Ludolf Wienbarg
Encyclopedia
Christian Ludolf Wienbarg (25 December 1802 - 8 January 1872) was a German journalist and literary critic, one of the founders of the Young Germany
movement during the Vormärz
period.
, as the son of a blacksmith. In 1822 he started studying theology at the Kiel University. In 1826, he had to drop his studies for financial reasons and worked as a private tutor for Count Christian Günther von Bernstorff
in Lauenburg. In 1829, he was conferred a doctor's degree at Marburg University for his thesis on the original meaning of Platonic ideas. In 1833, he accepted a job as lecturer in Kiel.
In 1834, he published a collection with 22 of his lectures under the title "Ästhetische Feldzüge" ("Aesthetic Campaigns"). With the opening words "To you, young Germany, I dedicate these speeches" he helped to create the expression "Young Germany
". In the same year, he met the writer Karl Gutzkow
in Frankfurt am Main. They planned to publish a journal in summer 1835. However, it was seized and banned by the German government
even before the delivery of its first edition.
In November 1835, Wienbarg's writings, together with those of Heinrich Heine
, Ludwig Börne
, Karl Gutzkow, Heinrich Laube
and Theodor Mundt
, were first banned in Prussia
and subsequently in all the member states of the German confederation
. Wienbarg was forced to leave Frankfurt and escaped to Heligoland
, then a British island popular with political refugees from Germany. In the autumn of 1836, he returned to Hamburg where he resumed his activities as a journalist and editor for different journals. At the end of the 1830s, he was supported by his siblings. On May 12, 1839, he married Elisabeth Wilhelmine Dorothea Marwedel, daughter of a middle-class family in Altona, but his marriage did not improve his financial situation.
In 1846, his plans to emigrate to the United States were discussed in the press, but the national enthusiasm for the Schleswig-Holstein Question
made him rethink his decision. In 1848 and 1849, he volunteered in the First Schleswig War.
After 1850, Wienbarg lived in Hamburg and Altona, addicted to alcohol, destitute, and forgotten by the public. In 1869, he was committed to a psychiatric clinic in Schleswig where he died on January 2, 1872.
Young Germany
Young Germany was a group of German writers which existed from about 1830 to 1850. It was essentially a youth ideology . Its main proponents were Karl Gutzkow, Heinrich Laube, Theodor Mundt and Ludolf Wienbarg; Heinrich Heine, Ludwig Börne and Georg Büchner were also considered part of the movement...
movement during the Vormärz
Vormärz
' is the time period leading up to the failed March 1848 revolution in the German Confederation. Also known as the Age of Metternich, it was a period of Austrian and Prussian police states and vast censorship in response to calls for liberalism...
period.
Biography
Wienbarg was born in AltonaAltona, Hamburg
Altona is the westernmost urban borough of the German city state of Hamburg, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864 Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city until 1937...
, as the son of a blacksmith. In 1822 he started studying theology at the Kiel University. In 1826, he had to drop his studies for financial reasons and worked as a private tutor for Count Christian Günther von Bernstorff
Christian Günther von Bernstorff
Count Christian Gunther von Bernstorff was a Danish and Prussian statesman and diplomat, son of Count Andreas Peter von Bernstorff.-Biography:...
in Lauenburg. In 1829, he was conferred a doctor's degree at Marburg University for his thesis on the original meaning of Platonic ideas. In 1833, he accepted a job as lecturer in Kiel.
In 1834, he published a collection with 22 of his lectures under the title "Ästhetische Feldzüge" ("Aesthetic Campaigns"). With the opening words "To you, young Germany, I dedicate these speeches" he helped to create the expression "Young Germany
Young Germany
Young Germany was a group of German writers which existed from about 1830 to 1850. It was essentially a youth ideology . Its main proponents were Karl Gutzkow, Heinrich Laube, Theodor Mundt and Ludolf Wienbarg; Heinrich Heine, Ludwig Börne and Georg Büchner were also considered part of the movement...
". In the same year, he met the writer Karl Gutzkow
Karl Gutzkow
Karl Ferdinand Gutzkow was a German writer notable in the Young Germany movement of the mid-19th century.-Life:...
in Frankfurt am Main. They planned to publish a journal in summer 1835. However, it was seized and banned by the German government
Bundesversammlung (German Confederation)
The Federal Assembly was the only central institution of the German Confederation from 1815 until 1848, and from 1850 until 1866. The Federal Assembly had its seat in the palais Thurn und Taxis in Frankfurt...
even before the delivery of its first edition.
