Bernhard Grzimek
Encyclopedia
Bernhard Klemens Maria Grzimek (ˈɡʒɪmɛk; April 24, 1909 - March 13, 1987) was a renowned Silesia
n-German zoo
director, zoologist, book author, editor, and animal conservationist in postwar West-Germany.
(Nysa), Upper Silesia
. His father Paul Franz Constantin Grzimek was a lawyer and civil law notary and his mother was Margarete Margot (nee
Wanke).
in 1928, at Leipzig
BSc, and later Biology in Berlin
DrSc, he received a doctorate
in 1933 in Zoology.
He married Hildegard Prüfer May 17, 1930 and had 3 sons: Rochus, Michael
, and an adopted son, Thomas.
During World War II
he was a veterinarian in the Wehrmacht
and worked for the Reichsernährungsministerium (Food Ministry of the 3rd Empire) in Berlin. In early 1945, the Gestapo
raided Grzimek's Berlin apartment, because he repeatedly had supplied food to hidden Jews. Grzimek then fled from Berlin to Frankfurt, which was occupied by the U.S. Army. In April 1945 he was appointed police chief of Frankfurt by U.S. authorities, but he refused the job.
After World War II he became director of the Frankfurt Zoological Garden
on 1 May 1945. The zoo then in ruins and all animals killed, except 20, he prevented the permanent closure of the Frankfurt Zoo and the relocation of the "Center Zoo" to the suburbs, which he made into one of the largest zoological gardens in Germany. On 1 July 1945 the Zoo reopened after all bomb craters were removed and buildings were restored temporarily. With festivals, dances and actors, Grzimek lured the Frankfurt population in the zoo and received the assent of the Provisional Government and the U.S. military to obtain the Frankfurt Zoo.
In late 1947, Grzimek was accused to be member of the NSDAP by the U.S. military government, which he denied. He was then removed from office in the Zoo and punished with a fine and sent to the Denazification
interrogations where, on 23 March 1948, it turned out he was innocent (Category 5; Exonerated) and had participated in the Resistance War
. He was then reinstated as Zoo Director by the U.S. government but his reputation was besmirched. The Zoo Director of Munich, Heinz Heck
, led a private smear and lawsuit campaign against him. Grzimek was acquitted of any wrongdoing in 1949. He led the zoo for 29 years until his retirement on 30 April 1974.
At the same time he served as president of the Frankfurt zoological society
for over forty years. The society - organized on similar principles as its London and New York counterparts - runs a number of wildlife conservation projects both in Germany and overseas; most well-known is its ongoing work in the Serengeti
ecosystem in Tanzania, East Africa
.
In 1954 he founded the image agency Okapia, specialized in animals and nature. Today, the agency specializes in science and gives 650 photographers a job. The firm is led by Christian Bernhard Grzimek, the son of his son who died in the Serengeti.
In 1975 he co-founded the League for the environment and nature conservation
(BUND) and bought ten acres of forest areas and wetlands in the Steiger forest near Michelau im Steigerwald
which he left to itself.
Grzimek is most famous for the work he undertook for the conservation of the Serengeti
. He spent several years studying the wildlife there along with his son Michael, especially on areal observation and counts of large scale annual migrations. In 1959 Michael was killed in an air crash while flying the Dornier Do 27
due to a collision with a Griffon Vulture
. He wrote a best-selling book called Serengeti shall not die, which appealed enormously to the public and was key in driving the creation of the Serengeti National Park
.
He prophesied in his book
The documentary based on the film won the Academy Award for Documentary Feature
in 1959.
He was the editor-in-chief of (and author of a number of articles in) a massive and monumental encyclopedia of animal life. After publication in Germany in 1968, Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia
was translated into English and published in 1975 in 13 volumes (covering lower life forms, insects and other invertebrates, fish, amphibia, reptiles, birds and mammals) plus three additional volumes on Ecology
, Ethology
and Evolution
. The 1975 work was issued in both hardback and less expensive paperback editions and became a standard reference work. After Grzimek's death, the volumes on mammals were revised, and republished in both German and then in English. In 2004, the entire encyclopedia was revised and published in a new and expanded edition. All the versions of the encyclopedia are marked by clear and forceful prose, extensive use of illustrations (both drawings and color plates), and a deep love and concern for animal conservation.
