Michelangelo by Zois

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Michelangelo by Zois

Michelangelo (III.) Freiherr von Zois von Edelstein (born June 18, 1874 in Schalkendorf , Slovenian Želeče, today a district of Bled , Carniola ; †  December 17, 1945 in Schiefling am Wörthersee ) was an Austrian lawyer , civil servant, writer and journalist . Due to his commitment as a cycling official and journalist, he is considered one of the pioneers of cycling in Austria.

family

Egg Castle, the former home of the Zois family

Michelangelo von Zois came from the old Austrian wealthy aristocratic family of the barons Zois von Edelstein, whose members traditionally worked as private scholars; The family seat was Egg Castle near Krainburg . (The current name of the castle is Brdo. From 1935 the property was the seat of the Yugoslav royal family, later used by the head of state Tito as one of his residences. Today it is used by the Slovenian government as a place for state visits and similar events. The name of the Zois restaurant is a reminder to the former owner family.) He was great-great-nephew of the entrepreneur and scientist Sigmund Zois von Edelstein , to whom the family owes the suffix "von Edelstein", and a distant cousin of the composer Hans von Zois . Von Zois was married twice; his second wife Eva Maria was also active as a writer. In 1998, the couple's estate was given to the Carinthian Provincial Archives.

In civil service

Michelangelo von Zois received his school education at the Theresianum private school in Vienna . After graduating from school, von Zois Jus, who was interested in many things, studied in Graz and Vienna . In 1899 he entered the Austrian civil service and from 1903 was district commissioner subordinate to the kk provincial president in the Duchy of Krain (representative of the emperor and Viennese government) and the district captain of Radmannsdorf . In 1907 he was assigned to the administrative department of the office of the Central Commission for Art and Historical Monuments in the Imperial and Royal Ministry of Culture and Education “for service”. Because he was a lawyer and not an art historian, he was allegedly perceived as a “caricature”. He was to be replaced and praised several times in the course of disputes and intrigues, but was sponsored by Max Wladimir von Beck , 1906–1908 Imperial and Royal Prime Minister, and remained until 1914. Then he moved back to the state government as state secretary (= Lieutenancy) in Ljubljana .

In 1915, von Zois was drafted into military service in the First World War and worked as an editor for the war newspaper of the 10th Austro-Hungarian Army and the Carnic-Julian Front . As such, he was immortalized literarily in Fritz von Herzmanovsky-Orlando's piece Rout am Fliegende Holländer .

After the First World War , the home of Baron Zois went to Slovenia , and the family had to leave their home castle in Egg near Krainburg . He later wrote about this loss: "Behind me lies what was once home [...] Epheu, roses and wild wine grow around our castle."

In the post-war years, Zois (since he had opted for German-Austrian citizenship, his title of nobility was lost in 1919) unsuccessfully applied for a position as provisional curator in Carinthia . The then state curator of Carinthia, Otto Demus , wrote in a memo that Zois had always done a very good job with “suggestions and small reports”, but he was not suitable for more important tasks because he was known as “quirky” and “too” fantastic plans.

After Austria's "annexation" to the National Socialist German Reich , Zois asked again, albeit unsuccessfully, to the Central Office for Monument Protection, the Reich Governor for Austria and even with a personal letter to Hitler for renewed use in the Central Commission.

Cyclist and author

Michelangelo von Zois: The Training of the Racing Driver , 1908

From his youth, Michelangelo von Zois was an enthusiastic and versatile athlete. During his studies in Graz, he became a regular visitor to the local pear cycle racing track and subsequently began cycling training himself. Finally he decided to popularize cycling as a functionary, journalist and writer. Until the 1920s he wrote reports, glosses and short stories for the high-circulation German cycling magazine Rad-Welt and worked as an editor for the Austrian Touring newspaper .

