Friedrichs Polytechnic
The Friedrichs-Polytechnikum was founded in 1891 as a private training institute for technicians in Köthen (Anhalt) . It came into municipal ownership in 1897 and was given the name of Duke Friedrich II in 1906. In 1919 it became the Köthen Commercial and Commercial College . It later went to the Anhalt University of Applied Sciences .
background
At the end of the 19th century, Anhalt-Köthen had modern industry and agriculture . From 1841 Köthen became an important railway junction . The duchy produced 30% of the German rock salt and took 6th place in the production of lignite . In the highly rated soils , agriculture was highly productive, especially in the cultivation and processing of sugar beet . The power engineering brought the construction of power plants and distribution networks , by companies in the chemical -, metallurgy - and textile industry as well as factories for paper - glass - and ceramic production . So that this development did not bypass Köthen, the association for the promotion of non-profit interests wanted to make the location for commercial and industrial settlements more attractive. Creative and productive citizens should be won over as company founders. The establishment of a teaching institute was seen as crucial.
founding
The institute was opened on May 4, 1891 with six students, in the following winter semester there were already 50. Teaching took place in Köthen Castle as well as in the Marstall , in the Remise and in the pavilion .
With a contract dated December 30, 1891, the association won Edgar Holzapfel from Magdeburg as director and owner of the academy. In his memorandum The Technical Schools and Universities and the Needs of German Industry (1893) he stated “that the universities understand chemistry and physics as pure natural sciences, whereas the applied natural sciences, that is mechanics and chemical technology, found no foster home. “ According to Holzapfel, the latter also applied to the technical universities . Located between the university and the technical middle school, the technical center should fill the gap with practical training on a scientific basis. Holzapfel's concept was not approved by the Anhalt government; because she saw the inherent academic claim as not achievable. Nonetheless, it approved an engineering degree , which the technical colleges rejected.
Regardless of this, the facility, renamed as the “Higher Technical Institute”, quickly gained a good reputation. Thanks to its qualified teaching staff, 247 students were already enrolled in the winter semester 1894/95, 45 of them foreigners. Since the institute essentially had to pay for itself, high tuition fees had to be charged. Holzapfel directed his energies to the construction of a study building and won the city council of Köthen for it.
building
The school building was built according to a design by the Köthen city architect Paul Bunzel . The historic brick building has a basement made of basement and three and a half storeys , the facade is rhythmized by three risalits . The rich ashlar structure shows forms of the Neo-Renaissance . The foundation stone was laid on November 28, 1896 . After eleven months, on 18./19. October 1897 the central section of the “Red Building” was inaugurated. The side wings had also been completed by 1900.
In the immediate vicinity, the Green Building was built in functional forms in 1924–1926 based on a design by the architect Hermann Heinze . The Halle painter Richard Degenkolbe (1890–1974) designed the colored glazing above the entrance portal and in the intermediate building to the lecture hall as well as the colored painting of the ceilings and walls.
Development until 1914
Holzapfel withdrew from the company and sold the institute to the city in 1897, but construction continued thanks to the foresight of key members of the magistrate. In 1902 it was decided to build a machine laboratory. Recognized experts taught at what was now the Municipal Technical Institute in Köthen . These included Karl Hermann Zipp (high voltage technology), Dr. Frederick Dupré (electrochemistry) and Dr. Hinz (chemical technology). In 1904 Karl Friedrich Foehr was appointed director because he combined in-depth theoretical knowledge with extensive practical experience. He consolidated the institute's middle position between universities and technical secondary schools. In order to raise the level and reputation of the Polytechnic, under his influence the admission requirements were raised, the duration of the studies extended, uniform examination regulations introduced and the curriculum constantly expanded. From 1905, the Polytechnic was under the supervision of the Anhalt Government, School System Department, and was represented by a commissioner for the acceptance of diplomas. The facilities to be provided were determined by a statute approved by the state government in Dessau on October 1, 1905.
