Georg Ritter (publisher)

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Georg Ritter (Illustration in: Ludwig Molitor, Georg Ritter: a life outline , 1890)

Georg Ritter (born May 7, 1795 in Zweibrücken , † January 1, 1854 there ) was a publisher , printer and bookseller from Zweibrücken . He was actively involved in the democracy movement at the beginning of March by supporting the actors of the Hambach Festival and printing their newspapers and pamphlets despite press censorship .

Life

Childhood and youth

Georg Ritter was born as the third child of Johannes Ritter and his first wife Juliane Stein. His father was Bleicher ( blanchisseur ) career and led his own company in Two Bridges at Bleicherbach in Contwiger way. After graduating from primary school, Georg attended some classes at the Zweibrücker Gymnasium Bipontinum from 1807 , which he left without a qualification. After finishing school, he began an apprenticeship as a printer at the Zweibrücker printing company Hall & Weinhard , which was initially continued by his widow after the death of the owner Johannes Hall. Already in 1816/17 she gave up the business and handed it over to the book printer Eberhard Baur, a nephew of Hall who, together with JF Rost from Pirmasens, ran the Rost und Baur printing company , later Baur and Comp. , business. Baur also employed Georg Ritter and continued his training.

Self-employment and marriage

On February 27, 1818, Baur died as a result of an illness and Ritter continued the business under the name "Rittersche Buchhandlung in Zweibrücken, founded 1818". On the printed matter, especially the Zweibrücker Wochenblatt , “Baur und Comp.” Was stated as the publisher until 1822, then “Ritter und Comp.”.

Georg Ritter and his wife Friederike Barbara. Painting by Karl Hoffmann (1816–1886)

On May 21, 1819, one year after taking over the printing company, Ritter married Friederike Barbara, widowed seven years her senior, née Schmidt (1788–1849), the widow of his late trainer. His wife brought four daughters and one son into the marriage. Ritter's stepdaughter Friederike Wilhelmine (1810–1885) later married the businessman Christian Dingler from Zweibrücken, his stepdaughter Caroline Elisabeth married the coppersmith Johann Christian Wery in 1835.

In addition, Ritter and his wife Friederike Barbara had four biological daughters and a son who, however, died in childhood. His eldest daughter Rosina (1819–1895) became the wife of the poet and later peace and district judge Karl Joseph Schuler (1810–1889). His daughter Johanna Friederika (1825–1903) married the printer August Kranzbühler (1823–1889), who later succeeded Georg Ritter.

Two years after his marriage, in August 1821, Ritter relocated his business to what was then Zweibrücker Pfarrgasse, today Ritterstrasse. There, with the support of his youngest daughter Julie, he also ran a bookstore and reading group .

Before the Hambach Festival

From 1830 Georg Ritter supported the initiators of the Hambach Festival , especially Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer and Johann Georg August Wirth , by printing their fonts despite censorship and the risk that printing presses and printed matter could be confiscated.

The Messenger from the West, title page from March 12, 1831

Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer had his epic poem printed in twelve songs by Ritter in 1824 . From autumn 1830 Siebenpfeiffer published his critical magazine Rheinbayern under the influence of the French July Revolution , the first edition of which led to his immediate removal from office as Land Commissioner in Homburg. This magazine was also printed by Ritter. In 1831 the messenger from the west followed , for which Ritter and Siebenpfeiffer operated further printing presses in Oggersheim , which were, however, confiscated by the government. Ritter and Siebenpfeiffer filed a lawsuit against this measure against the government of the Rhine district, which, however, was rejected by the Zweibrück appellate court because of the "lack of jurisdiction of the courts to judge administrative measures".

Footer of the German tribune dated January 6, 1832, with the addition: "Printed by G. Ritter in Zweibrücken"

Since July 1831 Johann Georg August Wirth published the daily newspaper Deutsche Tribüne in Munich . At the end of 1831, Wirth moved the editorial team to Homburg in the Rhine district , where he printed the newspaper on his own high-speed press from January 1, 1832. The Landkommissariat Homburg did not approve the printing works, so Wirth brought his press to Georg Ritter in Zweibrücken, who started printing the newspaper on January 6, 1832. Wirth pointed out Ritter's commitment in the January 6th issue:

