Therefore, seeking to continue the traditions of J. L. Wiener, to allocate charity, support, to pay attention to culture, city community's needs, in 2004 April the Charity and Support Fund of J. L. Wiener was founded and dedicated to the community of Klaipeda region and the whole Western Lithuania.
