Hans Jacob Rietmann

Hans Jacob Rietmann
Mayor (Amtsbürgermeister/Altbürgermeister, triennial rotation)
In office
1729–1756
Deputy Mayor
In office
1725–1729
Weavers' guild master
In office
1721–1725
Personal details
Born(1677-06-05)June 5, 1677
St. Gallen, Old Swiss Confederacy
DiedJune 22, 1756(1756-06-22) (aged 79)
St. Gallen, Old Swiss Confederacy
Spouse1) Katharina Rohner (d. 1721) · 2) Weibratha Weyermann · 3) Elsbetha Zollikofer
OccupationCivic magistrate; guild official

Hans Jacob Rietmann (5 June 1677 – 22 June 1756) was a Swiss civic leader, belonging to the Rietmann patrician family, who served as mayor of St. Gallen in the 18th century under the city’s guild-based constitution. From 1729 to 1756 he held, in triennial rotation, the paired senior magistracies of Amtsbürgermeister and Altbürgermeister as well as Reichsvogt (imperial bailiff).[1][2][3]

Life and career

Rietmann was the son of Jacob Rietmann (a bailiff) and Dorothea Leu. Within the weavers’ guild (Weberzunft) he served as cloth quality inspector, became a member of the council of eleven in 1720, then guild master (Zunftmeister) from 1721 to 1725, and deputy mayor (Unterbürgermeister) from 1725 to 1729.[4]

Under St. Gallen’s corporative constitution, the three top civic offices—Amtsbürgermeister (acting mayor), Altbürgermeister (senior mayor) and Reichsvogt (imperial bailiff)—were held in a triennial rotation among designated magistrates and worked alongside the Kleiner Rat (Small Council).[5]

Personal life

Rietmann married three times: (1) Katharina Rohner (d. 1721), (2) Weibratha Weyermann, daughter of mayor Ulrich Weyermann, and (3) Elsbetha Zollikofer, daughter of the apothecary Hans Georg Zollikofer. Known children include Jacob (1702–1782), a quarter captain, and Pankraz (1706–1775), who succeeded his brother in 1767.[6][7]

References

  1. ^ "Rietmann (family)". Historical Dictionary of Switzerland (HLS) (in German). 4 January 2012. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  2. ^ Schnitzer, Patric (17 June 2009). "Rietmann, Hans Jacob". Historical Dictionary of Switzerland (HLS) (in German). Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  3. ^ "Zunft-Verfassung der Stadt St. Gallen" (PDF). romanlooser.ch (in German). Retrieved 25 August 2025. Amtsbürgermeister / Altbürgermeister / Reichsvogt – jährlicher Wechsel im dreijährigen Turnus; Kleiner Rat, Großer Rat
  4. ^ Schnitzer, Patric (17 June 2009). "Rietmann, Hans Jacob". HLS (in German). Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  5. ^ "Zunft-Verfassung der Stadt St. Gallen" (PDF). romanlooser.ch (in German). Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  6. ^ Schnitzer, Patric (17 June 2009). "Rietmann, Hans Jacob". HLS (in German). Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  7. ^ Sigrist, Verena (1973). "Das Schul-Donatorenbuch von St. Gallen (Fortsetzung)". Schweizer Archiv für Heraldik (Archives héraldiques suisses) (in German). 87: 53, 57, 62. Retrieved 25 August 2025.

Further reading