Eulalia Merx

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Eulalia Merx

Eulalia Therese Merx (born November 7, 1811 in Gröningen , † May 9, 1908 in Heidelberg ) was a German writer .

Life

Eulalia Merx was born in 1811 as the daughter of the Protestant theologian, consistorial councilor and historian Johann Gottfried Hoche (1762–1836) and his wife Louise Charlotte, née Louise Charlotte. Berning († March 12, 1839) was born in Gröningen in the former Principality of Halberstadt . Her paternal grandfather was a tenant in Gratzungen . Eulalia was the sixth of eight children, the future writer and suffragette Louise Aston was her sister.

Like her five sisters, Eulalia was tutored by her father and tutors. The two brothers Eduard (1807–1883) and Ernst (1819–1879) went to the cathedral school in Halberstadt. The very educated mother undertook to instruct her children in literature and music. Eulalie showed musical talent and had the desire to become a virtuoso. However, due to the uncertain job prospects, the father decided against it. So his library room became her favorite place to stay. She read the writings of the Saxon writer Heinrich Gottfried von Bretschneider (1739–1810), the rationalist theologian Johann Friedrich Röhr and the spiritual poet Wolfgang Ammon . At the young age of 15 she already took part in a dispute between so-called rationalists and Orthodox , where she sided with the former. But soon a change took place in her, which she described in her novel "A Soul Painting" (1855). The young woman who argued rationally became an admirer of pietism.

During a visit with her parents in Magdeburg, she met the young theologian and seminar teacher Friedrich Merx (1809–1843), who was about to take over the position of rector in Bleicherode / Nordhausen district ( Harz ). Following the wishes of her parents, Eulalia became engaged to the young preacher. The marriage took place in 1837, one year after the father's death. On November 2, 1838, their son Adalbert Merx was born. In 1841 she published “Psalterklänge. Spiritual poems ”.

But in 1843 she became a widow. At first she lived with an unmarried sister, with whom she later moved to Halberstadt , where her son attended high school. During this time she was active as a writer and published the novella "Mother and Daughter" (1846), "Leaves from the diary of a Christian" (poems and essays, 1847), "Sketches of life" (1848), the story "Cäcilie" and the Novel "Philine" (1852). Her publications brought the writer recognition and opened up additional sources of income for the young widow. Eulalia also went on long visits to relatives in Lusatia and the Mark Brandenburg. She later moved to Neisse to live with her widowed brother Ernst Hoche , whose children from their first marriage she represented the motherhood for six years. Then she moved with her family to Thuringia .

In 1857 her son Adalbert Merx began studying theology and philosophy in Marburg and pursued an academic career as an orientalist. Eulalia Merx followed her son to Jena in 1865, to Tübingen in 1869, to Giessen in 1874 and to Heidelberg in 1875.

Other works published by Eulalia Merx - also under a pseudonym - are the story “Castle and Hut” (1856), the two novels “Auf dem Lande” (1857) and “Ministerfieber und Schwiegersöhne” (1868), the story “Asyl Lea- Hof "(1868)," Not according to a template "(collection of novels, 1868)," Silesian estate neighbors (1876), the novel "The Adoptive Daughter" (1886), "From house to house" (Nn., 1888), "Kaleidoscope" (Nn., 1893), the short story "Erna Heine" (1886, new edition 1893) and "Kaffeegesellschaften" (by Gilbert [pseud.], Without the year). (13.)

Eulalia Merx, in full possession of her intellectual powers into old age, died on May 9, 1908 in Heidelberg.

In contrast to the works of her sister Louise Aston, Eulalia Merx was far removed from radical positions in her writings. Merx herself was a deeply religious person, which is reflected in her writings, which are often edifying and educational in character.

Adalbert Merx's daughter Elisabeth (1874-1945) was married to the science historian and orientalist Julius Ruska (1867-1949). From this marriage, along with other children, came Eulalia's great-grandson Ernst Ruska (1906–1988), Nobel Prize Winner for Physics (1986) and Helmut Ruska (1908–1973), physician and pioneer of electron microscopy.

Works

  • Psalter sounds. A collection of sacred poems. Friese, Leipzig 1841. ( digitized version )
  • Mother and daughter. A picture of life. Novella. Berlin 1846.
  • Sheets from a Christian's diary. Falckenberg, Magdeburg 1847.
  • Life sketches. Dedicated to the more mature youth. Falckenberg, Magdeburg 1848.
  • Cecilia. A novella. Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1852.
  • Philine. A novel. Kern, Breslau 1852. ( digitized volume 1 ), ( volume 2 )
  • A painting of the soul. 3 volumes. Samter, Königsberg 1855. ( Digitized Volume 1 ), ( Volume 2 ), ( Volume 3 )
  • Castle and Hut. A story for the more mature youth. Trewendt & Granier, Breslau 1856.
  • In the countryside. A novel. 2 volumes. Büchting, Nordhausen 1857. ( digitized volume 1 ), ( volume 2 )
  • Not according to the template. Novellas. Mat 2 volumes. Matthes, Leipzig 1868.
  • Asylum Lea-Hof. A story. Grunow, Leipzig 1868.
  • Minister fever and sons-in-law. Not a sentimental novel. 2 volumes. Grunow, Leipzig 1868. ( digitized volume 2 )
  • Silesian neighbors. Richter, Leipzig 1876.
  • A fool.
  • Memories of Ottilie Wildermuth.
  • Adopted daughter. Novel. Schottländer, Breslau 1886.
  • Erna Heine. Narrative. Trewendt, Breslau 1886. New edition. 1893.
  • From house to house. Novella cycle. Perthes, Gotha 1888.
  • Kaleidoscope. (Nn., 1893)
  • Coffee companies (from Gilbert [pseud.]), Undated).

literature

  • Heinrich Groß (Hrsg.): German female poets and writers in word & image, Vol. 2 . Fr. Thiel, Berlin 1885, p. 72ff.
  • Lexicon of German women of the pen: "Merx, Frau Eulalie Therese." Digitized at Zeno.org
  • Jenny Warnecke: Merx, Eulalia Therese, b. Hoche, pseudonym "von Gilbert" . In: Eva Labouvie (Ed.): Women in Saxony-Anhalt, Vol. 2: A biographical-bibliographical lexicon from the 19th century to 1945. Böhlau, Cologne et al. 2019, ISBN 978-3-412-51145-6 , p. 317-319.

Web links

Wikisource: Eulalia Merx  - Sources and full texts

Individual evidence

  1. According to her father's handwritten entry in the church book: cf. Brümmer (see below). This is also the source of Friedrichs (1981) .
  2. a b c d e f Franz Brümmer : Lexicon of German poets and prose writers from the beginning of the 19th century to the present. Vol. 1, 6th edition, Philipp Reclam jun., Leipzig, 1913, pp. 83-84. Volume 4: 436-437: Merx, Eulalie Therese, b. Hoche . Digitized version (accessed on August 1, 2015)
  3. Walter Wehner: Louise Aston - a writer and women's rights activist from Gröningen , typescript, corrective copy, 1999, 60 p., Deposited at the Archive of the German Women's Movement Foundation, Kassel, comments, p. 39, point 18.
  4. Digilibrary: Adalbert Merx short biography (accessed August 1, 2015)
  5. Klaus Breuer: Merx, Adalbert in: Neue Deutsche Biographie 17 (1994), p. 194 f. Online version (accessed on August 1, 2015)
  6. No copy can be found
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  8. No copy can be found
  9. No copy can be found
  10. No copy can be found
  11. No copy can be found