Friedrichs Polytechnic
On August 7, 1906, the school in Köthen was renamed the Städtisches Friedrichs-Polytechnikum after the reigning Duke Friedrich II . Internal supervision was the responsibility of a board of trustees, which consisted of the mayor and four other members to be named to the government. The board of trustees, in whose meetings the director had to attend, had to decide on all financial matters. The annual budget was about 250,000 marks . The costs of teaching were to be raised solely from the tuition fees. The director entrusted with the management and representation of the Polytechnic externally was responsible for both instances. The lecturers were at his side in an advisory capacity for internal decisions and regulations, and as a decision-making body in examination and disciplinary matters. For admission to the teaching body, a lecturer had to prove the final examination at a nine-level higher education institution, a completed university education and five years of professional experience.
In order to impart practical knowledge and skills, not only the lecturers were selected under this aspect; But also in teaching, special emphasis was placed on exercises, colloquia , seminars and excursions to illustrate the subject matter. In 1907 the following branches of study were represented at the Polytechnic:
- Mechanical engineering (general machine technology, administrative technology)
- Electrical engineering (general electrical engineering, laboratory technology)
- Technical chemistry (general technical chemistry, gas technology, paper technology , photochemistry , electrochemistry )
- Metallurgy (general metallurgical engineering, iron and steel engineering, metalworking engineering)
- Ceramics (general ceramics, cement technology , glass technology )
In addition, specialist courses in sugar technology and spark telegraphy were offered. For those interested, there were summer courses for colonial technology. These special lectures were given by professors from the Technical University of Charlottenburg , the University of Halle and other universities.
The study building, equipped with all the technical equipment of the time, surrounded ten lecture halls , eight drawing rooms and 38 collection and experiment rooms , nine laboratories as well as the mineralogical-geological, mechanical-technological and photographic institute, as well as collections of apparatus, demonstration objects, templates, drawings and extensive material collections from the nine departments. The library recorded the German patent specifications and around 200 daily and specialist newspapers.
At the end of the semester in 1911, Esperanto was introduced at the Polytechnic as the first German university for commercial engineers as a compulsory examination subject in the written and optional in the oral pre- examination .
Conditions for registration
The admission requirement for students was - as with the technical universities - the maturity certificate of a nine-level higher educational institution. In addition to the students, listeners were admitted who had a certificate of competency for one-year voluntary military service ( secondary school leaving certificate ). They too could be admitted to the exams and obtain an engineering diploma.
Self-management
The visitors to the Polytechnic were insured through an academic health insurance for illnesses and all accidents related to the training company. The students and listeners elected a committee that had a seat and vote in the German student body to represent them. The foundation of clubs and student associations required the approval of the director.
Study operation
The normal duration of study for all courses was seven semesters. In terms of their form, the engineering examinations corresponded to those of the diploma examinations at the technical universities, with a preliminary examination at the beginning of the fifth and a main examination after seven semesters. Certified semesters from universities and technical colleges were fully credited, those from higher technical colleges were credited half. The exams were taken in the departments in front of an examination board by three lecturers. Under the chairmanship of the director, it also included the head of department and another examiner, as well as the state commissioner for the main examinations.
After hesitant reluctance, the ducal government recognized the intermediate position of the Köthen educational institution between a technical university and a technical middle school (technical college) in 1910. She accepted the arguments of the proponents of the Polytechnic, who had formulated in a memorandum, "The industry demands a large number of young people who understand how to apply the results of scientific research in practical life." The increasing number of matriculations confirmed the correctness of this strategy . In 1910 619 students were enrolled, 180 of them foreigners from all over the world, especially Russians , and in 1912 the first women.
At that time, too, the Polytechnic was on its own to finance its day-to-day business operations and had to secure it through the tuition fees. The state only supported the city with buildings and equipment on a case-by-case basis.