Zois' book Der Vollmensch. He dedicated a racing driver novel to his "dear comrades from the Graz Training School 1898". The novel is said to have caused a stir in the early years of the 20th century. "Thousands upon thousands of members of the cycling associations" allegedly devoured this "cult book" with enthusiasm. In a literary criticism it should be said: “The scenes from the life of a cyclist are told with verve, with such captivating power, so vividly, so grippingly and vividly that one can expect something significant from the talent of this poet. The cyclist as a full-fledged man convinces every reader with his literary power and juiciness! "The Neue Wiener Tagblatt printed excerpts from the book, and Eduard Bertz wrote in the Austrian period :" It is indeed "the" a true racing novel in our literature " .

In his book Das Rennfahrer für Rennbahn und Landstrasse he reported a few years later: “The use of arsenic (smelting smoke) came into the world with the Graz drivers; the enjoyment of the same is common in the Alpine countries among the lumbermen of the high mountains, etc. in order to withstand the hardships better. ”He condemned this“ custom ”as“ reprehensible ”:

“In general, all the potions, mixtures, ointments, etc. that some trainers work with are not only superfluous charlatanry, but also reprehensible and useless. Besides rubbing alcohol , fuid and Vaseline you need anything, and you should also carry any coach with a kicking from the cabin, who approaches with a mysterious mixture. If he's not a swindler, he's a complete donkey. "

- The training of the racing driver for the racetrack and country road . P. 240

On the other hand, he certified his friend, the trainer Alexander Gayer , founder of the Graz Training School and declared “first cycling trainer ”, that he “sometimes gave his people a drink before the start, but that was nothing else than Schilcher , a very easy one Styrian red wine ”.

Concerning British sport, von Zois wrote in his book:

"[...] Men who came from England knew how to tell their astonished friends that the people across the canal, however sensible they might otherwise be, indulge in childish amusements. Young people talk about pushing a leather ball around in a meadow, others hit the ball over a net with a kind of praker, etc., and this madness attracts crowds of spectators. Among them there are people in office and dignity - who sometimes do not even disdain to participate themselves. "

- The training of the racing driver for the racetrack and country road . P. 7.

In 1903/1904 Zois was active as a driver for the Laibacher BC (BC = Bicycle Club). In 1907 he founded the Austrian Cycling Committee in Vienna and was the team leader of the cycling team at the Olympic Games in Stockholm in 1912 , where the Austrians won two silver and two bronze medals. Von Zois then reported in the Austrian Touring newspaper : “So the great battle is over [...]. We did not come home victorious, but we did come home as brave warriors who did their duty, fought valiantly, and who held up the honor of the flag. "

After the First World War, Zois settled in Klagenfurt , where he first founded a team of cyclists and then the Wörthersee cycling and motoring association . In 1932 he helped finally after moving to Dellach am Wörthersee moved and country Government had become, in the founding of the Carinthian Biker Association and later of Carinthia Cyclists' Federation , which he presided until 1937th As a result, Zois was described as one of the pioneers of Austrian cycling.

Michelangelo von Zois also wrote articles for naturist journals and wrote translations. He acted as the source of ideas for the silent films “The Black Chauffeur” (1917) and for “ Veritas vincit ” (1919, directed by Joe May ). He also wrote numerous short stories that reflected his admiration for German knighthood and the Italian Renaissance.

In 1924 his book Vom Weg den I went was published, with short essays devoted to all topics of life, and of course also to the bicycle: “Free! Free ---! Free! the pneumatics hums. Free! the chain purrs softly. Free! cheer the spokes. Get on the pedals […] Whirring cogs, whirring to the goal! 'I'm a traveling companion, don't worry!' "

Zois was active in literature until his death.

