Gerold Meyer von Knonau (archivist)

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Gerold Meyer von Knonau, probably around the 1840s

Gerold Ludwig Meyer von Knonau (born March 2, 1804 in Zurich ; † November 1, 1858 ibid) was a Swiss geographer , historian and archivist .

Life

The older son of Regula Lavater-Meyer and Ludwig Meyer von Knonau was born into the Meyer von Knonau family with citizenship in the city of Zurich. Gerold grew up in the Limmatstadt, where he also received his education. In spring 1824 he left Zurich with his brother Konrad to complete his camera studies in Berlin as Stud. Juris . In Berlin, Meyer von Knonau came into contact with German scholars in continuation of his geographic occupations , including the geographer Carl Ritter , whom he maintained until his death. After a long stay in France, he returned to Zurich in 1827. During the next ten years Meyer von Knonau devoted himself to charitable work and published his first works. In addition to his publications, he secured his income with office work. Meyer von Knonau expanded contacts to well-known Swiss people, including Stefano Franscini , in the course of his scientific work.

In 1837 Gerold Meyer married Emmerentiana Cleopha Meyer von Knonau, the daughter of the pharmacist Heinrich Meyer; their son is the historian of the same name . His wife was considered very intelligent and educated and promoted and supported her husband's work until her death in 1871. After a long trip abroad, Meyer von Knonau fell ill with typhus and died in Zurich in 1858. Gerold Meyer von Knonau found his final resting place in the private cemetery Hohe Promenade in Zurich.

Acting as the first state archivist of the Canton of Zurich

State Archives in Irchelpark in Zurich

From 1827 Meyer von Knonau worked in the state administration of the former city-state of Zurich and was the first state archivist of the canton of Zurich from 1837 until his death . In this function he opened the archive for the first time to scientific research and established the history of today's State Archives of the Canton of Zurich . In particular, he integrated the first special archives into the State Archives: in 1838 the Antistitial Archive (archive of the regional church), in 1840 the financial archive, in 1848 the monastery archive of the Grossmünster and in the 1840s the archive of the commercial directorate. With the inclusion of the school archive of the Karolinum affiliated to the Grossmünster , the integration of the City and Landscape Department , which has been kept in the sacristy of the Grossmünster since the Middle Ages, with the legal titles and contracts of the old city-state took place in 1853 . In addition, he created the first printed archive plans for parts of other archive collections in 1839 and 1850 .

Work as a historian and geographer

The outline he made in Zurich after 1824 was expanded into a two-volume geography of the Swiss Confederation in 1838/1839 . For the Huber & Co. bookstore in St. Gallen he designed a plan for a “comprehensive description of Switzerland” and “detailed statistics”, which were also designed as a travel guide. The work was intended to "create a picture of our fatherland that was as faithful as possible, not only according to its present, but also according to its previous condition".

Smaller biographical works were intended for a wider audience, including a biography of Anna Reinhart and, in 1833, the popular and widespread collection of Heldinnen des Schweizerland, accompanied by lithographic images . In 1847 he published Die Böcke, a contribution to the Zurich family and moral history .

Until his death, Meyer von Knonau, in addition to his function as state archivist, occupied himself with an ever more varied literary activity. In addition to his statistical studies and international correspondence, he took part in scientific events in the 1850s. Meyer von Knonau continued its archive series (volumes I to IV) for the Allgemeine Geschichtforschende Gesellschaft der Schweiz from 1840 to 1845. As a state archivist, he published the edition of the archive of the Cistercian monastery in Cappel in 1850, as well as the regests of the imperial documents in the canton of Zurich until 1400 . He was also interested in numismatics and after the "Federal Coin Change" of 1852 built up a collection of Swiss coins, which he published in the Directory of Swiss Coins from the earliest times to the present . Meier von Knonau expanded the atlas on the history of Switzerland and made contributions for the history lover of the historical association of the five places . On behalf of the federal authorities in 1852 he took over the management of the work for the publication of the collection of older federal farewells and in 1856 published the last volume (1778 to 1798) of the series.

Works (selection)

As the founder and editor of the Hist.-geogr.-statist. Painting of Switzerland , Gerold Meyer von Knonau wrote the volumes on the Canton of Zurich (1834) in the sense of a house and handbook - his main work - and on the Canton of Schwyz (1835). In 1858 he and Salomon Vögelin co-founded the Zürcher Taschenbücher . Meyer von Knonau gained notoriety outside of Switzerland because of his life's work, which includes a large number of publications on the subject of geography and history.

  • Outline of the description of the earth and civics of Switzerland . Zurich, 1824.
  • Heroines of Switzerland . Zurich, 1833.
  • Hist.-geogr.-statist. Paintings of Switzerland, volumes Canton Zurich and Canton Schwyz. Zurich, 1834/35.
  • Features from the life of Anna Reinhard, wife of the Swiss reformer Ulrich Zwingli . Erlangen, 1835.
  • Geography of switzerland. Confederation . Zurich, 1838/1839.
  • Archive, Vol. I – IV of the General History Research Society of Switzerland . Zurich, 1840–1845.
  • The bucks, a contribution to the Zurich family and moral history . Zurich, 1847.
  • Library of Swiss History, Edition by Gottl. Eman. v. Haller
  • List of Swiss coins from the oldest times to the present day
  • Edition of the Eidg. Farewells , Volume 8 and Years 1778–1798. Zurich, 1852.
  • Zurich. Folk tales . Zurich, 1853.
  • The chronicle in the white book of Sarnen . Zurich, 1857.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Katja Hürlimann: Ludwig Meyer von Knonau. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . February 5, 2008 , accessed February 23, 2014 .
  2. ^ The first state archivists and their work: Gerold Meyer von Knonau. State Archives of the Canton of Zurich , accessed on February 24, 2014 .
personal data
SURNAME Meyer von Knonau, Gerold
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Meyer von Knonau, Gerold Ludwig
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss historian and archivist
DATE OF BIRTH March 2, 1804
PLACE OF BIRTH Zurich
DATE OF DEATH November 1, 1858
Place of death Zurich