Halberstadt Literary Society

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The Literary Society was an association for the promotion of literature and culture in Halberstadt , the capital of the Principality of Halberstadt of the same name in the Age of Enlightenment. It existed from 1785 to 1810.

activities

The aim of the members of the Literary Society was to educate each other by communicating useful and pleasant knowledge in the sense of enlightenment and to teach each other in a friendly manner and to work for the common good. Together they dedicated themselves to the promotion of literature and culture in Halberstadt and the surrounding area through instructive discussions.

From 1785 onwards, the Literary Society published the "Halberstädtische Gemeinnützige Blätter zum Beste der Armen" weekly .

history

At the suggestion of the rector of the cathedral school in Halberstadt, Gottlob Nathanael Fischer (1748–1800), the cathedral preacher Werner Streithorst (1746–1800), the royal Prussian war councilor Friedrich Wilhelm Eichholtz (1720–1800) and the assistant councilor Johann Heinrich Lucanus (1752–1828) ) about forty officials, pastors, teachers, doctors, officers and some nobles from the city and principality of Halberstadt met on New Year's Eve 1784 to found a literary society on the first day of the new year 1785 in the spirit of the Enlightenment. It was agreed to meet on Wednesdays for around three hours at different locations in the city for joint discussions. Once a year, a general assembly should take place for all members in a pub with a large hall. In addition, efforts were made to establish contacts with other centers of enlightenment in the wider area such as Halle and Magdeburg, Dessau and Berlin, as well as Leipzig and Braunschweig and Wolfenbüttel.

The first director of the company was the Halberstadt cathedral dean and hymnologist Georg Ludwig von Hardenberg (1720–1786), who, however, died the following year.

The number of members rose relatively quickly in the first few years to over 50 men, especially since Johann Wilhelm Ludwig Gleim (1719–1803) became a member of the society and therefore many members of his circle of poets joined the society.

On May 7, 1788, the Literary Society organized a memorial service on the occasion of the centenary of the death of Brandenburg Elector Friedrich Wilhelm.

The Literary Society also built its own library, the catalog of which was published in 1796.

After several well-known personalities of the society died at the beginning of the 19th century, not only the number of members decreased to about 20, but also the number of meetings and activities of the society. After Halberstadt became part of the Kingdom of Westphalia and the city was occupied by the French, the company's activities were minimized until it was completely dissolved in 1810. After the Kingdom of Westphalia was broken up, the company was never re-established.

Known members in alphabetical order

literature

  • The literary society in Halberstadt . In: Archenholtz 'Neue Litteratur und Völkerkunde , 1788, pp. 52–57.
  • Horst Scholke: The Literary Society Halberstadt . In: Halberstadt 200 years ago , Halberstadt 1987, p. 5f.
  • Detlef Döring, Kurt Nowak: Learned Societies in Central Germany (1650-1820) , Verlag der Sächsische Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Leipzig, commissioned by S. Hirzel, 2002.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Christian Friedrich Bernhard Augustin: Library of the Literary Society in Halberstadt. Manuscript for members of the Society, Halberstadt on June 1, 1796 . Digitized in the University and State Library Halle (Saale)
  2. ↑ Directory of writers living in Berlin in 1825 and their works , 1825, p. 210.