Gustav Heckenast

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gustav Heckenast

Gustav Heckenast , Hungarian Gusztáv Heckenast (born September 2, 1811 in Kaschau , Kingdom of Hungary , † April 12, 1878 in Pressburg , Austria-Hungary ) was a Hungarian bookseller and publisher of German origin.

Life

Gustav Heckenast was born as the son of the Evangelical Lutheran pastor Michael Heckenast and his wife Rosina born. Pecz was born in Kaschau ( Hungarian Kassa). He spent his first school years in Košice and then in the Evangelical Lyceum of Eperjes . He was originally supposed to learn the trade as a pharmacist , but soon switched to the book trade. In 1826 he came to the bookstore of his brother Otto Wigand by plague . When the latter had to return to Germany due to problems with censorship (Wigand had fled to Leipzig in 1833 to avoid being convicted of "disseminating anti-Austrian writings"), Heckenast took over the publishing house and bookshop in Pest in 1834. Heckenast became a member of the German Booksellers Association in Leipzig, which enabled him to establish contacts with many booksellers across Europe , which was of great benefit to his business.

In 1840 a cooperation with the Pressburg printer Ludwig Landerer began . With him he founded the Landerer & Heckenast company in Pest in 1841 . In 1848 Landerer & Heckenast printed the "Twelve Points", demands of the revolutionary Hungarian youth and the "National Song" (Hungarian Nemzeti dal ) written by Sándor Petőfi . It was the beginning of the Hungarian Revolution (and the struggle for freedom) in 1848/49. After the revolution was crushed, the company had to answer for this act in court.

After the death of his business partner Ludwig Landerer in 1854, Heckenast continued to run the publishing house and the printing house in agreement with the heirs, which had meanwhile become the most important printing house in the entire kingdom. In 1863 he took over the company entirely. Then he handed the Pest bookstore and printing company over to Carl Edelmann in order to devote himself exclusively to the publishing house.

Heckenast publishing house and printing house in Pest in 1863

Many books but also periodicals and magazines of that time are associated with the name Heckenast: the magazine "Vasárnapi ujság" ("Sunday newspaper"), the " Pesti hírlap " ("Pester Journal"), founded by Heckenast and very popular in Hungary , or Maurus Jókais "Az Üstökös" ("The Comet").

Heckenast published works by the most important Hungarian authors of the time: Miklós Jósika , Maurus Jókai, József Eötvös , as well as the brothers Sándor and Károly Kisfaludy . The author of the Hungarian national anthem Ferenc Kölcsey has also been published by him. However, he also published works by German-language authors, e.g. E.g .: Betty Paoli , Salomon Hermann Mosenthal and Johann Nepomuk Vogl . With an unerring eye he promoted the most important creations of contemporary Hungarian as well as German literature.

From 1841 he was the publisher of Adalbert Stifter, with whom he maintained a very friendly letter. Mutual visits are also known.

From 1870 on, Heckenast had a business relationship with Peter Rosegger . A large part of Rosengger's works at that time was published by Heckenast. Relations lasted until the publisher's death in 1878. For Rosegger, Heckenast was a clever advisor and fatherly friend who also supported him in private matters.

In 1873 Heckenast withdrew from the publishing industry. He sold his publishing house to the Hungarian Franklin-Társulat (Franklin Association) in Budapest and moved to Pressburg, where he died in 1878. His remains were buried in the Gaistor cemetery in Pressburg.

literature

Web links

Commons : Gustav Heckenast  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Hedge branch, Gustav
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hedge branch, Gusztáv (huS)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hungarian bookseller and publisher of German origin
DATE OF BIRTH September 2, 1811
PLACE OF BIRTH Kosice , Kingdom of Hungary
DATE OF DEATH April 12, 1878
Place of death Pressburg , Austria-Hungary