Francis Lieber (March 18, 1798
or 1800 – October 2, 1872), known as Franz Lieber in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, was a
German-American
German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unite ...
jurist,
gymnast
Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, sh ...
and
political philosopher. He edited an ''
Encyclopaedia Americana''. He was the author of the
Lieber Code
The Lieber Code of April 24, 1863, issued as General Orders No. 100, Adjutant General's Office, 1863, was an instruction signed by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln to the Union forces of the United States during the American Civil War that dictated h ...
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
, also known as ''Code for the Government of Armies in the Field'' (1863). The Lieber Code is considered the first document to comprehensively outline rules regulating the conduct of war, and laid the foundation for the
Geneva Conventions
upright=1.15, Original document in single pages, 1864
The Geneva Conventions are four treaties, and three additional protocols, that establish international legal standards for humanitarian treatment in war. The singular term ''Geneva Conve ...
.
Life and career
Franz Lieber was born the tenth of twelve children to a wealthy Jewish merchant family in
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
, which was the capital of the
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...
at the time. While still in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, Lieber joined the Colberg Regiment of the
Prussian Army in 1815 during the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, and was wounded during the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...
.
The year of his birth has been debated because he lied about his age in order to enlist.
Education in Germany
Returning to Berlin after the Napoleonic wars (post 1815), he studied hard and passed the entrance exams for the
University of Berlin
Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...
. However, he was denied admission because of his membership in the
Berliner Burschenschaft, which opposed the Prussian monarchy. Moving to
Jena
Jena () is a German city and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 inhabitants, while the city itself has a po ...
, Lieber entered the
University of Jena
The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany.
The un ...
in 1820 and within four months finished writing a dissertation in the field of mathematics. As the Prussian authorities caught up with him, Lieber left Jena for
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...
to study
topography
Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps.
Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sc ...
with Major Decker (briefly). As soon as the
Greek Revolution of 1821 broke out, Lieber volunteered his services.
[
]
European activities
Lieber fought briefly in the Greek War of Independence, and then spent one year, 1822–1823, in Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
tutoring the son of the Prussian ambassador, historian Barthold Georg Niebuhr
Barthold Georg Niebuhr (27 August 1776 – 2 January 1831) was a Danish–German statesman, banker, and historian who became Germany's leading historian of Ancient Rome and a founding father of modern scholarly historiography. By 1810 Niebuhr wa ...
. While there, Lieber wrote about his experiences in Greece. The result was published in Leipzig in 1823 and also in Amsterdam under the title ''The German Anacharsis''. Lieber returned to Germany on a royal pardon, but was soon imprisoned once again, this time at Köpenick
Köpenick () is a historic town and locality (''Ortsteil'') in Berlin, situated at the confluence of the rivers Dahme and Spree in the south-east of the German capital. It was formerly known as Copanic and then Cöpenick, only officially adopt ...
. There he wrote a collection of poems entitled ''Wein- und Wonne-Lieder'' (Songs of wine and bliss), which on his release, with Niebuhr's help, were published in Berlin in 1824 under the pen name of "Franz Arnold."
Lieber fled to England in 1825, and supported himself for a year in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
by giving lessons and contributing to German periodicals. In London he met American writer and critic John Neal, who was studying gymnastics from Carl Voelker Carl may refer to:
*Carl, Georgia, city in USA
*Carl, West Virginia, an unincorporated community
*Carl (name), includes info about the name, variations of the name, and a list of people with the name
*Carl², a TV series
* "Carl", an episode of tel ...
and intent on bringing the movement to the US. Neal published articles in ''The Yankee
''The Yankee'' (later retitled ''The Yankee and Boston Literary Gazette'') was one of the first cultural publications in the United States, founded and edited by John Neal (1793–1876), and published in Portland, Maine as a weekly periodical ...
