German Hubert Christian Maaßen

German Maaßen, pastor for 50 years in Hemmerich

German Hubert Christian Maaßen , also Germanus Hubert Christian Maaßen (born September 18, 1825 in Haaren near Aachen , † January 12, 1910 in Bonn ) was a German Catholic pastor and ancient historian .

Life

Youth and Education

Maaßen was born as the first of the five children of the tailor Gerhard Joseph Maaßen and his wife, the landlady Maria Catherina née Heiligers, in Haaren, what is now a district of Aachen. On the same day he was in the St. Germanus von Auxerre was baptized the Haaren parish church of St. Germanus and was given the name of the local parish priest Germanus.

The not very wealthy parents are said to have been able to teach their eldest son to a secondary school relatively late. Probably on the advice of the pastor in Haaren, Maaßen then attended the Aachen Marianum grammar school of the Jesuit order , today's Kaiser-Karls-Gymnasium , where he distinguished himself with particularly good performance, which was reflected in the grades of his school leaving certificate .

Since his professional ideas had solidified early on, a private Aachen study foundation made it possible for him to study at the University of Bonn , which he registered for the winter semester of 1848 and began studying theology, which he successfully completed after six semesters in the summer of 1851. His studies are described as a time of intensive learning, in which he did not leave out remote subjects in addition to the core subjects theology and philosophy . The professor for Oriental languages ​​at the time certified him on Friday that he had an excellent knowledge of the Arabic language. Immediately after his studies in Bonn, Maaßen moved to Cologne and entered the local seminary of the Archdiocese of Cologne and was ordained a priest on September 2, 1852 by Cardinal Johannes von Geissel .

Priestly career

Maaßen was now 27 years old and initially worked as a vicar for four years. So in Ratheim and in the then still independent community Rodenkirchen with its medieval church St.Maternus . It is possible that a photograph was taken at this time that showed him as a young clergyman in a cassock . From 1858 he was house chaplain at Ehreshoven Castle and in the spring of 1862 he became a full-time pastor of Hemmerich and Kardorf .

Pastor and school caretaker

German Maaßen in front of his parish church

The village Hemmerich ( etymologically "on the high mountain"), located on the back of the Ville , formed a coherent community in the Waldorf mayorry with the village of Kardorf at the foot of the Ville (in the "Kar" valley) . Up there, Maaßen took over the post of school caretaker for the Deanery Hersel from 1867 to 1874, in addition to his pastoral office . As a result of the new Falk school regulations of 1872, he was released from this task, but received a letter of thanks from the royal government in recognition of his commitment. A vicar was assigned to him as a deputy for pastoral care in his parish , so that Maaßen had enough freedom to work as a researcher and author during his 50-year term in office.

Ambitions as a historian and archaeologist

Maassen's historical interest, in particular regarding the Roman origins of his Rhenish homeland, existed early and was already highlighted in his certificate of maturity . So it said in this: "His historical knowledge is thorough and extensive". The trigger for this special thirst for knowledge is said to have been the ancient Aachen ( Aquae Granni ) for the high school student from Haaren , as well as the study stay of his further training in the former Roman sites of Bonn and Cologne. Now at the seat of his parish in Hemmerich, he also found an environment in which the traces of Roman times were unmistakable and made him an autodidact in archeology.

Five years after taking office in Hemmerich, CA Eick published the fundamental publication on the Roman Eifel aqueduct in 1867 . It is not known whether the reading of this publication was decisive for his subsequent research, but after his release from the office of school caretaker Maassen was able to start his own research, based on Eick's information. Maaßen subsequently made a name for himself as a historical researcher and author of local history writings. Like his colleague and contemporary , the Fischenich pastor Rosellen , who undertook research on the history of the places of his dean's office in Brühl and later published it, he was also interested in the historical roots of the foothills, whose beginnings were often to be found in the Roman period. He not only became known for his comprehensive work on the history of the parishes of the deanery Hersel, but also turned to researching ancient traces, which at that time were also found in the places of his deanery in the form of a large variety of artifacts. During this research, it should not have been uncommon for Maaßen to carry out measurements or excavations himself. While the Roman builders, for example, the gradient of the aqueduct road with the help of a already in the 1st century BC . AD by the architect and engineer Marcus Vitruvius Pollio in ancient Rome developed chorobates calculated, Maassen was his measurements with a leveling perform.