“To the audience.
We have received news from various quarters that the rumor is being spread among the audience that the obstacles placed in the way of the platform are too great for them to be overcome. In order not to be deceived by such rumors, we declare that the government, without using overt violence, has no power to prevent our journal from appearing. A press of the entrepreneurs has been sealed by an interference in the state constitution, only Mr. Ritter in Zweibrücken, who will never withdraw his support for the holy cause, has temporarily taken over the pressure of the tribune. "

- The editorial staff of the German tribune : Deutsche Tribüne, No. 5, January 6, 1832

After the final ban on the grandstand , it was continued with six pamphlets, which were also printed by Ritter. He also published a large number of other liberal pamphlets, many of them for the press association founded in January 1832 , which was committed to the introduction of freedom of the press . In some cases, Ritter printed the fonts anonymously, without specifying the place of printing and with the wrong imprint. These activities brought him into conflict with the law, so he was sentenced to six days in prison for distributing and printing anonymous literature and ten days in prison for insulting customs officials.

There is evidence that Ritter took part in the Hambach Festival, but escaped charges against the participants in the main proceedings. Rather, his publishing house even published the documentation of the proceedings at the Landau jury ( assis proceedings ) against the speakers at the Hambach Festival.

The time after 1832

After the Hambach Festival, Ritter continued to publish the Zweibrücker Wochenblatt . Until 1837 the paper was mainly distributed in the Zweibrücken and Homburg area, after which it expanded its catchment area to include the Kusel area . The proceeds from the newspaper as well as regular reprints of the Protestant hymnbook, which Ritter had produced in large editions since 1823, formed the main income of the printing company. This secure income enabled him to produce complex printing works that were associated with financial risks. This included, for example, a historical-topographical steam navigation atlas of the Rhine from the source to the mouth (1842), an atlas about the Palatinate. Special maps of the twelve Land Commissariat districts (1840) as well as 24 large-format, hand-colored panels with indigenous poisonous plants (1844).

Ritter's political views remained moderately liberal, as can be seen from his correspondence in the 1840s. His political commitment was limited to the city of Zweibrücken, where he acted as a city councilor for the population and was made an honorary citizen. During the famine of 1847, which was caused by crop failures due to the potato rot, he was committed to helping people in need and setting up a "power soup supply facility". After the publication of an insulting article against a wealthy landowner, from which Ritter, as a member of the “Commission for Poor Care”, had unsuccessfully asked for financial support, he was fined by the Zweibrücken District Court for refusing to disclose the author's name. Despite the punishment, however, the court praised him in the judgment that he was "very active in caring for the poor".

Grave of Georg Ritter (1795–1854) and his family

Until 1849, Ritter was solely responsible for the printing and bookshop. After the death of his wife on June 26, 1849, he hired his son-in-law and successor August Kranzbühler as managing director and began to withdraw from the business. In October he sold his bookstore to Johann Christian Herbart from Urnshausen in the Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach and only kept the publishing and distribution of the weekly newspaper and the Zweibrücker Volkskalender under his own responsibility.

Georg Ritter died on January 1st, 1854 at the age of 58. His grave is in the Zweibrücken main cemetery, next to the graves of his wife and stepdaughter Elisabetha Baur. Ritter's gravestone no longer bears any inscription. The grave slab that was formerly attached there is in the archives of the Zweibrücken City Museum after it was stolen and later found again by chance at a flea market.

Ritterstrasse in Zweibrücken

In 1902, the Pfarrgasse, in which Ritter ran his print shop and bookstore, was renamed Ritterstrasse in his honor. The Pfarrgasse ended in 1840 at the intersection with Wallstrasse, so it was only about half as long as it is today, as can be seen on a contemporary city map of Zweibrücken, which was also printed by Ritter. Despite the importance of his company, the exact location of Ritter's house in the street is not known.

printing house

Stereotype printing

In his printing company, Georg Ritter successfully relied on the technical achievements of his time. He introduced stereotype printing as early as 1823 . With this printing process, the print side is no longer made up of individual composite types, but consists of a full-surface metal plate. In order to produce this plate, a plaster cast (matrix) of the set side was made, which, after drying, was filled with lead and antimony. This method, which was already known at the end of the 18th century, was improved at the beginning of the 19th century by the British Charles Stanhope and was subsequently widely used. The advantage of stereotype is that it makes the production of long runs and reprints much easier: The plaster casts can be reused several times to produce several identical printing plates. In addition, they can easily be stored for future reprints. However, the manufacture of the printing plates requires high precision, especially when casting the metal and then cooling it down.