Of national importance were his work as co-editor (together with Austrian Nobel-prize winner Konrad Lorenz
) of the then largest popular magazine on animals and wildlife in German language, Das Tier (German language, i.e. "The Animal") and of a very popular television series on wildlife. He also authored a large number of popular books based on his countless experiences with animals which he raised since his student days, managed as zoo director, and encountered in the wild during many research trips.
Silesia
Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...
n-German zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
director, zoologist, book author, editor, and animal conservationist in postwar West-Germany.
Early years
Grzimek was born in NeisseNysa, Poland
Nysa is a town in southwestern Poland on the Nysa Kłodzka river with 47,545 inhabitants , situated in the Opole Voivodeship. It is the capital of Nysa County. It comprises the urban portion of the surrounding Gmina Nysa, a mixed urban-rural commune with a total population of 60,123 inhabitants...
(Nysa), Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. Since the 9th century, Upper Silesia has been part of Greater Moravia, the Duchy of Bohemia, the Piast Kingdom of Poland, again of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as of...
. His father Paul Franz Constantin Grzimek was a lawyer and civil law notary and his mother was Margarete Margot (nee
Married and maiden names
A married name is the family name adopted by a person upon marriage. When a person assumes the family name of her spouse, the new name replaces the maiden name....
Wanke).
Middle years
After studying veterinary medicineVeterinary medicine
Veterinary Medicine is the branch of science that deals with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, disorder and injury in non-human animals...
in 1928, at Leipzig
University of Leipzig
The University of Leipzig , located in Leipzig in the Free State of Saxony, Germany, is one of the oldest universities in the world and the second-oldest university in Germany...
BSc, and later Biology in Berlin
Humboldt University of Berlin
The Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
DrSc, he received a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in 1933 in Zoology.
He married Hildegard Prüfer May 17, 1930 and had 3 sons: Rochus, Michael
Michael Grzimek
Michael Grzimek was a German zoologist, conservationalist and filmmaker.- Life :...
, and an adopted son, Thomas.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he was a veterinarian in the Wehrmacht
Wehrmacht
The Wehrmacht – from , to defend and , the might/power) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the Heer , the Kriegsmarine and the Luftwaffe .-Origin and use of the term:...
and worked for the Reichsernährungsministerium (Food Ministry of the 3rd Empire) in Berlin. In early 1945, the Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
raided Grzimek's Berlin apartment, because he repeatedly had supplied food to hidden Jews. Grzimek then fled from Berlin to Frankfurt, which was occupied by the U.S. Army. In April 1945 he was appointed police chief of Frankfurt by U.S. authorities, but he refused the job.
After World War II he became director of the Frankfurt Zoological Garden
Frankfurt Zoological Garden
thumb|300px|Main entranceThe Frankfurt Zoological Garden is the zoo of Frankfurt, Germany. It features over 5,000 animals of more than 600 species on more than 13 hectares.The zoo was founded in 1858 and is the second oldest Zoo in Germany...
on 1 May 1945. The zoo then in ruins and all animals killed, except 20, he prevented the permanent closure of the Frankfurt Zoo and the relocation of the "Center Zoo" to the suburbs, which he made into one of the largest zoological gardens in Germany. On 1 July 1945 the Zoo reopened after all bomb craters were removed and buildings were restored temporarily. With festivals, dances and actors, Grzimek lured the Frankfurt population in the zoo and received the assent of the Provisional Government and the U.S. military to obtain the Frankfurt Zoo.
In late 1947, Grzimek was accused to be member of the NSDAP by the U.S. military government, which he denied. He was then removed from office in the Zoo and punished with a fine and sent to the Denazification
Denazification
Denazification was an Allied initiative to rid German and Austrian society, culture, press, economy, judiciary, and politics of any remnants of the National Socialist ideology. It was carried out specifically by removing those involved from positions of influence and by disbanding or rendering...
interrogations where, on 23 March 1948, it turned out he was innocent (Category 5; Exonerated) and had participated in the Resistance War
Resistance during World War II
Resistance movements during World War II occurred in every occupied country by a variety of means, ranging from non-cooperation, disinformation and propaganda to hiding crashed pilots and even to outright warfare and the recapturing of towns...