'' and the ''American Journal of Education'' about Lieber's work and recommending him as "qualified, almost beyond example" as a teacher of gymnastics, and "the chief personage with professor Jahn himself." Lieber also wrote a tract on the Lancasterian system The Monitorial System, also known as Madras System or Lancasterian System, was an education method that took hold during the early 19th century, because of Spanish, French, and English colonial education that was imposed into the areas of expansion. ...
of instruction, and met his future wife, Mathilda Oppenheimer.[ He left England upon receiving an offer to manage a ]gym
A gymnasium, also known as a gym, is an indoor location for athletics. The word is derived from the ancient Greek term " gymnasium". They are commonly found in athletic and fitness centres, and as activity and learning spaces in educational i ...
nasium and swimming program in Boston.
American educator and writer
Lieber moved to Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
in 1827. He came with recommendations from Jahn, as well as from General Pfuel who ran a swimming program in Berlin. Lieber was also acquainted with the outgoing gymnasium administrator, Charles Follen
Charles (Karl) Theodor Christian Friedrich Follen (September 6, 1796 – January 13, 1840) was a German poet and patriot, who later moved to the United States and became the first professor of German at Harvard University, a Unitarian minister, a ...
, both believing thoroughly in the importance of training the body along with the mind. Follen had established the pioneer gymnasium in 1826. Lieber's Boston swimming school of 1827, a new departure in the educational field in the United States, became such a feature that John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States ...
, then President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
, went to see it. The gymnasium had a difficult time once the novelty had worn off and in the face of caricatures in the newspapers. It closed its doors after two years.[
In Boston, Lieber edited an '' Encyclopaedia Americana'',] after conceiving of the idea of translating the Brockhaus encyclopedia Brockhaus may refer to:
* Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus (1772–1823), German encyclopedia publisher and editor
** F.A. Brockhaus AG, his publishing firm
** ''Brockhaus Enzyklopädie'', an encyclopedia published by the firm
** 27765 Brockhaus, an ast ...
into English. It was published in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
in 13 volumes, between the years 1829 and 1833. At this time, he also made translations of a French work on the revolution of July 1830 and of Feuerbach's life of Kaspar Hauser
Kaspar Hauser (30 April 1812 – 17 December 1833) was a German youth who claimed to have grown up in the total isolation of a darkened cell. Hauser's claims, and his subsequent death from a stab wound to his left breast, sparked much debate an ...
. He was also a confidant to Alexis de Tocqueville
Alexis Charles Henri Clérel, comte de Tocqueville (; 29 July 180516 April 1859), colloquially known as Tocqueville (), was a French aristocrat, diplomat, political scientist, political philosopher and historian. He is best known for his wor ...
on the customs of the American people.
In 1832, he received a commission from the trustees of the newly founded Girard College
Girard College is an independent college preparatory five-day boarding school located on a 43-acre campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school was founded and permanently endowed from the shipping and banking fortune of Stephen Girard upon ...
to form a plan of education. This was published at Philadelphia in 1834.[ He resided in Philadelphia from 1833 until 1835.
He soon became a professor of history and ]political economics
Political economy is the study of how economic systems (e.g. markets and national economies) and political systems (e.g. law, institutions, government) are linked. Widely studied phenomena within the discipline are systems such as labour mar ...
at South Carolina College (now the University of South Carolina), where he owned slaves until his departure in 1856. During his 20 years at the College, he produced some of his most important works. Such writers and jurists as Mittermaier, Johann Kaspar Bluntschli, Édouard René de Laboulaye
__NOTOC__
Édouard René Lefèbvre de Laboulaye (; 18 January 1811 – 25 May 1883) was a French jurist, poet, author and anti-slavery activist. In 1865, he originated the idea of a monument presented by the French people to the United States th ...
, Joseph Story
Joseph Story (September 18, 1779 – September 10, 1845) was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, serving from 1812 to 1845. He is most remembered for his opinions in ''Martin v. Hunter's Lessee'' and '' United States ...
and James Kent, recognized in him a kindred mind. The spirit of Lieber's work is indicated in his favorite motto, ''Nullum jus sine officio, nullum officium sine jure'' ("No right without its duties, no duty without its rights").
