, 13 May 1854; died at Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, 25 December 1885) was a German historian.

Soon after his birth, his parents moved to 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...

 in Westphalia

Westphalia

Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...

, where he made his collegiate studies (1867-72). From 1872 to 1875 he studied theology at Würzburg

Würzburg

Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....

 and at Münster. Feeling uncertain, however, as to his ecclesiastical calling, he abandoned his desire of entering the priesthood, and took up the study of philology

Philology

Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...

.

In 1877 he graduated as doctor of philosophy with the dissertation: "Widukind, der Sachsenführer nach Geschichte und Sage" (Münster, 1877). Excessive study led to grave pulmonary disease. For some time he taught in the public schools of Münster, Arnsberg, and Aachen, developing in the meantime his historical training. Evidence of this was his Vitae S. Ludgeri (Geschichtsquellen des Bistums Münster, IV, Münster, 1881).

In 1881 the Westfalischer Verein fur Geschichte und Altertumskunde confided to him the continuation of the Westfälisches Urkundenbuch. He returned to Münster and in 1882 he became Privatdozent

Privatdozent

Privatdozent or Private lecturer is a title conferred in some European university systems, especially in German-speaking countries, for someone who pursues an academic career and holds all formal qualifications to become a tenured university professor...

for history there. Previously, however, he spent a year at Vienna for improvement in diplomatics at the "Institut fur oesterreichische Geschichtsforschung" under the direction of Theodor von Sickel

Theodor von Sickel

Theodor von Sickel was a German-Austrian historian who was born in Aken, Saxony-Anhalt. He specialized in early European medieval history, and is considered to be the founder of modern diplomatics ....

.

At Easter, 1883, he began his teaching at Münster, continuing at the same time his historical investigations, specially on Westphalian documents, the history of the papal chancery, and papal diplomatics

Papal diplomatics

-History:The authenticity of papal Bulls, alongside royal charters, and other legal instruments, was already a live issue in the Middle Ages. The papal Chancery saw control of documents and precautions taken against forgery...

. In 1885 he published at Münster the first part of the supplement of the Westfälisches Urkundenbuch.

In the autumn of this year he went to Rome, chiefly to collect in the Vatican archives the material for the large works he had in mind. But typhoid carried him off in the midst of his labours. He was buried in the German Campo Santo near St. Peter's.

Diekamp also published between 1878 and 1885 several important studies in different reviews concerning the history of the Middle Ages and diplomatics or official style of the medieval papal documents.

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