In November 1835, Wienbarg's writings, together with those of Heinrich Heine
Heinrich Heine
Christian Johann Heinrich Heine was one of the most significant German poets of the 19th century. He was also a journalist, essayist, and literary critic. He is best known outside Germany for his early lyric poetry, which was set to music in the form of Lieder by composers such as Robert Schumann...
, Ludwig Börne
Ludwig Börne
Karl Ludwig Börne was a German political writer and satirist.-Early life:Karl Ludwig Börne was born Loeb Baruch on May 6, 1786, at Frankfurt am Main, son of Jakob Baruch, a banker. His grandfather had been a government bureaucrat.-Education:Börne and his brothers were privately tutored by Jacob...
, Karl Gutzkow, Heinrich Laube
Heinrich Laube
Heinrich Laube , German dramatist, novelist and theatre-director, was born at Sprottau in Prussian Silesia.-Life:He studied theology at Halle and Breslau , and settled in Leipzig in 1832...
and Theodor Mundt
Theodor Mundt
thumb|200px|Theodor MundtTheodor Mundt was a German critic and novelist. He was a member of the Young Germany group of German writers.-Biography:Born at Potsdam, Mundt studied philology and philosophy at Berlin...
, were first banned in Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
and subsequently in all the member states of the German confederation
German Confederation
The German Confederation was the loose association of Central European states created by the Congress of Vienna in 1815 to coordinate the economies of separate German-speaking countries. It acted as a buffer between the powerful states of Austria and Prussia...
. Wienbarg was forced to leave Frankfurt and escaped to Heligoland
Heligoland
Heligoland is a small German archipelago in the North Sea.Formerly Danish and British possessions, the islands are located in the Heligoland Bight in the south-eastern corner of the North Sea...
, then a British island popular with political refugees from Germany. In the autumn of 1836, he returned to Hamburg where he resumed his activities as a journalist and editor for different journals. At the end of the 1830s, he was supported by his siblings. On May 12, 1839, he married Elisabeth Wilhelmine Dorothea Marwedel, daughter of a middle-class family in Altona, but his marriage did not improve his financial situation.
In 1846, his plans to emigrate to the United States were discussed in the press, but the national enthusiasm for the Schleswig-Holstein Question
Schleswig-Holstein Question
The Schleswig-Holstein Question was a complex of diplomatic and other issues arising in the 19th century from the relations of two duchies, Schleswig and Holstein , to the Danish crown and to the German Confederation....
made him rethink his decision. In 1848 and 1849, he volunteered in the First Schleswig War.
After 1850, Wienbarg lived in Hamburg and Altona, addicted to alcohol, destitute, and forgotten by the public. In 1869, he was committed to a psychiatric clinic in Schleswig where he died on January 2, 1872.
Works (Selection)
- Aesthetische Feldzüge. Dem jungen Deutschland gewidmet. Hamburg: Hoffmann u. Campe 1834. Reprint, with modernised orthography: East Berlin/Weimar, Aufbau 1964.
- Zur neuesten Literatur. Von L. W., Verfasser der "ästhetischen Feldzüge. Mannheim: Löwenthal 1835.
- Wanderungen durch den Thierkreis. Hamburg: Hoffmann u. Campe 1835; Reprint: Frankfurt a. M. 1973.
- Tagebuch von Helgoland. Hamburg: Hoffmann u. Campe, 1838. Digitalisat
- Die Dramatiker der Jetztzeit, H. 1. Altona 1839.
- Die Volks-Versammlung zu Nortorf am 14ten September 1846. Hamburg: Hoffmann u. Campe 1846.
- Der dänische Fehdehandschuh. Aufgenommen von L. W. Hamburg: Hoffmann u. Campe 1846.
- Nach Helgoland und anderswohin. Gedanken auf Reisen. Edited by Alfred Estermann. Nördlingen: Greno 1987.
External links
- Wienbarg: Aesthetische Feldzüge, 1834; im Projekt "Lyriktheorie"
- Soll die plattdeutsche Sprache gepflegt oder ausgerottet werden? Pamphlet against the use of Low GermanLow GermanLow German or Low Saxon is an Ingvaeonic West Germanic language spoken mainly in northern Germany and the eastern part of the Netherlands...
(German)