Cecilie Christine Schøller

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Cecilie Christine Schøller (born Sidsel Kirstine Frølich; 16 March 1720 – 19 April 1786) was a Norwegian socialite, landowner and businesswoman. She built and owned Stiftsgården, the large wooden palace that is now the royal residence in Trondheim. Born in Tønsberg to Johan Frederik Frølich and Hilleborg von Wettberg, her family had Prussian, Danish and German roots. The family moved to Trondheim in 1740 when her father became commander general for Nordenfjells. In 1742 she married Stie Tønsberg Schøller, a wealthy chamberlain and merchant who later became county governor and a member of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters. After his death in 1769, she ran his business, including a sawmill near Nidelva. She inherited her parents' farm at Munkegata in 1771 and bought several neighboring properties. Between 1774 and 1776 she built Stiftsgården, the largest wooden palace in Scandinavia, which has been Trondheim's royal residence since 1800. She funded and supported the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters and was a leading figure in Trondheim's cultural golden age in the 18th century. She was made Dame de L'union parfaite in 1769 and was given the title Councilor (geheimerådinne) in 1776—the highest title ever given to a non-noble Norwegian woman, and the first she received in her own right. She moved to Copenhagen permanently in 1783 and died there in 1786; she is buried at Assistens Cemetery.