August von Weckherlin

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August von Weckherlin

August von Weckherlin (born March 8, 1794 in Stuttgart ; † December 18, 1868 there ) was a German agricultural scientist and domain administrator . He is considered to be one of the most important experts in the fields of animal husbandry and breeding in the 19th century.

Life path

August von Weckherlin, son of a prelate and high school principal, studied agriculture with Philipp Emanuel von Fellenberg in Hofwyl ( Switzerland ) in 1815 and 1816 . In 1817 he was given a position as a trainee at the Württemberg court and domain chamber and only nine months later he was promoted to court chamber administrator. In this role he managed the royal domains Scharnhausen , Weil im Schönbuch and Kleinhohenheim with great success . His main interest was cattle breeding. From 1827 he published articles about the cattle breeds in Württemberg, which gave him a high reputation in the professional world. Weckherlin also knew his way around sheep breeding, because King Wilhelm I commissioned him to buy sheep for the Achalm domain near Reutlingen.

In 1837 the King of Württemberg awarded him the title of " Secret Court Domain Councilor " and appointed him director of the agricultural and forestry school in Hohenheim . At the same time he honored him with the award of the Knight's Cross of the Order of the Württemberg Crown . After eight years of activity, however, he resigned from his office. From 1845 to 1866, he was the highest estate director in charge of the agricultural property of the Prince of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen .

Teaching and Research

In the spring of 1837, a few months before his appointment as director of the Hohenheim educational institute, Weckherlin undertook a three-month agricultural study trip to England on behalf of the King of Württemberg . In the field, should that time as exemplary current farming methods to meet in England and consider whether they can be applied in the Württemberg agriculture. His well-founded final report on the results of this trip to England appeared in 1842 (further editions in 1845 and 1852) under the title " About English agriculture and its application to other agricultural conditions, especially in Germany ". Weckherlin describes precisely the most important farming methods used in England and compares them with the farming systems in Württemberg. The repeated editions of the book show the great interest of progressively oriented farmers in this report, which has sustainably promoted the introduction of farming based on rational principles in Germany.

Under the directorate of Weckherlin, the agricultural and forestry college in Hohenheim experienced considerable changes. The teaching staff was expanded and the range of courses shifted more to the natural science disciplines and to agricultural technology. As a forward-looking planner, Weckherlin has restructured the institute and created an agricultural and forestry department. During his tenure, the number of students increased. The lecture on animal breeding given by Weckherlin later became one of the main pillars in the teaching program of the Hohenheim educational institution under the title " Animal Production Theory ".

As an agricultural scientist, Weckherlin has made a name for himself primarily in the fields of animal breeding and keeping. His main work , the three-volume teaching and handbook “ Die agricultural animal production ” published in 1842, had a total of four editions by 1865. It is one of the “classic” works of scientific agricultural literature of the 19th century. Weckherlin represented the controversial and later refuted "constancy theory", according to which only the same animal races should be crossed with one another. Nevertheless, the broad discussion about this work has contributed to increasing the importance of the subject of animal production within the agricultural sciences and thus also in the curricula of agricultural studies.

For Weckherlin, animal production ( livestock farming ) was the key to successful agriculture. According to his teaching and research concept, crop production should adapt to the requirements of livestock farming and pay more attention to the care of meadows and forage production .

Major works

  • Agricultural description of the royal estates Weil, Scharnhausen , Klein-Hohenheim, Monrepos , Favorite and Achalm . In: Correspondence sheet of the Württemberg Agricultural Association 1825, pp. 3–158.
  • Illustrations of cattle and other domestic animal races on the private property of His Majesty the King of Württemberg with an attached description . Drawn and lithographed after life by Lorenz Ekeman-Allesson, Fr. Wagner and G. Küstner. Text by August Weckherlin. 6 deliveries, 24 tables and 13 pages of text. Löflund publishing house Stuttgart 1827–1834. - Reprint of the bibliophile original edition: Edition "libra rari" Hannover 1984.
  • The cattle breeding in Württemberg. With suggestions for their further recovery. A contribution to the agricultural description of the kingdom . Cotta Stuttgart and Tübingen publishers 1839.
  • About English agriculture and its application to other agricultural conditions, especially in Germany. According to your own opinion . Award-winning typeface. Cotta publishing house Stuttgart and Tübingen 1842; 2nd edition 1845; 3rd ed. 1852.
  • Agricultural animal production . Part 1: General Part ; Part 2: cattle breeding ; Part 3: sheep farming . Cotta publishing house in Stuttgart and Tübingen 1846; 2nd ed. 1851; 3rd edition 1857; 4th ed. 1865.

literature

  • William Löbe:  Weckherlin, August von . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 41, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1896, pp. 373-375.
  • Klaus Herrmann: August von Weckherlin. Court camera administrator, director in Hohenheim and real secret council in Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen . In: Life pictures from Swabia and Franconia, Vol. 14, 1980, pp. 192-218 (with picture and list of scriptures).
  • Eberhard Fritz: The court domain chamber in the Kingdom of Württemberg. For the asset management of the House of Württemberg. In: Journal for Württemberg State History 56/1997. Pp. 127-180.

Web links

Commons : August von Weckherlin  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hohenheim's directors, rectors and presidents ( memento of the original from March 25, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / uniarchiv.uni-hohenheim.de
  2. ^ Eberhard Fritz: The Achalm estate in the possession of the House of Württemberg. In: Reutlinger Geschichtsblätter NF 45/2006. Pp. 139-172.
  3. ↑ Royal Württemberg Court and State Handbook 1858 , p. 41
personal data
SURNAME Weckherlin, August von
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German agronomist and domain administrator
DATE OF BIRTH March 8, 1794
PLACE OF BIRTH Stuttgart
DATE OF DEATH December 18, 1868
Place of death Stuttgart