From 1856 until 1865, he was professor of history and political science at Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
(then Columbia College). His title was chosen by himself, and made him the first officially designated political scientist in the United States.[ In 1860, he also became professor of political science in the law school, which post he held until his death. His inaugural address as professor at Columbia, on "Individualism and Socialism or Communism," was published by the college.
]
Civil War activities
Lieber sided with the North during the American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
, even though he had been a prominent resident of South Carolina
)'' Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
. Indeed, Lieber was even a slave owner himself, and his brothers-in-law, members of the powerful Oppenheimer( de) family dynasty, owned plantations and slaves in Puerto Rico. However, in 1851, Lieber delivered an address in South Carolina warning the southern states against secession. One of his sons, geologist Oscar Montgomery Lieber (see below), joined the Confederate army and died at the Battle of Eltham's Landing. During the conflict, Francis Lieber was one of the founders and served as the head of the Loyal Publication Society The Loyal Publication Society was founded in 1863, during a time when the Union Army had suffered many reverses in the Civil War. The purpose of the society was to bolster public support for the Union effort, by disseminating pro-Union news articles ...
of New York, compiling news articles for dissemination among Union troops and Northern newspapers. More than one hundred pamphlets were issued by it under his supervision, of which ten were by himself. He also assisted the Union War Department War Department may refer to:
* War Department (United Kingdom)
* United States Department of War (1789–1947)
See also
* War Office, a former department of the British Government
* Ministry of defence
* Ministry of War
* Ministry of Defence
* D ...
and President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
in drafting legal guidelines for the Union army, the most famous being General Orders Number 100, or the "Lieber Code
The Lieber Code of April 24, 1863, issued as General Orders No. 100, Adjutant General's Office, 1863, was an instruction signed by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln to the Union forces of the United States during the American Civil War that dictated h ...
" as it is commonly known. The Lieber Code would be adopted by other military organizations and go on to form the basis of the first Westernized laws of war
The law of war is the component of international law that regulates the conditions for initiating war (''jus ad bellum'') and the conduct of warring parties (''jus in bello''). Laws of war define sovereignty and nationhood, states and territor ...
. Lieber's legal legacy is detailed in the 2012 non-fiction account entitled, ironically, ''Lincoln's Code''.
An abridged version of the Lieber Code was published in 1899 in ''The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies'' in 1899.
Preserving Confederate documents
After the Civil War, Lieber was given the task of accumulating and preserving the records of the former government of the Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
. While working in this capacity, Lieber was one of the last known people to possess the infamous Dahlgren Affair papers. Shortly after obtaining them, Lieber was ordered to give them to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton
Edwin McMasters Stanton (December 19, 1814December 24, 1869) was an American lawyer and politician who served as U.S. Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during most of the American Civil War. Stanton's management helped organize ...
, who likely disposed of them, as they have not been seen since.
Diplomacy
From 1870 until his death in New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, aged 72, Francis Lieber served as a diplomatic negotiator between the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
and Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
. He was chosen, with the united approval of the United States and Mexico, as final arbitrator in important cases pending between the two countries. This work was not completed at his death.[ Lieber was a member of the ]French Institute
The (; ) is a French learned society, grouping five , including the Académie Française. It was established in 1795 at the direction of the National Convention. Located on the Quai de Conti in the 6th arrondissement of Paris, the institute ...
and of many learned societies in the United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
and elsewhere.[
]
Family
His son Oscar Montgomery Lieber was a geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althoug ...
. During the Civil War, he was killed in action as a member of the Confederate army.
A second son, Hamilton Lieber (7 June 1835, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
– 18 October 1876, Baden-Baden
Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the Rhine, the border with Fra ...
, Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
), entered the volunteer army at the beginning of the civil war as 1st lieutenant, 9th Illinois Regiment, and was badly wounded at Fort Donelson
Fort Donelson was a fortress built early in 1862 by the Confederacy during the American Civil War to control the Cumberland River, which led to the heart of Tennessee, and thereby the Confederacy. The fort was named after Confederate general Da ...
. Afterward, he was appointed a captain in the veteran reserve corps, and served during the draft riots in New York City in 1863. In 1866, he was made a captain and military storekeeper in the regular army, and was retired on account of disabilities contracted in the line of duty.
