Franz Dölger ( Kleinwallstadt, 4 October 1891 –

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, 5 November 1968) was a German

Byzantinist Byzantine studies is an interdisciplinary branch of the humanities that addresses the history, culture, demography, dress, religion/theology, art, literature/epigraphy, music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination ...

. He is most notable for his crucial contributions to Byzantine

diplomatics Diplomatics (in American English, and in most anglophone countries), or diplomatic (in British English), is a scholarly discipline centred on the critical analysis of documents, especially historical documents. It focuses on the conventions, pr ...

, and as the chief editor of the journal ''

Byzantinische Zeitschrift Byzantinische Zeitschrift (abbr. BZ and ByzZ) is a Byzantine studies journal established in 1892 by Karl Krumbacher. It is currently published by De Gruyter. After Krumbacher's death it was edited by Paul Marc (1909–1927) and Kaspar Ernst August ...

'' from 1931 to 1963. A member of the

Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities The Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities () is an independent public institution, located in Munich. It appoints scholars whose research has contributed considerably to the increase of knowledge within their subject. The general goal of th ...

, he received honorary doctorates from the universities of Athens, Thessaloniki and Sofia. In 1962, he was awarded the Order ''

Pour le Mérite The (; , ), also informally known as the ''Blue Max'' () after German WWI flying ace Max Immelmann, is an order of merit established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. Separated into two classes, each with their own designs, the was ...

''.

Selected works

His bibliography up to 1951, which already comprised more than 200 titles counting articles, critical reviews and books only—but nearly 750 if adding short bibliographical notices, entries in the ''Lexicon für Theologie und Kirche'' (ed. M. Buchberger, X vols., Freiburg 1930–38), necrologies, and other minor works—was published by * * * * *

Sources

* Bernd Rill: ''Dölger, Franz (1891–1968).'' in: Rüdiger vom Bruch and Rainer A. Müller (eds.): ''Historikerlexikon. Von der Antike bis zum 20. Jahrhundert.'' Beck, Munich 1991, , p. 73. 1891 births 1968 deaths German Byzantinists Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (civil class) German male non-fiction writers Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Members of the German Academy of Sciences at Berlin Corresponding fellows of the British Academy Scholars of Byzantine history {{Germany-historian-stub