Erich Feigl
Encyclopedia
Erich Feigl was an Austrian documentary film producer and author. He produced almost 60 documentaries, mostly for the Austrian ORF
but some for BR
(Bavarian), ZDF
(German) and TRT
(Turkish Radio Television) in co-production. He authored books about the Habsburgs, whose restoration he supported, and the Armenian Genocide
, which he described as a "myth".
, Austria
. He began writing while still a student, but soon switched over to documentary film-making, continuing his career at Austria
n State Television (ORF
). He toured the Middle
and Near East
and Western Asia extensively and produced many documentaries about these places and their cultures and religions ("Journey to the Early Christian World", "Men and Myths"). He worked with the Dalai Lama
on various projects ("Bardo", "Rebirth").
Feigl became interested in Turkic
cultures and history, especially ("Kanuni Sultan"). After 1984 he began writing about the Armenian Genocide, and he subsequently also focused his attention on Kurdish issues and the PKK guerrilla organization, which resulted in his book published under the title Die Kurden in 1995. He was one of the first authors and commentators to investigate this topic in a contemporary context. He also wrote about the history of the Habsburgs ("Kaiser Karl", "Kaiserin Zita"). He was a Chevalier of the Lazarus Order and the Konstantin Order.
Feigl was a long-time monarchist
activist, and in 2006 was awarded honorary membership of the Black-Yellow Alliance
, which favors the return of the House of Habsburg to power.
Described by Der Spiegel
as a "fervent admirer" of Empress Zita
, he was part of the monarchist committee which organized her funeral in 1989.
Feigl received the Medal for the Progress of the Republic of Azerbaijan and was an honorary Board member of the Congress of European Azeris.
Feigl had died of kidney failure after being hospitalised for a stomach hemorrhage and was buried on February 5 at Simmering Cemetery in Vienna after a funeral at Feuerhalle Hall.
. Initially published in German, an English version was later produced. Complimentary copies of the book were distributed by Turkish organisations to US governmental officials, university libraries and individuals. A short time before he died he finished his last book, called Armenian Mythomania.
Dagmar Lorenz
, professor of Germanic Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago
, in a book review of author Edgar Hilsenrath
for the Simon Wiesenthal Center Annual
, notes Feigl as a supporter of "Turkish cryptofascist anti-Armenian propaganda" and condemns A Myth of Terror as a "revisionist publication" that "abounds with misleading details".
Michael Gunter describes the book's interpretation of the Armenian Genocide as "questionable", criticising Feigl for ignoring the "voluminous testimony of the massive Ottoman excesses".
ORF
ORF may refer to:* ORF , the Austrian public service broadcaster.* Open reading frame, a portion of the genome.* The IATA airport code for Norfolk International Airport in Norfolk, Virginia.* ORF format , Olympus raw image file format....
but some for BR
Bayerischer Rundfunk
Bayerischer Rundfunk [Bavarian Broadcasting] is the public broadcasting authority for the German Freistaat of Bavaria, with its main offices located in Munich. BR is a member of ARD.- Legal foundation :...
(Bavarian), ZDF
ZDF
Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen , ZDF, is a public-service German television broadcaster based in Mainz . It is run as an independent non-profit institution, which was founded by the German federal states . The ZDF is financed by television licence fees called GEZ and advertising revenues...
(German) and TRT
Turkish Radio and Television Corporation
The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation, also known as TRT , is the national public broadcaster of Turkey and was founded in 1964. Around 70% of TRT's funding comes from a tax levied on electricity bills and a sales tax on television and radio receivers...
(Turkish Radio Television) in co-production. He authored books about the Habsburgs, whose restoration he supported, and the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
, which he described as a "myth".
Biography
Erich Feigl was born in ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. He began writing while still a student, but soon switched over to documentary film-making, continuing his career at Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n State Television (ORF
ORF
ORF may refer to:* ORF , the Austrian public service broadcaster.* Open reading frame, a portion of the genome.* The IATA airport code for Norfolk International Airport in Norfolk, Virginia.* ORF format , Olympus raw image file format....
). He toured the Middle
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and Near East
Near East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
and Western Asia extensively and produced many documentaries about these places and their cultures and religions ("Journey to the Early Christian World", "Men and Myths"). He worked with the Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
on various projects ("Bardo", "Rebirth").
Feigl became interested in Turkic
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
cultures and history, especially ("Kanuni Sultan"). After 1984 he began writing about the Armenian Genocide, and he subsequently also focused his attention on Kurdish issues and the PKK guerrilla organization, which resulted in his book published under the title Die Kurden in 1995. He was one of the first authors and commentators to investigate this topic in a contemporary context. He also wrote about the history of the Habsburgs ("Kaiser Karl", "Kaiserin Zita"). He was a Chevalier of the Lazarus Order and the Konstantin Order.