. He was then reinstated as Zoo Director by the U.S. government but his reputation was besmirched. The Zoo Director of Munich, Heinz Heck
Heinz Heck
Heinz Heck was a German biologist and director of zoo in Munich . Heck worked on the breeding back projects of the Heck Horse, which strove to recreate the Tarpan , and the Heck Cattle, which was to recreate the aurochs, both of which...
, led a private smear and lawsuit campaign against him. Grzimek was acquitted of any wrongdoing in 1949. He led the zoo for 29 years until his retirement on 30 April 1974.
At the same time he served as president of the Frankfurt zoological society
Frankfurt Zoological Society
The Frankfurt Zoological Society is an independent, non-profit conservation organisation based in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. The society is funded through membership fees, donations, bequests, grants and earnings from its endowment fund.-History:...
for over forty years. The society - organized on similar principles as its London and New York counterparts - runs a number of wildlife conservation projects both in Germany and overseas; most well-known is its ongoing work in the Serengeti
Serengeti
The Serengeti ecosystem is a geographical region in Africa. It is located in north Tanzania and extends to south-western Kenya between latitudes 1 and 3 S and longitudes 34 and 36 E. It spans some ....
ecosystem in Tanzania, East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
.
In 1954 he founded the image agency Okapia, specialized in animals and nature. Today, the agency specializes in science and gives 650 photographers a job. The firm is led by Christian Bernhard Grzimek, the son of his son who died in the Serengeti.
In 1975 he co-founded the League for the environment and nature conservation
Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland
Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland is a German non-governmental organisation dedicated to preserving nature and protecting the environment. The german title would be translated to something like Union for the environment and nature conservation Germany...
(BUND) and bought ten acres of forest areas and wetlands in the Steiger forest near Michelau im Steigerwald
Michelau im Steigerwald
Michelau im Steigerwald is a municipality in the district of Schweinfurt in Bavaria, Germany....
which he left to itself.
Grzimek is most famous for the work he undertook for the conservation of the Serengeti
Serengeti
The Serengeti ecosystem is a geographical region in Africa. It is located in north Tanzania and extends to south-western Kenya between latitudes 1 and 3 S and longitudes 34 and 36 E. It spans some ....
. He spent several years studying the wildlife there along with his son Michael, especially on areal observation and counts of large scale annual migrations. In 1959 Michael was killed in an air crash while flying the Dornier Do 27
Dornier Do 27
-See also:-Bibliography:*Green, William. Macdonald Aircraft Handbook. London. Macdonald & Co. Ltd., 1964.*Jackson, Paul A. German Military Aviation 1956-1976. Hinckley, Leicestershire, UK: Midland Counties Publications, 1976. ISBN 0-904597-03-2.-External links:**...
due to a collision with a Griffon Vulture
Griffon Vulture
The Griffon Vulture is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae.The Griffon Vulture is long with a wingspan. In the nominate race the males weigh and females typically weigh , while in the Indian subspecies the vultures average...
. He wrote a best-selling book called Serengeti shall not die, which appealed enormously to the public and was key in driving the creation of the Serengeti National Park
Serengeti National Park
The Serengeti National Park is a large national park in Serengeti area, Tanzania. It is most famous for its annual migration of over one and a half million white bearded wildebeest and 250,000 zebra...
.
He prophesied in his book
The documentary based on the film won the Academy Award for Documentary Feature
Academy Award for Documentary Feature
The Academy Award for Documentary Feature is among the most prestigious awards for documentary films.- Winners and nominees:Following the Academy's practice, films are listed below by the award year...
in 1959.