Fonts (selection)

  • The full man. A racing driver novel . Dresden & Leipzig, 1902
  • The training of the racing driver for the racetrack and country road . Berlin 1908
  • The Theresianum . Vienna 1910
  • "Body beauty competition in Vienna". In: Beiblatt zur Schönheit , Heft 8, 1910, pp. 138–140
  • "The Stockholm Olympic Games". In: Supplement to Beauty . Issue 10, 1912, pp. 182-186
  • "Field library of the Austro-Hungarian 10th Army". Edited by Michelangelo Baron Zois and Franz Xaver Zimmermann. In: War newspaper of the Austro-Hungarian 10th Army , 1917
  • Of Baron Munchausen latest peace and war adventure , 1917
  • Free adaptation of The women's service of the minstrel Ulrich von Liechtenstein . Stuttgart 1924
  • From the way which I went . Leoben in Steiermarck 1924
  • Translation by: Eugène Sues: The Secrets of Paris . Vienna 1928
  • "View in the future". In: Soma. Monthly magazine for physical culture and art . Issue 2, 3rd year, Leipzig 1928
  • "The woman, the physical culture and the sport". In: Soma. Monthly magazine for physical culture and art . Issue 4, 3rd year, Leipzig 1928

literature

  • Erich Nussbaumer: Geistiges Kärnten , Klagenfurt 1956, p. 427 f.
  • Renate Franz : "The quirky Herr von Zois - a pioneer of Austrian cycling." In: The bone shaker. Journal for lovers of historical bicycles , issue 55, 1/2013, pp. 15–18

Notes and individual references

  1. ^ Theodor Brückler: Heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand as a curator. The “art files” of the military chancellery in the Austrian State Archives (war archive) , Vienna, Cologne, Weimar 2009, p. 606
  2. ↑ Gothaisches Taschenbuch der Freiherrlichen Häuser , Gotha 1891
  3. ↑ Page no longer available , search in web archives: Estate Michelangelo von Zois in the directory of artistic, scientific and cultural-political legacies in Austria@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / aleph20-prod-acc.obvsg.at
  4. ↑ a b Evelyne Webernig: "Indulgences in the Carinthian provincial archive" in Carinthia I , 2004, p 107
  5. ^ State Handbook, Vienna 1910, p. 370
  6. ^ Theodor Brückler: Heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand as a curator. The "art files" of the military chancellery in the Austrian State Archives (war archive) , Vienna, Cologne, Weimar 2009, p. 21
  7. ^ Theodor Brückler: Heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand as a curator. The "art files" of the military chancellery in the Austrian State Archives (war archive) , Vienna, Cologne, Weimar 2009, p. 370
  8. ↑ a b Theodor Brückler / Ulrike Nimeth: Personal Lexicon for Austrian Monument Preservation , Vienna 2001, p. 307 f.
  9. ↑ “Who will protect us from the preservationists?” On zeit.de
  10. ↑ Michelangelo von Zois: From the path I went . P. 9
  11. ↑ Note: Birnen-Bahn, named after its roughly oval shape, which resulted from the use of the property boundaries by Conrad-von-Hötzendorf- Strasse and the Styrian Ostbahn : 2 straight line at an angle of about 10 °, connected in the south-southeast with a clear narrower curve (near the railway crossing Fröhlichgasse) than in the north.
  12. ↑ a b Der Vollmensch , titanic-magazin.de , Humorkritik, November 2006
  13. ↑ Sports album of the cycling world 1903 . Berlin 1904. p. 135
  14. ↑ “Doping in self-experiment at Graz University” on graz.radln.net
  15. ↑ sports-reference.com
  16. ↑ Official Report of the Olympic Games 1912 (PDF; 24.3 MB)
  17. ^ Announcements from the Austrian Touring Club . 8/1912. P. 13
  18. ↑ Othmar Hassenberger: Pioneering work in Carinthian cycling : in: Der Radfahrer 79, January 22, 1937
  19. ↑ Michelangelo von Zois: From the path I went . P. 9

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Zois, Michelangelo of
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Zois von Edelstein, Michelangelo Freiherr von (full name); Zoiss von Edelstein, Michelangelo von (alternative spelling); Zois of Nobleness, Michelangelo III. Baron of
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian lawyer and writer
DATE OF BIRTH June 18, 1874
PLACE OF BIRTH Schalkendorf
DATE OF DEATH December 17, 1945
Place of death Schiefling on Lake Wörthersee