Erasmus Kittler
Erasmus Kittler (born June 25, 1852 in Schwabach near Nuremberg, † March 14, 1929 in Darmstadt ) was a German electrical engineering pioneer and physicist .
Life
Kittler was the son of a tailor and worked as a primary school teacher in Nuremberg between 1871 and 1874. In addition, he was preparing for his Abitur, which he passed in Nuremberg in 1875. In 1875/76 he studied mathematics and physics at the Technical University of Munich and then at the University of Würzburg . Here he passed the teaching examination in mathematics and physics in 1879. During his studies he became a member of the Academic Choral Society Würzburg in the Sondershäuser Association . From 1879 he was assistant at the Physics Institute at the TH Munich under Wilhelm von Beetz . 1880 doctorate he at Friedrich Wilhelm Georg Kohlrausch at the University of Würzburg. 1881 followed the habilitation at the TH Munich.
In 1882, the Technical University of Darmstadt established the world's first chair for electrical engineering and in the same year appointed Kittler to this chair. In 1883, Kittler set up the first electrical engineering course at a university at the TH Darmstadt and trained the electrical engineers that were urgently needed for the electrification of the state. His curriculum called for a four-year degree in electrical engineering with a final exam. In addition to general electrical engineering, the first four semesters also included the basics of engineering: mathematics, physics, chemistry and mechanical engineering. In the fifth to eighth semester, specializations were made in the areas of electrical engineering: measurement technology, electrical drives, power transmission, electrical railways , electrical lighting and later also high-voltage technology. In 1887 Kittler was elected a member of the Leopoldina .
As head of the construction of the “ Central Station for Electrical Lighting” in Darmstadt, he played a key role in setting up the public power supply. When it went into operation in 1888, the Darmstadt plant became the third city in the world to have an extensive power supply, after New York and Berlin. But Kittler was also significantly involved in the construction of large power plants in Bremen, Düsseldorf, Mainz, Budapest, Danzig and Worms.
Kittler's best-known students included Michail von Dolivo-Dobrowolsky , Carl Hering , Clarence Feldmann , Waldemar Petersen and Leo Pungs . Kittler also wrote one of the first German standard works on electrical engineering, the Handbook of Electrical Engineering (two volumes, Stuttgart 1886/1890).
Erasmus Kittler left active service at TH Darmstadt in 1915. To mark its transition into retirement gave him the Technical University of Darmstadt after many years of successful teaching in grateful appreciation of his contribution to the development of the university , the honorary doctorate (as Dr.-Ing. E. h.).
In 1899 he was appointed by Grand Duke Ernst Ludwig as a lifelong member of the first chamber of the state estates of the Grand Duchy of Hesse , to which he belonged until the November Revolution of 1918.
Kittler died on March 14, 1929 in Darmstadt. Erasmus Kittler was buried in the Darmstadt forest cemetery (grave site: L 6a 15, Erasmus Kittler grave).
The TU Darmstadt has been awarding a medal named after Erasmus Kittler since 1977 . The Erasmus Kittler School in Darmstadt was named after him .
The "Erasmus Kittler Prize" named after him is awarded every two years by the Entega Foundation.
One of his important projects was the management of the construction of the electricity center in Heppenheim, started in 1899.
literature
- Jochen Lengemann : MdL Hessen. 1808-1996. Biographical index (= political and parliamentary history of the state of Hesse. Vol. 14 = publications of the Historical Commission for Hesse. Vol. 48, 7). Elwert, Marburg 1996, ISBN 3-7708-1071-6 , p. 213.
- Werner Hübschmann: The importance of Prof. Kittler and his students for the development of electrical engineering. In: Horst Wessel (ed.): Electrical engineering in the course of time. Berlin / Offenbach 1986, pp. 37-48.
- Wolfgang König: Technical Sciences. The emergence of electrical engineering from industry and science between 1880 and 1914. G + B Verlag Fakas, Chur 1995, ISBN 3-7186-5755-4 .
Web links
- Kittler, Erasmus. Hessian biography. (As of May 2, 2019). In: Landesgeschichtliches Informationssystem Hessen (LAGIS).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Otto Grübel, Special Houses Association of German Student Choral Societies (SV): Cartel address book. As of March 1, 1914. Munich 1914, p. 46.
- ^ Winter semester 1882/83 , Centralblatt der Bauverwaltung , March 3, 1883, p. 84, accessed on December 16, 2012
- ↑ a b Erasmus Kittler 1852-1929 - pioneer of modern electrical engineering. (No longer available online.) Association of electrical engineering, electronics and information technology , formerly in the original ; Retrieved July 28, 2011 . ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ From machine culture to culture machine. The history of the Centralstation for electrical lighting. (No longer available online.) Centralstation Darmstadt, archived from the original on February 15, 2012 ; Retrieved July 28, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung, Vol. 35 (1915) No. 89 (November 6, 1915), p. 592 .
- ↑ Information board at the main entrance of the Waldfriedhof Darmstadt
- ↑ Impulse prizes awarded in Darmstadt
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kittler, Erasmus |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German electrical engineering pioneer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 25, 1852 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Schwabach near Nuremberg |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 14, 1929 |
| Place of death | Darmstadt |