Ritter was able to produce the panels in high quality in-house. For this purpose he ran his own small foundry in the attic of his house. In this way, for example, in 1823 he produced the hymnbook for worship for Protestant-Evangelical Christians in a first edition of 30,000 copies.

Dinglerpresse from 1845; Deutsches Museum , Munich

Printing presses

In order to produce such large quantities, Ritter used four iron printing presses , some of them using the latest technology, also developed by Charles Stanhope. With the Stanhope press , a new type of lever system saved energy. In addition, it was easier to handle, as the ink balls previously used were replaced by ink rollers. In addition to the iron presses, Ritter also used an older type of wood press and a stone printing press for the production of lithographs .

Georg Ritter was also involved in the further development of the printing press by familiarizing the Zweibrücken entrepreneur Christian Dingler , who later invented the so-called Dingler press , with the technology of the printing presses: When Ritter’s stepdaughter Friederike Wilhelmine married the skilled metalworker Christian Dingler, he had been in charge since 1827 the blacksmith and locksmith's workshop taken over by his father and mainly manufactured oil mills and cutting mills. After his marriage, Dingler began to deal with the technology of printing presses, which at the time were mainly imported from England and the USA. In doing so, he developed a toggle press by 1834 , which was produced in large numbers under the name Zweibrücker Press or Dinglerpresse and which was delivered to Switzerland and Scandinavia. The pressure plate of the dingler press could be precisely adjusted using two screw springs and, thanks to the toggle lever, lowered with a single lever movement and simultaneously pressed onto the set. That made it the leading press in Europe for years and was the reason for Dingler's rise as an entrepreneur. His father-in-law was also a customer: in the first business book of the Dingler machine factory it is documented that one of the Dingler presses was sold to Georg Ritter.

Vignettes

In his foundry, Ritter produced not only the stereotypes but also the printing forms for the vignettes to decorate his printed matter. Ritter's biographer Ludwig Alois Molitor reports 733 vignettes from his own production, which Ritter also made available to other printing companies.

  • Vignette from “The Rhine from its sources in Switzerland to its mouth in the North Sea” by Georg Ritter

Publications from the Georg Ritters print shop (selection)

Title of the weekly paper for the districts of Zweibrücken, Homburg and Cusel from January 1, 1843

Zweibrücker Wochenblatt

An important mainstay for his printing company was the Zweibrücker Wochenblatt , which was published by Ritter from 1819 to 1854 and whose editing was also his responsibility. In the early days, the paper appeared once a week and contained advertisements and local news. In the course of time, Ritter developed a large-format newspaper published three times a week in which political news from home and abroad was also printed. From 1843 onwards, every issue also contained the supplement Palatine sheets for history, poetry and entertainment .

Most of the years after 1823 are available online as digital copies:

Title page of the hymnal for worship purposes , 5th edition, 1832

Theological works

Another lucrative client for Ritter was the Protestant Church: After the merger of the Lutheran and Reformed Churches in the Palatinate in August 1818, the newly formed United Protestant-Christian Church of the Palatinate needed a new hymn book, the production of which was commissioned by the Consistory at Ritter. The first edition of 30,000 copies of the hymn book for worship for Protestant-Evangelical Christians (in the Bavarian Rhine District) was printed in 1823, a second edition followed in 1824. By 1852 Ritter had a total of 11 editions. After his death, further editions were reprinted unchanged in Speyer by Daniel Kranzbühler (1829-1892), the brother of his son-in-law August.

Ritter was a Catholic, his wife a Protestant, so it is not surprising that he produced theological works for both denominations, such as a Complete Prayer Book for Catholic Christians or the Mass Booklet for the Dear Youth, in which the acts of Holy Mass related to the The passion of Jesus is presented in 36 pictures. In addition to the usual devotional exercises of a Catholic Christian (1827).

