Dreizehnlinden (Friedrich Wilhelm Weber)

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Original edition of the Dreizehnlinden from 1878

Dreizehnlinden is an epic by Friedrich Wilhelm Weber , which describes the final battle between Franconia and Saxony , between the blossoming Christianity and the sinking paganism in the Nethegau . Since the main bearers of the Christian idea are the monks, the poet named his work after the fictional monastery "Dreizehnlinden".

Emergence

Dreizehnlinden was published by Ferdinand Schöningh in Paderborn in 1878 . Weber chose the four-legged trochaeus for his epic in 25 songs . The first chants, drafted in 1874, were without rhymes. To do this, he used the alliteration that fits into the time frame of the poetry ("fresh and joyful", "house and hill", "world and knowledge", "interest and tithes"). He also loves to repeat words and verses in order to achieve a climax . The poet Emanuel Geibel , convinced of the value of the poetic work, informed his friend Emil Rittershaus in Barmen. Rittershaus wrote a brilliant review in the Elberfelder Zeitung. This is how Weber gained fame overnight.

Place and time of the action

In Weber's homeland, the Nethegau , the action takes place in the reign of Ludwig the Pious from about spring 822 to summer 823. The name Habichtshof is a friendly move towards the Baron von Haxthausen , who owns this property. The material itself is based on free invention, even if historical personalities are mentioned, such as Badurad , the bishop of Paderborn, or Warin , the abbot of Corvey. According to Weber, there is nothing against imagining the Corvey monastery under Dreizehnlinden . The writer Gustav Freytag , a close friend of Weber, gave him valuable information through his cultural-historical work of pictures from the German past . There is actually a spot called the Thirteen Linden trees near Corvey Monastery .

action

The Saxon Elmar, owner of the Habichtshof, grew up in the pagan faith and raised to hate the invasive Franks , loves the Franconian Christian Hildegunde. But the far-reaching Saxon war is still smoldering between the Frankish conquerors and the Saxons , who have not forgotten the blood court of Verden . This bloody missionary work was not suitable for convincingly spreading the Christian spirit. The contradiction between the warlike action of the Franks and their Christian message of peace is shown by the seer Swanahild. The Frankish-Saxon, Christian-pagan conflict erupts with full force when Elmar von Gero, the Frankish royal messenger, is falsely accused of arson. The Count of Nethegau declares Elmar outlawed . Gero, who wants to win Hildegunde for himself, seizes this opportunity and hits Elmar with a poisoned arrow. Struggling for his life, he is now graciously received in the Dreizehnlinden monastery. Beyond hatred and violence, he heals under the care of the aged abbot and the prior . Elmar, now convinced of the principle of non-violence, renounces the martial faith and is baptized. With this he wins the Franconian Hildegunde as his wife.

Rhyme form and frequent quotations

Gladly enough is not disregarded
The little man's gift too.


Elmar, Lord of the Habichtshofe,
Said to his hunting party:
Good pack, good booty;
Hang the bear on the linden tree!

meaning

Coat of arms of the office of Höxter-Land with 13 linden leaves
  • The coat of arms of the former office of Höxter-Land contains 13 linden leaves in allusion to Weber's epic
  • The work had a firm place in German school literature until the 1950s. The saying: “First you belong to your god, to him first of all the home earth” from the 17th song has been carved on the entrance gate of the Lohne open-air theater since 1951 .
  • In memory of Weber's main work, the repatriate community of Treze Tilias (Dreizehnlinden) in Brazil founded by the then Austrian Foreign Minister Andreas Thaler in 1933 bears the name of the successful epic.
  • Konrad Adenauer was an admirer and friend .

literature

Web links

References and comments

  1. ↑ Chapter 1
  2. ↑ beginning of chapter 4