Niclas Sahlgren (18 March 1701 – 10 March 1776), was a Swedish merchant and philanthropist

Philanthropy

Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...

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Born into a wealthy merchant family in Gothenburg

Gothenburg

Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...

, Sahlgren was sent at the age of 16 as an apprentice to the Tietzen & Schröder trading house in Amsterdam

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...

, where he learned languages and other aspects of trade. Several additional years of travels on the European continent, to England, and in Sweden, gained him experience, knowledge of natural resources and important contacts. He settled in Gothenburg again on the death of his mother and became a burgess of Gothenburg in 1733. He was one of the founders of the Swedish East India Company

Swedish East India Company

The Swedish East India Company was founded in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1731 for the purpose of conducting trade with the Far East...

 and one of its directors from 1733 to 1768.

A large part of his wealth, left for the creation of a benefactory institution of some kind, was used to found a hospital named after Sahlgren in Gothenburg, the present Sahlgrenska University Hospital.

In 1773, Sahlgren was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences or Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien is one of the Royal Academies of Sweden. The Academy is an independent, non-governmental scientific organization which acts to promote the sciences, primarily the natural sciences and mathematics.The Academy was founded on 2...

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