Replica of a consecration stone salvaged by Maaßen in 1871 from the altar of the old parish church in Merten. The original from 250 AD went to the Bonn State Museum

At his side was the Prussian general Carl von Veith as a helper and friend, who specifically explored the Roman road Trier-Cologne in the 1880s. On specific questions, Maaßen turned to experts in order to obtain scientifically sound advice. For example, when he had problems with the numismatic identification of ancient coins , he contacted Theodor Mommsen in Berlin , who also gave him an expert opinion on several of the bricks that were often recovered in the foothills. The bricks bore the stamp of the Bonn Legion Prima Minervia , on whose behalf they were also fired.

He specifically described the artefacts recovered during his excavations, made drawings of the objects and published his research results in the annals of the Historisches Verein für den Niederrhein .

His research on the Roman state road from Trier via Belgica ( Belgica vicus ) to Wesseling , the Roman Canal on the foothills and, above all, his work on the history of the places of his deanery were recognized and publications of the later period were used for reference. References to Maassen's publications can be found in numerous editions of the series Die Kunstdenkmäler der Rheinprovinz , which appeared at the beginning of the 20th century. References to his information are also present in the most recent specialist articles by the LVR Office for the Preservation of Land Monuments in the Rhineland .

New St. Egidius on Maaßenstrasse

Maaßen tomb

Construction of a new parish church

In addition to his ambitions in “ antiquity research ”, however, he was always particularly interested in building a new parish church in Hemmerich, in whose construction he was ultimately significantly involved. It is the town's church today, built in the brick Gothic style . Pastor Maaßen died on January 12, 1910 in the hospital of the Barmherzigen Brüder (today's Petrus Hospital) in Bonn and was buried in the old churchyard of the village, within sight of the preserved Romanesque choir of his old parish church.

Commemoration

Maassen's grave and his grave cross are preserved in the old Hemmerich cemetery of the priestly graves. The parsonage of the parish in Hemmerich and the new parish church of St. Aegidius are today on Maaßenstraße, which was named in 1951 after German Maassen, the former Corporalsgasse.

Fonts

Four volumes on the history of the deanery of the Archdiocese of Cologne. Vol. XXVIII, Cologne: Verlag Bachem, 1883 to 1899

• History of the parishes of the deanery Hersel (1885)
• History of the parishes of the dean's office in Königswinter. (1890)
• History of the Parishes of the Dean's Office Bonn, Part 1: City of Bonn (1894)
• History of the parishes of the Dean's Office City of Bonn, Volume 2: Bonn Land 1899

swell

• Paul Redlich, Dr. † 1901 (Clemen, Bonn)
• Historical association for the Lower Rhine: - Annals of the historical association for the Lower Rhine, in particular the old archdiocese of Cologne, issue 35–37. - Cologne / Printing M. DuMont-Schauberg'sche Buchhandlung, 1880–82. - 1st edition. a total of 614 pages + reports + 2 cards a. 1 Fig. Three notebooks in one volume

Together with Carl von Veith: The Roman road from Trier to Cologne. In: Yearbooks of the Society of Friends of Antiquity in the Rhineland. Issue 83–85, Bonn 1883–85

literature

• Paul Clemen : The art monuments of the city and the district of Bonn (= The art monuments of the Rhine province. Vol. 5, 3). Schwann, Düsseldorf 1905.
• Horst Bursch, German Hubert Christian Maaßen A biographical reading book Sutton Verlag 2009. ISBN 978-3866804913

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e} in: Horst Bursch, German Hubert Christian Maaßen A biographical reading book .
2. ↑ Eick published his discovery in CA Eick: The Roman aqueduct from the Eifel to Cologne with regard to the Roman settlements, fortifications and military roads that were initially located. A contribution to antiquity in the Rhineland. With a card. Max Cohen & Sohn, Bonn 1867. Retrieved December 22, 2015 . 
3. ^ Robert Wilhelm Rosellen: History of the parishes of the deanery Brühl , JP Bachem Verlag, Cologne 1887
4. ^ From Veith: The Roman road from Trier to Cologne. In: Yearbooks of the Association of Friends of Antiquity in the Rhineland, Issue L XXXIX, Bonn 1885, pp. 1–27.