Heinrich Witt (businessman)

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Heinrich Witt

Heinrich Witt (born May 11, 1799 in Altona ; † November 3, 1892 in Lima ) was a merchant from Altona who spent most of his life in Peru and wrote a diary there that originally contained thirteen volumes with over 10,000 pages. Today 10 volumes of this diary are still preserved in a revised version (Vols. 1-9 and 13), in which Witt describes his childhood and youth in Altona, his life in Peru and his numerous trips to Peru, Bolivia , Europe and between the Describes continents.

biography

Heinrich Witt was born on May 11, 1799 into a merchant family in Altona, Holstein. At that time Altona was an independent city that belonged to the Kingdom of Denmark . Witt began his commercial career in 1816 as an apprentice in Conrad Hinrich Donner's renowned trading company in Altona. In 1823 he went to London , where he got a job with Antony Gibbs and Sons. In 1824 Witt moved to the South America branch of Gibbs in Peru. There he initially worked in Arequipa , in the south of the country, until he was promoted to head of the office in the capital Lima in 1833 . In 1842 Witt separated from Gibbs and in the following years successfully established himself as an independent businessman in the trade in goods from Europe. For a time he was also active in the guano business , which is so important for Peru . However, the focus of Witt's business activities soon lay in the financial sector, i. H. in the private credit, bond and exchange business. In the 1860s and 1870s he also participated in the banks, insurance companies, railroad and supply companies that were being built in Lima. Not least because of his business successes, Witt was appointed consul in 1841 and then consul general of the Kingdom of Denmark in Peru in 1845 . As early as 1831 Witt had married the widow of two María Sierra Velarde in Arequipa, who brought three children into the marriage.

The diary

Witt had already tried to keep a diary in his childhood and youth. From 1820 he finally noted down experiences, actions and thoughts on a regular basis and, apart from a few interruptions, almost daily throughout his life. It is considered to be the most extensive diary ever written in Latin America. These records formed the basis for a new one, i.e. H. Diary revised by himself, translated into English and (in Witt's opinion) improved diary, with which he began in 1859.

Revised edition:
The edition revised by Ulrich Mücke follows the principle of the “last hand”. The text made available therefore corresponds to the text that Witt himself wanted to pass on to posterity. It reproduces the English original in every detail without any addition or omission. Deletions by Witt have been tacitly accepted as such, parts of the text that have been rearranged now appear where they should be according to Witt's information. Areas that are illegible due to paper loss or other damage are shown as such. Witt wrote the surviving version of the diary using extensive preliminary texts, most of which were the original complete diaries. These texts, which Witt wrote in Spanish in the 1840s as a mnemonic, he destroyed except for two volumes. These two have been preserved. As a facsimile they are part of an online edition (2015).

literature

  • Text output of the diary versions:
    • Heinrich Witt, Diario y Observaciones sobre el Perú (1824-1890) . Selección y Prólogo Pablo Macera, Selección y Traducción Kika Garland de Montero, COFIDE, Lima, 1987
    • Heinrich Witt Diario 1824-1890. Un Testimonio Personal sobre el Perú del Siglo XIX . 2 vol., Banco Mercantil, Lima, 1992
    • Ulrich Mücke (Ed.): The Diary of Heinrich Witt. Boston and Leiden, Verlag Brill , 2015, 10 volumes (English - original language) ISBN 9789004307261
  • Ulrich Mücke: A racist provides information. In: Die Zeit , 2016/30, July 2016, p. 17 (Brief contents from Mückes' revised diary)
  • Ulrich Mücke, Christa Wetzel: Heinrich Witt's diary . In: Jörn Arfs, Ulrich Mücke (Ed.): Dealer; Pioneers, scientists. Hamburger in Latin America . Lit, Berlin, 2009, pp. 21-45
  • Christa Wetzel: Living writing. Heinrich Witt and his diary in Lima in the 19th century . In: Hans Medick, Angelika Schaser, Claudia Ulbrich (Ed.): Self-testimony and person. Transcultural Perspectives . Böhlau, Cologne / Weimar / Vienna, 2012, pp. 139–154

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Christa Wetzel: Living in writing. Heinrich Witt and his diary in Lima in the 19th century . In: Hans Medick, Angelika Schaser y Claudia Ulbrich (eds.): Self-testimony and person. Transcultural Perspectives . Böhlau, Cologne / Weimar / Vienna, 2012, pp. 139–154
  2. ^ Heinrich Witt - A Global Merchant in 19th Century Peru , accessed on April 11, 2018.
personal data
SURNAME Witt, Heinrich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Merchant from Altona, who spent most of his life in Peru
DATE OF BIRTH May 11, 1799
PLACE OF BIRTH Altona
DATE OF DEATH November 3, 1892
Place of death Lima