A third son, Guido Norman Lieber, was a United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
lawyer and jurist. During the Civil War, he served in the Union army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...
and later became Judge Advocate General of the United States Army
The Judge Advocate General of the United States Army (TJAG) is the senior officer of the Judge Advocate General's Corps of the United States Army. Under Title 10 of the United States Code, the TJAG is appointed by the President of the United Stat ...
.
Influence
In 2015, the United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national sec ...
published its Law of War Manual. Francis Lieber is cited after Hugo Grotius and Emer de Vattel
Emer (Emmerich) de Vattel ( 25 April 171428 December 1767) was an international lawyer. He was born in Couvet in the Principality of Neuchâtel (now a canton part of Switzerland but part of Prussia at the time) in 1714 and died in 1767. He was l ...
and before Hersch Lauterpacht
Sir Hersch Lauterpacht (16 August 1897 – 8 May 1960) was a British international lawyer, human rights activist, and judge at the International Court of Justice.
Biography
Hersh Lauterpacht was born on 16 August 1897 to a Jewish family in t ...
as a subsidiary means and an authority in determining the rules of law of war.
Works
*
*'' Encyclopaedia Americana'' (Editor, 1829–1851)
''The Stranger in America'' (2 vols., 1833–35)
*''Letters to a Gentleman in Germany, written after a Trip from Philadelphia to Niagara'' (1834)
*
*''A Manual of Political Ethics'' (2 vols. 8vo, Boston, 1838), adopted by Harvard College as a text book, and commended by Kent and Story
Story or stories may refer to:
Common uses
* Story, a narrative (an account of imaginary or real people and events)
** Short story, a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting
* Story (American English), or storey (British ...
*''Legal and Political Hermeneutics, or Principles of Interpretation and Construction in Law and Politics'' (1838)
*
*''Laws of Property: Essays on Property and Labor'' (18mo, New York, 1842)
*
*''The West and Other Poems'' (1848)
*(2 vols. 12mo, Philadelphia, 1853; new ed., 1874)
*
*
*
*
*''Memorial relative to the Verdicts of Jurors'' (1867)
*''The Unanimity of Juries'' (1867)
*
Writings on penal legislation
* "Essays on Subjects of Penal Law and the Penitentiary System," published by the Philadelphia prison discipline society
*"Abuse of the Pardoning Power," republished by the legislature of New York
*"Remarks on Mrs. Fry's Views of Solitary Confinement," published in England
* published by the legislature of South Carolina
Occasional papers
*"Letter on Anglican and Gallican Liberty"
*a paper on the vocal sounds of Laura Bridgman, the blind deaf mute, compared with the elements of phonetic language, published in the " Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge"
*"Individualism and Socialism or Communism" His inaugural address as professor in Columbia College. He regarded these as the two poles on which all human life turns.
*"The Ancient and the Modern Teacher of Politics" His introductory discourse to a course of lectures on the state in the college law school.
Numerous addresses on anniversary and other occasions.
Translations
*
* With annotations. He also assisted in the gathering of the statistical data for the original book.[
]
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
* Cited as the most scholarly biography.
*
*
*
*
**Vol. 1
''Reminiscences, Addresses and Essays''
**Vol. 2
''Contributions to Political Science''
(contains a biography)
* Ebeling, Richard M.,
Francis Lieber's America and the Politics of Today,"
Future of Freedom Foundation, November 1, 2020
External links
*
*
by Steven Alan Samson
The Laws of War: From the Lieber Code to the Brussels Conference
" by Peter Holquist, ''Berlin Journal'', Jan. 2019
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lieber, Francis
1798 births
1872 deaths
American economists
American political philosophers
Columbia University faculty
German economists
German emigrants to the United States
American gymnasts
German gymnasts
Prussian Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars
Sportspeople from Berlin
People from the Margraviate of Brandenburg
People of New York (state) in the American Civil War
University of Jena alumni
Presidents of the University of South Carolina
Southern Unionists in the American Civil War