Konrad Baumgarten (figure)

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Konrad Baumgarten or Conrad von Baumgarten is a hero of the Swiss liberation myth . The legend of his life is recorded, among other things, in the White Book of Sarnen . Altzellen near Wolfenschiessen in Unterwalden nid dem Wald (Nidwalden) is his home town .

Legend

The reason for Baumgarten's flight was the killing of the Habsburg Burgvogts zu Rossberg named Wolfenschiessen, out of self-defense, because he wanted to approach his wife Itta or Ida in an unseemly way. Baumgarten killed Wolfenschiessen with an ax in the hot tub at home . This inglorious end for Wolfenschiessen came about as follows: Wolfenschiessen was on his way back from Engelberg Monastery at the upper end of the valley to his Rossberg Castle one morning when he was beguiled by the sight of a beautiful farmer working in the fields near Altzellen . This was Itta, the wife of the rich farmer von Baumgarten. Wolfenschiessen inquired about her husband's whereabouts, whereupon Itta, in the opinion that Conrad was in danger, pretended that he had been away for a few days, whereas in reality he had only gone into the forest and should come back around noon. Wolfenschiessen then asked for food and drink and entered her house without daring to deny him. He asked that she prepare him a warm bath, since he was tired. When the bath was prepared, he became intrusive and asked Itta to get into the tub with him. Itta, who knew about the power of the uninvited guest, was frightened, resisted and held him out with speeches. First she had him send his servants away, then she fled through the back door of the house and told Conrad, who had just returned, what had happened. Baumgarten, ax still in hand, entered his house, spoke a few pious words and courageously killed the wolves in the bath with a single stroke of the ax. Baumgarten then fled to the land of Uri . According to tradition of liberation, Baumgarten's deed was not avenged by Wolfenschießen's brothers. The reasons for this are: Baumgarten was a respected and free farmer, while Wolfenschiessen, as a Habsburg ministerial officer , was bailiff , but personally unfree. In addition, Wolfenschiessen had abused his power.

reception

In Schiller's drama Wilhelm Tell from 1804, the character Conrad Baumgarten plays an important role: At the beginning of the drama, Conrad Baumgarten becomes a free, rich farmer from old cells, who flees from the captors of the subordinate Wolfenschiessen to the Urnersee , an arm of Lake Lucerne . from Wilhelm Tell by boat to Brunnen in the canton of Schwyz in stormy seas (1st act, 1st scene) and brought to safety by Werner Stauffacher in Steinen near Schwyz (1st act, 2nd scene). Baumgarten is present at the Rütli oath as a representative of the Nidwalden stand - in contrast to Wilhelm Tell, who refuses Stauffacher's invitation to take part in the Rütli oath (act 1, scene 3). Schiller puts the following words in Baumgarten's mouth during the Rütli oath scene: "Wherever it's dangerous to the neck, stand me up! / I owe my saved life to Tell / I am happy to beat it up for the country; / My honor ' I protected, satisfied my heart. " (Act 2, scene 2, 1433–1436).

literature

  • Jean-François Bergier: Wilhelm Tell. Reality and myth . Munich 1988.
  • Anton Näf: The «Nidwalden Tell» Konrad von Altzellen. The development of a figure of the liberation saga. In: Der Geschichtsfreund , 171 (2018), ISBN 978-3-85761-324-1 , pp. 114–146.