Friedrich Wilhelm Culemann

Culemann's city map of Braunschweig from 1798.

Friedrich Wilhelm Culemann (* 1766 presumably in Königslutter ; † December 12, 1812 in Orel ) was a German military engineer and cartographer . His map of the city of Braunschweig , published in 1798 , was the first city map of Braunschweig to be published in large numbers.

life and work

Friedrich Wilhelm Culemann was the eldest of three sons of Johann Dietrich Culemann and his wife Marie Elisabeth Albertine, née. Juergens. One of his brothers was the bookseller Friedrich Bernhard Culemann . In 1785 Friedrich Wilhelm Culemann joined the Braunschweig artillery regiment as a gunner . In January of the following year he was promoted to chief gunner and sent to the Collegium Carolinum for engineering training. In 1788, probably after completing his studies, he was appointed "Conductor" and assigned to the Chamber Building Department. At the beginning of 1794, his former superior from the artillery regiment worked to ensure that Culemann was able to build the officers' body. In the same year he appears to have been promoted to lieutenant . In 1799 he became a captain .

City plan from 1789

Culemann had already drawn up a map of the city of Braunschweig in 1789, which Philip Christian Ribbentrop used in the first volume of his description of the city of Braunschweig , published in the same year . The copper engraving has a scale of 1: 4000 and measures 35 × 39 cm. It shows the city within the Okerring and is particularly characterized by the exact reproduction of the course of the street. All churches and public buildings are shown in the floor plan, while all other buildings can only be seen as blocks.

In 1796 Culemann created another city map, which was added to the Braunschweig measuring and merchant calendar for the leap year 1796 . This calendar was very popular. This commercial success could have been an incentive for Culemann to continue working as a cartographer on his own responsibility.

Grinding of the ramparts

At the end of the 18th century, weapons technology and warfare had developed to such an extent that the city's ramparts and fortifications had become ineffective. For this reason, a " Wall Demolition Commission" was set up in 1797 to work out plans to demolish the fortifications and convert them into parks and residential areas. From 1801 onwards, Culemann was a member of this commission for the city's fortification, but soon handed the position over to Peter Joseph Krahe , who successfully completed the project. Culemann, however, remained in the building management.

City plan from 1798

In 1798 Culemann published a new city map of Braunschweig, in the preparation of which he had based on preliminary work by Andreas Carl Haacke from the years 1762–1765. At that time, Haacke measured the floor plans of the buildings and properties. This new city map had a scale of 1: 3000 and a sheet size of 54 × 48 cm. Culemann's plan from 1798 was the first city map printed in large numbers. In addition to the property boundaries, it also showed the building's insurance numbers . A new edition with corrections appeared in 1804.

Officer in French service

After the battle of Jena and Auerstedt , which was lost in 1806 , the Principality of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel was occupied by Napoleonic troops and, as the Oker department, was part of the newly formed Kingdom of Westphalia until the end of 1813 . Culemann seems to have worked for the French occupiers as a commissioner on the revision of the tax cadastre as well as on credit rating procedures in the department. 1812 Culemann was eventually officer in the 8th Westphalian corps and came well as part of Napoleon's " Grande Armée " during the Russian campaign in 1812 in a prisoner of war , he died in December 1812 in Orel.

reception

Culemann is considered one of the most productive urban draftsmen in Braunschweig. His city map from 1798 was the first to be printed on copper plates and thus could be produced quickly in relatively large numbers for the city administration as well as for merchants and travelers. Older plans, such as the hand-drawn Haackesche, had to be copied in a laborious and therefore time-consuming manner.

Today Culemann's original from 1798 is in the Braunschweig City Archives .

literature

Jürgen Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views. With an outline of the older city history and a time table by R. Moderhack . Edited by the city of Braunschweig / Vermessungsamt, Braunschweig 1981, pp. 154–157.

Web links

Commons : Friedrich Wilhelm Culemann - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Family table entry at genealogy.net

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views…. P. 155.
↑ ^a ^b ^{c family} tree at genealogy.net
↑ ^a ^b Wilhelm Hartwieg: Friedrich Culemann 1811–1886. In: Edgar Kalthoff (ed.): Lower Saxony life pictures. Eighth volume, August Lax Verlagbuchhandlung, Hildesheim 1973, p. 59.
↑ ^a ^b Chronicle of the city of Braunschweig for 1798 on braunschweig.de
^ ^A ^b Karl Ludolf Friedrich Lachmann : History of the city of Braunschweig from its creation to the end of 1815. Ludwig Lucius, Braunschweig 1816, p. XIII.
^ Philip Christian Ribbentrop : Description of the city of Braunschweig. Brunswick 1789.
↑ Simon Paulus, Ulrich Knufinke: The Braunschweiger Wallring. Guide to the history and architecture of a cultural and historical monument. with photographs by Heinz Kudalla, Appelhans Verlag, Braunschweig 2011, ISBN 978-3-941737-59-4 , p. 12.
↑ Wolfgang Meibeyer : The city of Braunschweig in the 18th century: townscape and real estate in Braunschweig after the survey by Andreas Carl Haacke 1762 to 1765. Braunschweig Community Foundation (ed.), Appelhans Verlag, Braunschweig 2007, ISBN 978-393766465-1 .

↑ Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views…. , P. 156.

↑ Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views…. , P. 154.

personal data
SURNAME	Culemann, Friedrich Wilhelm
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Culemann, FW
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German military engineer and cartographer
DATE OF BIRTH	1766
DATE OF DEATH	December 12, 1812
Place of death	Oryol

[Mertens155-1] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views…. P. 155.

[genealogy.net-2] {c family} tree at genealogy.net

[Hartwieg59-3] Wilhelm Hartwieg: Friedrich Culemann 1811–1886. In: Edgar Kalthoff (ed.): Lower Saxony life pictures. Eighth volume, August Lax Verlagbuchhandlung, Hildesheim 1973, p. 59.

[Chronik-4] Chronicle of the city of Braunschweig for 1798 on braunschweig.de

[LachmannXIII-5] A ^b Karl Ludolf Friedrich Lachmann : History of the city of Braunschweig from its creation to the end of 1815. Ludwig Lucius, Braunschweig 1816, p. XIII.

[6] Philip Christian Ribbentrop : Description of the city of Braunschweig. Brunswick 1789.

[7] Simon Paulus, Ulrich Knufinke: The Braunschweiger Wallring. Guide to the history and architecture of a cultural and historical monument. with photographs by Heinz Kudalla, Appelhans Verlag, Braunschweig 2011, ISBN 978-3-941737-59-4 , p. 12.

[8] Wolfgang Meibeyer : The city of Braunschweig in the 18th century: townscape and real estate in Braunschweig after the survey by Andreas Carl Haacke 1762 to 1765. Braunschweig Community Foundation (ed.), Appelhans Verlag, Braunschweig 2007, ISBN 978-393766465-1 .

[9] Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views…. , P. 156.

[10] Mertens: The recent history of the city of Braunschweig in maps, plans and views…. , P. 154.