He was the editor-in-chief of (and author of a number of articles in) a massive and monumental encyclopedia of animal life. After publication in Germany in 1968, Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia
Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia
__notoc__Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia is a large comprehensive encyclopedia of animal life. It is named after its original editor in chief, Bernhard Grzimek ....
was translated into English and published in 1975 in 13 volumes (covering lower life forms, insects and other invertebrates, fish, amphibia, reptiles, birds and mammals) plus three additional volumes on Ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
, Ethology
Ethology
Ethology is the scientific study of animal behavior, and a sub-topic of zoology....
and Evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
. The 1975 work was issued in both hardback and less expensive paperback editions and became a standard reference work. After Grzimek's death, the volumes on mammals were revised, and republished in both German and then in English. In 2004, the entire encyclopedia was revised and published in a new and expanded edition. All the versions of the encyclopedia are marked by clear and forceful prose, extensive use of illustrations (both drawings and color plates), and a deep love and concern for animal conservation.
Of national importance were his work as co-editor (together with Austrian Nobel-prize winner Konrad Lorenz
Konrad Lorenz
Konrad Zacharias Lorenz was an Austrian zoologist, ethologist, and ornithologist. He shared the 1973 Nobel Prize with Nikolaas Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch...
) of the then largest popular magazine on animals and wildlife in German language, Das Tier (German language, i.e. "The Animal") and of a very popular television series on wildlife. He also authored a large number of popular books based on his countless experiences with animals which he raised since his student days, managed as zoo director, and encountered in the wild during many research trips.
Later years
He died in Frankfurt am Main in 1987, falling asleep while watching a circus performance with a group of children. His ashes were later transferred to Tanzania and buried next to his son Michael at the Ngorongoro Crater.Awards and honors
- 1956: 2 Golden BearGolden BearAccording to legend, the Golden Bear was a large golden Ursus arctos. Members of the Ursus arctos species can reach masses of . The Grizzly Bear and the Kodiak Bear are North American subspecies of the Brown Bear....
´s for Kein Platz für wilde Tiere in the categories International Documentary and Audience Award - 1956: German Film AwardDeutscher FilmpreisThe Deutscher Filmpreis is the highest German movie award. From 1951 to 2004 it was awarded by a commission, since 2005 the award has been given by the Deutsche Filmakademie...
for Kein Platz für wilde Tiere - 1959: Golden Screen for the television program Ein Platz für Tiere
- 1960: Academy Award (Oscar) for Serengeti darf nicht sterben in the category Documentary
- 1960: Honorary Professor at the Veterinary Faculty Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen
- 1960: Honorary doctorate from Humboldt University of BerlinHumboldt University of BerlinThe Humboldt University of Berlin is Berlin's oldest university, founded in 1810 as the University of Berlin by the liberal Prussian educational reformer and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt, whose university model has strongly influenced other European and Western universities...
, "Dr. met. vet. h. c." - 1960: Honorary Member of the Scientific Society of Veterinary Medicine of the GDR (WGV)
- 1963: Gold Medal from New York Zoological Society for „outstanding services in conservation of nature“
- 1964: Wilhelm BölscheWilhelm BölscheWilhelm Bölsche was a German author, editor & publicist.-Life:...
-Medal for services to the dissemination of science in Germany - 1968: Tie Man of the Year
- 1969: Grand Federal Cross of Merit
- 1969: Goldene Kamera
- 1973: Bambi
- 1978: Inauguration of the new nocturnal animal house in the Frankfurt Zoo under the name Grzimek-House
- 1981: Honorary Professor of Lomonosov UniversityMoscow State UniversityLomonosov Moscow State University , previously known as Lomonosov University or MSU , is the largest university in Russia. Founded in 1755, it also claims to be one of the oldest university in Russia and to have the tallest educational building in the world. Its current rector is Viktor Sadovnichiy...
- 2008: Renaming of a portion of the Frankfurt street Am Tiergarten in Bernhard-Grzimek-Allee
Films
- 1956 - Kein Platz für wilde Tiere
- 1959 - Serengeti shall not dieSerengeti Shall Not DieSerengeti Shall Not Die is a 1959 German documentary film written and directed by Bernhard Grzimek.His son, the cinematographer Michael Grzimek, died on-location during the filming of the documentary when a plane he piloted collided with a vulture....