Both the hymn book - in the 5th edition from 1832 - and the prayer book are available online as digital copies:

Educational works

Some of these theological works were intended for teaching in schools, another focus of Ritter's work. In cooperation with the professors of the Zweibrücker Gymnasium Bipontinum, he published educational works and readings for the classroom. This includes

  • A series of 16 standard works in Greek literature
  • Textbooks for learning the English and French languages, in particular according to the universal tuition method established by the French scholar Jean Joseph Jacotot in 1818. Jacotot's books, in which he described his teaching method, were also published in translation by JP Krieger von Ritter. ( Digitized version )
  • School readings in English and French
  • Geography textbooks and atlases

Regional literature

German literature published by Ritter was mostly from local authors, such as

  • Several volumes of poetry by Ritter's son-in-law Karl Joseph Schuler: Der Sommer ( digitized version ), Kleist ( digitized version )
  • Siebenpfeiffer's epic poem in twelve songs ( digital version )
  • Several volumes of poetry by JP Krieger, a grammar school teacher from Zweibrücken, for example poems by a Zweibrücker ( digitized version )

Maps and travel literature

Excerpt from "The Rhine from its sources in Switzerland to its mouth in the North Sea", page 11

Many of the historical works as well as maps and travel literature printed by Ritter also had a regional reference. In the 1840s in particular, elaborately produced maps were produced as color prints. A highlight of his work was the map of the Rhine, published around 1842, which Ritter presented to the German booksellers' meeting in Leipzig, whereupon he was unanimously chosen by the meeting as the one who prints the most beautifully in Germany .

  • L. Gaab, W. Becker, Georg Ritter: Plan and views of Zweibrücken, 1: 5,000, lithography . Ritter, Zweibrücken 1840 ( digitized version ).
  • Georg Ritter: The Palatinate. Special maps of the twelve Land Commissariat districts, on a scale of 1/111600 natural length, together with the general map of the Palatinate and the Bliesgau after the territorial division before the French Revolution . Ritter, Zweibrücken 1840 ( digitized version ).
  • The Rhine from its sources in Switzerland to its mouth in the North Sea: historical-topographical steam shipping atlas . Ritter, Zweibrücken 1842 ( digitized ).
  • The Rhine through the Rheinpfalz and the Rheingau to Coeln. Historical-topographical steam navigation map with city plans and vignettes in 4 sections . Ritter, Zweibrücken ( digitized - no year approx. 1842).

Legal works

The five French law books in German according to the best translations, Zweibrücken, Georg Ritter, 1827

From 1816, Zweibrücken was the seat of the Court of Appeal , later the Higher Regional Court . Therefore, many works of law and political science were published in Zweibrücken and printed by Ritter. These included, for example:

  • The five French law books in German according to the best translations , also known as Cinq codes , which go back to Napoleon and were introduced in Germany on the left bank of the Rhine from 1804
  • Minutes of proceedings before the appellate court, in particular of the trial against the initiators and participants of the Hambach Festival: Ludwig Hoffmann (Ed.): Complete negotiations before the king. Bayer. Appeal courts against Dr. Wirth, Siebenpfeifer, Stockdörfer etc.… G. Ritter, Zweibrücken 1833 ( digitized version ).
  • Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer: Handbook of the constitution, court rules and entire administration of Rhine Bavaria . 1831 ( digitized ).
Leaflet 3 of the German Press and Fatherland Association, Zweibrücken, Georg Ritter, 1832

Writings of the democracy movement

The initiators of the Hambach Festival as well as the other members of the German Press Association were the editors and authors of the newspapers and pamphlets from Ritter's printing works, which appeared in 1832 during the preparation time for the Hambach Festival:

Newspapers

  • Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer (Ed.): Rheinbayern, a comparative journal for the constitution, legislation, administration of justice, the entire administration and popular life of constitutional domestic and foreign countries, especially France . ( Digitized version ). , 1830-1831
  • Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer (ed.): The messenger from the west . 1831 ( digitized ). , No. 1-131
  • Johann Georg August Wirth (ed.): German tribune . , from January 6, 1832 - March 21, 1832 (prohibition)