Feigl was a long-time monarchist
Monarchism
Monarchism is the advocacy of the establishment, preservation, or restoration of a monarchy as a form of government in a nation. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government out of principle, independent from the person, the Monarch.In this system, the Monarch may be the...
activist, and in 2006 was awarded honorary membership of the Black-Yellow Alliance
Black-Yellow Alliance
The Black-Yellow Alliance is a monarchist movement in Austria founded on 6 August 2004. This movement is heavily influenced by the ideas of Otto von Habsburg...
, which favors the return of the House of Habsburg to power.
Described by Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
as a "fervent admirer" of Empress Zita
Zita of Bourbon-Parma
Princess Zita of Bourbon-Parma was the wife of Emperor Charles of Austria...
, he was part of the monarchist committee which organized her funeral in 1989.
Feigl received the Medal for the Progress of the Republic of Azerbaijan and was an honorary Board member of the Congress of European Azeris.
Feigl had died of kidney failure after being hospitalised for a stomach hemorrhage and was buried on February 5 at Simmering Cemetery in Vienna after a funeral at Feuerhalle Hall.
A Myth of Terror
In 1986 Feigl became well known after the publication of his controversial book A Myth of Terror: Armenian Extremism: Its Causes and Its Historical Context. In the book's introduction, Feigl said he had written it as a response to the murder of close friend and Turkish labour attaché, Erdogan Özen, by Armenian terrorists of the Armenian Revolutionary ArmyArmenian Revolutionary Army
The Armenian Revolutionary Army was a paramilitary organization, thought to be renamed from the group "Justice Commandos against Armenian Genocide". ARA attacked at least 7 times resulting in at least 6 fatalities and 8 injuries; its last attack occurred in 1985...
. Initially published in German, an English version was later produced. Complimentary copies of the book were distributed by Turkish organisations to US governmental officials, university libraries and individuals. A short time before he died he finished his last book, called Armenian Mythomania.
Dagmar Lorenz
Dagmar C. G. Lorenz
Dagmar C. G. Lorenz is Professor of Germanic Studies and Director of Jewish Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She teaches and publishes on Austrian, German and German-Jewish literature and culture, and Holocaust Studies. She was born in Goslar, West Germany and began her studies at...
, professor of Germanic Studies at the University of Illinois at Chicago
University of Illinois at Chicago
The University of Illinois at Chicago, or UIC, is a state-funded public research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, near the Chicago Loop...
, in a book review of author Edgar Hilsenrath
Edgar Hilsenrath
Edgar Hilsenrath is a German-Jewish writer living in Berlin. His main works are Night, The Nazi and the Barber, and The Story of the Last Thought.-Biography:...
for the Simon Wiesenthal Center Annual
Simon Wiesenthal Center
The Simon Wiesenthal Center , with headquarters in Los Angeles, California, was established in 1977 and named for Simon Wiesenthal, the Nazi hunter. According to its mission statement, it is "an international Jewish human rights organization dedicated to repairing the world one step at a time...
, notes Feigl as a supporter of "Turkish cryptofascist anti-Armenian propaganda" and condemns A Myth of Terror as a "revisionist publication" that "abounds with misleading details".
Michael Gunter describes the book's interpretation of the Armenian Genocide as "questionable", criticising Feigl for ignoring the "voluminous testimony of the massive Ottoman excesses".
Books
-
- Also published in English as: A Myth of Terror, Armenian Extremism: Its Causes and Its Historical Context, 1986.http://www.mns.gov.az/erix_fayql_en.html
- Translated to Turkish as Bir terör efsanesi, published by Milliyet Yayınları in 1987.
- Translated to French as Un mythe de la terreur : l'extrémisme arménien: ses causes et ses origines; une documentation illustrée Salzburg : Druckhaus Nonntal, 1991. ISBN 3854530137
- Pravda o terrore : armi︠a︡nskiĭ terrorizm—istoki i prichiny Baku : Azerbaĭdzhanskoe gos. izd-vo, 2000.
- La mitomanía Armenia : el extremismo Armenio: causas y contexto histórico Freilassing ; Salzburg : Edition Zeitgeschichte, 2007.
- Halbmond und Kreuz. Marco d'Aviano und die Rettung Europas. Amalthea, Wien 1983, ISBN 3-85002-326-5
- Translated to French as Zita de Habsburg : mémoires d'un empire disparu, Paris : Criterion, 1991
Films
- Reise in die frühchristliche Welt and Die Erben der frühchristlichen Welt
- Die Weltreligionen: Buddhismus, Hinduismus, Schintoismus, Islam, Christentum
- Ein Tropentraum
- Der Goldschatz
- Menschen und Mythen (Die Sikhs, die Parsen, das Bardo etc.)
- Kaiserin Zita snd Otto von Habsburg and Alois Musil (about Syria, Iraq),
- Die Religionen des Zweistromlandes („An den Strömen des Paradieses“),
- Wenn die Götter lieben in the Wasser ist Macht project
- A myth of terror (about ASALA terrorism)
- Die Wiedergeburt and Bardo and Buddhismus (about the Dalai Lama)
External links
- Erich Feigl, Library Thing