Hermann Löns
Encyclopedia
Hermann Löns was a German
journalist
and writer
. He is most famous as "The Poet of the Heath" for his novels and poems celebrating the people and landscape of the North German moors, particularly the Lüneburg Heath
in Lower Saxony
. Löns is well known in Germany for his famous folksongs. He was also a hunter, natural historian and conservationist
.
on 29 August 1866 and went to school and university in Münster
and Greifswald
. Interested in the biology of molluscs, he studied medicine and natural science. However, he did not finish his studies, but started to work as a journalist instead during the 1890s, when he began writing poems. In the 1910s he changed to short stories and novels. Inspired by pre- and post-Christian folklore and history, his most famous novel is Der Wehrwolf
(The Warwolf - 1910, the word being a play on 'Werwolf', the German word for Werewolf), an alternately heart-warming and heart-rending chronicle of a North German farming community suffering tragedies and ultimate triumph during the harrowing period of the Thirty Years' War
(1618-1648).
At the age of 48 he volunteered for service in the German Army in the First World War, and was shot dead on 26 September 1914 whilst on patrol at Loivre
near Reims
in France just three weeks after enlisting. As in some of his writings he showed nationalistic ideas, he was later considered by the Nazis as one of 'their' writers - as parts of his works fit well within the 'Blood and soil
' ethos of National Socialism, with National Socialist ideologues such as Walther Darre and Alfred Rosenberg lauding the peasantry and small rural communities as the true lifeblood of the German nation. At the behest of Adolf Hitler
, Löns' body was exhumed and reburied in the Lüneburg Heath
near the town of Walsrode
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
. He is most famous as "The Poet of the Heath" for his novels and poems celebrating the people and landscape of the North German moors, particularly the Lüneburg Heath
Lüneburg Heath
The Lüneburg Heath is a large area of heath, geest and woodland in northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover, and Bremen and is named after the town of Lüneburg. Most of the area is a nature reserve...
in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
. Löns is well known in Germany for his famous folksongs. He was also a hunter, natural historian and conservationist
Conservationist
Conservationists are proponents or advocates of conservation. They advocate for the protection of all the species in an ecosystem with a strong focus on the natural environment...
.
Life
Löns was born in Kulm in West PrussiaWest Prussia
West Prussia was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773–1824 and 1878–1919/20 which was created out of the earlier Polish province of Royal Prussia...
on 29 August 1866 and went to school and university in Münster
Münster
Münster is an independent city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also capital of the local government region Münsterland...
and Greifswald
Greifswald
Greifswald , officially, the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald is a town in northeastern Germany. It is situated in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, at an equal distance of about from Germany's two largest cities, Berlin and Hamburg. The town borders the Baltic Sea, and is crossed...
. Interested in the biology of molluscs, he studied medicine and natural science. However, he did not finish his studies, but started to work as a journalist instead during the 1890s, when he began writing poems. In the 1910s he changed to short stories and novels. Inspired by pre- and post-Christian folklore and history, his most famous novel is Der Wehrwolf
Wehrwolf
Führerhauptquartier Werwolf was the codename used for one of Adolf Hitler's World War II Eastern Front military headquarters located in a pine forest about north of Vinnytsia in Ukraine that was used between 1942 and 1943...
(The Warwolf - 1910, the word being a play on 'Werwolf', the German word for Werewolf), an alternately heart-warming and heart-rending chronicle of a North German farming community suffering tragedies and ultimate triumph during the harrowing period of the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
(1618-1648).
At the age of 48 he volunteered for service in the German Army in the First World War, and was shot dead on 26 September 1914 whilst on patrol at Loivre
Loivre
Loivre is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France....
near Reims
Reims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
in France just three weeks after enlisting. As in some of his writings he showed nationalistic ideas, he was later considered by the Nazis as one of 'their' writers - as parts of his works fit well within the 'Blood and soil
Blood and soil
Blood and Soil refers to an ideology that focuses on ethnicity based on two factors, descent and homeland/Heimat...
' ethos of National Socialism, with National Socialist ideologues such as Walther Darre and Alfred Rosenberg lauding the peasantry and small rural communities as the true lifeblood of the German nation. At the behest of Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...
, Löns' body was exhumed and reburied in the Lüneburg Heath
Lüneburg Heath
The Lüneburg Heath is a large area of heath, geest and woodland in northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover, and Bremen and is named after the town of Lüneburg. Most of the area is a nature reserve...
near the town of Walsrode
Walsrode
-Middle Ages:986 Foundation of Walsrode Abbey by Count Walo. The first recorded mentionof the town is dated May 7, 986.1383 The dukes of Brunswick and Lüneburg grant Walsrode a town charter.1479 First recorded instance of Walsrode's coat of arms...
.