Beat Ludwig von Muralt

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Beat Ludwig (Béat Louis de) von Muralt (born January 9, 1665 in Bern , † November 20, 1749 in Colombier ) was a Swiss representative of the early Enlightenment and radical Pietism . In literature and history he is known as the author of Lettres sur les Anglais et les Français et sur les Voyages (1725). He came from the von Muralt family .

origin

His parents were Franz Ludwig von Muralt (1638–1684), a brigadier in the French service, and his wife Salome Sturler († 1684).

Life

In 1681 he enrolled at the University of Geneva to study law and theology. He then went into French service as a captain in the Swiss Guard in Versailles in 1690. In 1694 he made a trip with his brother Franz Ludwig (1669–1753) via Holland to England (presumably mainly London) and returned in 1695 via France. In 1699 he married and settled on an estate. In 1701 he came into conflict with the church in Bern as a pietist and early enlightener and was banished from Bern. He could not stay in Geneva either, so in 1702 he went to Colombier in Prussian Neuchâtel, where he could continue his studies on his wife's estate.

influence

His main work is "Lettres sur les Anglais et les Français et sur les Voyages" which was written as early as 1700, but only appeared in book form in 1725. There are translations into English (1727) and German (1761). He turned against the French cultural hegemony , where he also recognized an aristocratic high culture ( bel esprit ). On the other hand, he contrasted liberal, bourgeois England with his common sense ( bon sens ). The book became the starting point for emancipation from French domination, especially in German literature. He influenced numerous artists; on the French side: Voltaire , Pierre Carlet de Marivaux , Antoine-François Prévost , Montesquieu , Jean-Jacques Rousseau and on the German side: Albrecht von Haller , Johann Jakob Bodmer , Johann Jakob Breitinger , Johann Georg Hamann , Johann Gottfried Herder , Gotthold Ephraim Lessing .

family

He married Margarete von Wattenwyl (1678-1732) in Oberdiessbach near Bern in 1699 . The couple had a son and a daughter. After the death of his first wife, he married Anna Cleopha Rahn (1712–1741) in 1737 ; this marriage remained childless.

Works

  • Lettres sur les Anglais et les Français, 1725, digitized
  • l'Instinct divin recommandé aux hommes, 1727, digitized
  • Lettres sur les voyages et sur l'esprit-fort, 1728
  • Lettres fanatiques, 1739, part 1 , part 2
  • Fables nouvelles, 1753 (posthumous)

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Muralt, Beat Ludwig von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Muralt, Béat Louis de
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss writer and educator
DATE OF BIRTH January 9, 1665
PLACE OF BIRTH Bern , Switzerland
DATE OF DEATH November 20, 1749
Place of death Colombier