External impact
Externally, the Polytechnic had to defend itself against attacks because of its middle position. The Association of German Diploma Engineers questioned the academic character and questioned the training results. Foehr countered this by stating that the technical universities themselves had largely emerged from polytechnics. The resulting gap in engineering education should be closed in the interests of industry. Heinrich Müller-Breslau found that the Köthen students received a solid education. In a memorandum, Hans Bredow demonstrated that the engineers were welcomed with open arms by the industry and that many had taken on leading positions in a short time.
First World War
The First World War left only 60 unfit students in Köthen. The institute continued teaching under increasingly difficult circumstances, but at the end of the war it was heavily indebted and in a catastrophic state. 276 students died in the war.
Weimar Republic
The conditions at the Polytechnic were subject to completely new socio-political conditions in the Weimar Republic ; Even in this epoch the development into a technical university did not succeed. The now Free State of Anhalt was ruled by a social democratic president. He appointed Hugo Junkers State Secretary for Testing at the Polytechnic. The school management continued to nationalize the facility. It promised a broader financial base and progress on the way to recognition as a technical university; however, the state government rejected all applications until 1933 on the grounds that there was no money available and that only a minority of the students were citizens of Anhalt .
Municipal college of trade and commerce
The only result of these efforts was that in 1919 the State Council renamed the Polytechnic the Municipal Trade and Commerce College . He also decreed that successful lecturers could be awarded the title of professor and that the previous “polytechnicians” could now officially call themselves students . Regardless of this, the school was continuously expanded. As early as 1919, the department of commercial science and engineering, a construction department and the chair for electrical measurement technology were established. Total expenditures for the improvement of the study facilities in 1920/21 of 1.5 million marks contrasted with state grants of 50,000 marks. The tuition fees had to be increased.
At that time, 1,071 people were studying in Köthen, 27 of them mechanical engineering, 150 electrical engineering, 60 technical chemistry including glass and sugar technology, 60 metallurgy and ceramics, 89 commercial science, 49 paper technology and seven civil engineering. Among them were eight women and 49 foreigners. The number of students rose to 1,300 in 1921 and 1,500 in 1923. Their social composition changed due to members of the middle and working class.
Against the opposition of some lecturers and the administrative commissioner, efforts by the student body began in 1919 to have a say and to be represented by a general student committee . A constitution was drafted for the AStA with the significant participation of the corporations. It was accepted by the students and finally confirmed by the university administration. The chamber was elected in early 1920, and offices, committees and an executive board were formed or filled. The corporations, especially the corps , gained significant influence over student representation.
Rector and State
In order to bring the situation in line with those of the technical universities, the Board of Trustees decided in 1920 to introduce a Senate constitution with an elected rector at the head of the seven-member Senate . Foehr was elected as the first rector, Zipp and Michel in the Senate. As one of the first official acts, the new rector submitted a renewed application to the state government for the nationalization of the university, because the majority of the students from the middle class could not bear the high fees of 1,000 marks annually, which the privately financed institution had to charge to cover costs. The majority in the state parliament supported the proposal, but the State Council again "finally" rejected it. As a result, the tuition fees had to be increased further to around 1,300 RM, although they are now double the usual fees for comparable institutions. To cover the budget gap of around 500,000 marks for a budget of 2 million marks, funding had to be sought from private donors and donors. The efforts failed to remedy the existential situation that occurred at the end of 1921. The institution's authorization as a university was still being scrutinized. In a negotiation with President Heinrich Deist senior at the beginning of 1922, Hugo Junkers' commitment to maintaining the university as a training center for the practice-oriented, economically trained engineer was the decisive factor. Responsibility for the further development of the school was transferred to the city under its own responsibility and the state subsidy was increased to 300,000 marks annually. The city council then decided on further expansion and financial support.