(Original German title: Serengeti darf nicht sterben) - 1956 - 1980 - Ein Platz für Tiere (German TV series)
Books
- 1941 - Wir Tiere sind ja gar nicht so! Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung
- 1943 - Wolf Dschingis: Neue Erlebnisse, Erkenntnisse und Versuche mit Tieren, Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung
- 1951 - Affen im Haus und andere Tierberichte, Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung
- 1952 - Flug ins Schimpansenland: Reise durch ein Stück Afrika von heute, Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung
- 1956 - 20 Tiere und ein Mensch
- 1956 - Thulo aus Frankfurt - Rund um die Giraffe, Franckh'sche Verlagshandlung
- 1959 - Serengeti darf nicht sterben (über die Arbeit am Film)
- 1960 - Kein Platz für wilde Tiere
- 1961 - Unsere Brüder mit den Krallen
- 1963 - Wir lebten mit den Baule. Flug ins Schimpansenland
- 1965 - Wildes Tier, weißer Mann
- 1968 - Grzimeks Tierleben, 16 vol.
- 1969 - Grzimek unter Afrikas Tieren: Erlebnisse, Beobachtungen, Forschungsergebnisse
- 1974 - Auf den Mensch gekommen: Erfahrungen mit Leuten
- 1974 - Vom Grizzlybär zur Brillenschlange: Ein Naturschützer berichtet aus vier Erdteilen, Kindler
- 1974 - Einsatz für Afrika: Neue Erlebnisse mit Wildtieren, Kindler
- 1974 - Tiere, mein Leben: Erlebnisse und Forschungen aus fünf Jahrzehnten, Harnack
- 1975 - Grzimek's Animal Life EncyclopediaGrzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia__notoc__Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia is a large comprehensive encyclopedia of animal life. It is named after its original editor in chief, Bernhard Grzimek ....
, 13 vol., Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York [translation of 1968 work] - 1977 - Und immer wieder Pferde. Kindler
- 1988 - Grzimeks Enzyklopädie der Säugetiere, Kindler Verlag, München.
- 1990 - Grzimek's Encyclopedia of Mammals, 5 vol., McGraw-Hill, New York, ISBN 0079095089 [translation of 1988 work]
- 2004 - Grzimek's Animal Life EncyclopediaGrzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia__notoc__Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia is a large comprehensive encyclopedia of animal life. It is named after its original editor in chief, Bernhard Grzimek ....
, 2nd. Ed., 17 vol., Thomson-Gale, Detroit, ISBN 0787653624 [revision of 1975 work]
Magazines
- since 1960 - Das Tier (joint editor with Konrad LorenzKonrad LorenzKonrad Zacharias Lorenz was an Austrian zoologist, ethologist, and ornithologist. He shared the 1973 Nobel Prize with Nikolaas Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch...
und Dr. Heini HedigerHeini HedigerHeini Hediger was a Swiss zoologist noted for work in proxemics in animal behavior and is known as the "father of zoo biology". Hediger was formerly the director of Tierpark Dählhölzli , Zoo Basel and Zürich Zoo ....
)
Literature
- Franziska Torma: Eine Naturschutzkampagne in der Ära Adenauer. Bernhard Grzimeks Afrikafilme in den Medien der 50er Jahre. Martin Meidenbauer Verlag, München 2004, ISBN 3-89975-034-9 (Media studies; on his films on African wildlife)
- Gerhard Grzimek, Rupprecht Grzimek: Die Familie Grzimek aus Oberglogau in Oberschlesien, in: "Deutsches Familienarchiv", Band X, Verlag Degener & Co., Neustadt (Aisch) 1958. - 4., erweiterte und überarbeitete Ausgabe, Herder-Institut, Reutlingen 2000. (genealogy)
External links
- Biography in English
- Bernhard Grzimek - sein Leben - Biography in PDF-format (2,8 MB), including photographs.
- Private Homepage of Dirk Petzold on the Frankfurt Zoo
- Audio und Manuskript: Wie Bernhard Grzimek 1945 den Frankfurter Zoo rettete
- ZDF: Bernhard Grzimek - Eine deutsche Legende
- Würdigung durch seinen "Haussender" Hessischer Rundfunk
- Würdigung seines Sohnes Michael durch den Hessischen Rundfunk