Pamphlets

  • Immanuel Hermann Fichte : Germany, what it is and what it must be; with special consideration for Prussia and Bavaria. A writing that will not be forbidden if you read it completely and recognize its purpose . 1831 ( digitized ). (published anonymously)
  • Johann Georg August Wirth: Appeal to the people's friends in Germany . 1832.
  • Johann Georg August Wirth: The political reform of Germany. One more urgent word to the German friends of the people . 1832.
  • Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer: Just and persistent. A free addition to the Rheinbayern magazine . 1831.
  • Leaflet 1. In it: The violence. German Press Association. Letters from Paris. Poland. 1832 ( digitized version ).
  • Leaflet 2. In it: The Poland Comité in Paris and the aristocracy. The violence. Letter from Russia to German patriots. Triumph of the popular cause. German Press Association . 1832 ( digitized version ).
  • Leaflet 3. The Patriotic Press Association and the Bavarian Government. 1832 ( digitized version ).
  • Leaflet 4. On the Law and Treatment of Foreigners in the Bavarian Rhine District . 1832 ( digitized version ).
  • Leaflet 5. Our happiness . 1832 ( digitized version ).
  • Leaflet 6. The Minister's Trap. German citizens protest for freedom of the press in Germany. 1832 ( digitized version ).

Web links

Commons : Georg Ritter (publisher)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

literature

  • Martin Baus (ed.): Power and freedom - the road of democracy in Homburg and Zweibrücken. A route companion . Saarpfalz-Kreis, Homburg 2011, ISBN 3-9807983-9-9 .
  • Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . In: Palatine works on books and libraries and on bibliography . Issue 2. Palatinate State Library, Speyer 1957 (16 pages).
  • Ludwig Molitor : Georg Ritter: an outline of life . Ed .: Otto Dingler. Hallanzy, Zweibrücken 1890 ( dilibri.de [accessed September 7, 2019]).

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ In addition to 1795, 1793 is also the date of birth in the literature. Karl-Heinz Schuler already points out in his biography Ritters from 1957 that Molitor incorrectly gives 1793 as his date of birth in his life outline of 1890.
  2. ↑ a b c d Martin Baus: The backbone of the democracy movement . In: Palatine Merkur . November 8, 2013.
  3. ^ Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 3 .
  4. ^ A b c Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 5 .
  5. ^ Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 4 .
  6. ↑ Obituary . In: Intelligence Journal of the Rhine District . Speyer March 17, 1818.
  7. ↑ General address book for the German book trade, the antiquarian, colportage, art, map and music trade as well as related branches of business . 1852 ( bsb-muenchen.de ).
  8. ↑ Pioneer of tourism literature. In: The Rhine Palatinate . November 5, 2018, accessed September 7, 2019 .
  9. ↑ Philipp Jakob Siebenpfeiffer: Rheinbayern: a comparative journal for the constitution, legislation, administration of justice, entire administration and people's life in constitutional domestic and foreign countries, especially France. First edition. 1830 .;
  10. ^ A b Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 10 .
  11. ↑ Presentation, commentary, glossary, register, documents . In: Elisabeth Hüls, Hedwig Herold Schmidt (ed.): Deutsche Tribüne (1831 - 1832) . tape 2 . Walter de Gruyter, 2011, ISBN 978-3-11-095402-9 , pp. 569 .
  12. ↑ Issues of the German Tribune in book format from January 1, 1832 (PDF)
  13. ^ Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 12 .
  14. ^ Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 9 .
  15. ↑ a b Confirmed personally by Dr. Charlotte Glück, director of the Zweibrücken City Museum.
  16. ↑ L. Gaab, W. Becker, Georg Ritter: Plan and views of Zweibrücken, 1: 5,000, lithography . Ritter, Zweibrücken 1840 ( deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de ).
  17. ↑ Ludwig Molitor: Georg Ritter: a life outline . S. 11-12 .
  18. ↑ Judith Hörle: From the worker's son to the factory owner . In: The Rhine Palatinate . September 27, 2008.
  19. ^ Karl-Heinz Schuler: The Zweibrücker printer Georg Ritter . S. 7 .
  20. ↑ Ludwig Molitor: Georg Ritter: a life outline . S. 15 .
  21. ↑ Ludwig Molitor: Georg Ritter: a life outline . S. 16-17 .
  22. ^ Karl-Heinz Schuler and Heinz Kastner: Bibliography of the knight prints . In: Palatine works on books and libraries and on bibliography . Issue 2. Palatinate State Library, Speyer 1957 (24 pages).
personal data
SURNAME Ritter, Georg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German publisher and printer
DATE OF BIRTH May 7, 1795
PLACE OF BIRTH Zweibrücken
DATE OF DEATH January 1, 1854
Place of death Zweibrücken