The hyperinflation of 1923 destroyed these approaches again. At the same time, the arguments about the status of the school continued both internally and externally with increased intensity. Junkers was given the task of appointing Wilhelm Schlink, an expert who, as a recognized scientist and practitioner, would evaluate the connection between science, technology and economy pursued in Köthen. Junkers wanted to prove that the polytechnic was absolutely worth preserving in the economic as well as in the interests of the city and the country. In his report, Schlink emphasized the favorable overall impression of the Polytechnic, but excluded the branch of the commercial college, which had only been established three years earlier, as alien to the profile. He suggested structural improvements in individual areas and emphasized the value of training for broad specialist areas of industrial practice. He also advocated recognition as a university with a corresponding constitution. However, he recommended to explain the courses for the students obligatory and the fabric even more seminar-like to work out and introduce annual intermediate examinations.
In the summer of 1923, the Dessau government approved the rectorate's constitution. At the same time she demanded the dissolution of the branch of the commercial college. When states such as Austria and Czechoslovakia recognized the Koethen engineering degree as a state university degree, the Anhalt State Presidium could no longer avoid officially confirming the university status. It finally approved the 1920 statutes in October 1925, which saw some changes. The rector's term of office was set at three years. The magistrate and the board of trustees - in which the rector and lecturers were also represented - appointed an administrative director for day-to-day operations. In the Senate sat next to the rector, vice-rectors and department heads. The student body was not represented in the organs. The name Friedrichs-Polytechnikum, Städtische Gewerbehochschule zu Cöthen remained.
Course offer
From then on, the character of the Polytechnic was shaped by the mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, technical chemistry, technology and technically-oriented business administration departments . Power engineering , botany , ethics and aesthetics , history , aeronautics and law were included in the curricula as supplementary subjects . From 1924 a new building was built for the chemical-technological institute. The Anhalt government even refused a loan for it . The city of Köthen took over the financing for this trend-setting structure. She also bore the cost of a new auditorium maximum . The institute was inaugurated on the day the university was founded, on May 4, 1926, under the rectorate of Zipp, who had been elected in May 1925.
Dorm
In 1927 the first student dormitory in Köthen was inaugurated. As early as 1923, it has been possible to offer cheaper meals in a former restaurant, and after the purchase of a suitable building, lounge, reading and work rooms were set up next to the cafeteria . The home had to support itself and was decisively promoted by the old men of the Köthen corporations.
blossom
The status assurance in connection with the better secured financial basis caused the Koethen Polytechnic to flourish in the following years, especially since it was able to optimally serve the needs of the enormously developing industry in Germany in almost all of its areas with well-trained young engineers.
Famous students
- Alfred Schmidt (1879 - after 1931), German mechanical engineer and manager
- Friedrich Hamann (1889 - after 1930), German engineer and manager of the energy industry
- Rudolf Schlidt (1914–2012), German-American engineer and space pioneer
literature
- Memorandum of the Askanischer Senioren-Conventes at the Städtisches Friedrichs-Polytechnikum. Cöthen 1907.
- Karl Friedrich Foehr: The urban Friedrichs-Polytechnikum. Cöthen 1909.
- Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Koethen 1991.
- Heinrich Diedler: Changes in engineering studies and corporations in the early 20th century using the example of the Köthen Polytechnic. In: then and now . Volume 57, 2012, pp. 309-323.
Web links
- Literature by and about Friedrichs-Polytechnikum in the catalog of the German National Library
- Daniel Weihmann: Anhalt University of Applied Sciences - Koethen location . Text from 2009 on www.koethener-land.de , last accessed on December 20, 2017
Individual evidence
- ↑ Friedrichs-Polytechnikum (City of Koethen)
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 3.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 7.
- ^ The green building of the Anhalt University of Applied Sciences after the reconstruction
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 5.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 9.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 9, p. 11.
- ^ Memorandum of 1907, p. 63.
- ↑ Review of the year 1911. In: Germana Esperantisto - Der Deutsche Esperantist. 9th year, No. 1, p. 5.
- ↑ Memorandum of 1907, p. 72 ff.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 10.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 11.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 12.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 14.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 16.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 19.
- ↑ Horst-G. Richter: Festschrift 100 years of the Technical University of Koethen. Köthen 1991, p. 21.
Coordinates: 51 ° 45 ′ 16.4 ″ N , 11 ° 58 ′ 12.1 ″ E