Julius Langbehn (26 March 1851 – 30 April 1907) was a German

national Romantic Romantic nationalism (also national romanticism, organic nationalism, identity nationalism) is the form of nationalism in which the state claims its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs. This includes ...

art historian Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...

and

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

. He was born in Hadersleben, Schleswig (now Haderslev in Denmark), and died in Rosenheim.

Biography

Langbehn was born in

Hadersleben Haderslev (; german: Hadersleben ) is a Danish town in the Region of Southern Denmark with a population of 22,011 (1 January 2022).Duchy of Schleswig The Duchy of Schleswig ( da, Hertugdømmet Slesvig; german: Herzogtum Schleswig; nds, Hartogdom Sleswig; frr, Härtochduum Slaswik) was a duchy in Southern Jutland () covering the area between about 60 km (35 miles) north and 70 km ( ...

, on 26 March 1851, the third of four sons. His father, a philologist, was dismissed from his position as the assistant principal at the local ''gymnasium'' shortly after Julius's birth, a result of a campaign to suppress German nationalism in southern Denmark following the First Schleswig War and the Revolutions of 1848. The Langbehn family eventually settled in Kiel, where Julius entered the ''gymnasium'' in 1863. After graduation, he entered the University of Kiel for a degree in the natural sciences. At the age of 19, he enlisted in the

Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...

following the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870. He fought in the battles of Orleans and

Le Mans Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Man ...

in December 1870 and January 1871, respectively. Langbehn's military service left him with a profound distaste for war. After the war, Langbehn returned to Kiel to study

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

, though in 1872 he transferred to the University of Munich with the help of a wealthy merchant. There, he grew bored with chemistry and began to study art and archaeology. After his mother suffered a nervous breakdown, Julius traveled to

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

before returning to Munich in 1875. He studied archaeology under Heinrich Brunn; his doctoral dissertation examined early Greek statues of Nike, the goddess of victory. He worked briefly at the Imperial Archaeology Institute in Rome in 1881. Over the following decade, he traveled throughout Germany, collecting material for his first book, ''Rembrandt als Erzieher'' (Rembrandt as Teacher), published in 1890. His work was focused on initiating cultural reform in Germany. ''Rembrandt als Erzieher'', which was published anonymously "by a German", was a huge success. Langbehn's attitudes towards Jews was initially favourable, but as the book went through its numerous editions, this changed, with new chapters introduced to this effect in the 37th edition, which were subsequently ever more stridently revised. In 1891, he published ''40 Lieder'' (40 Poems), again anonymously; this proved to be a complete failure. The poems, which were explicitly erotic, prompted the state prosecutor of Schleswig-Holstein to threaten to press charges. The legal problems were sufficient to force Langbehn to withdraw the book. ''Der Rembrandtdeutsche'' followed, this time "by a friend of truth", though it too was not well received. Langbehn moved to Vienna, then in the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, where he lived briefly. He shortly fled the country after having been convicted in a lawsuit from his landlord. Around this time Langbehn took on a disciple, a painter from

Frisia Frisia is a cross-border cultural region in Northwestern Europe. Stretching along the Wadden Sea, it encompasses the north of the Netherlands and parts of northwestern Germany. The region is traditionally inhabited by the Frisians, a West Ger ...

by the name of Nissen. After departing Vienna, Langbehn traveled to Italy, southern France, Spain, and the

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...

in 1894. He then returned to Germany and continued his vagrant life there, producing no new works. In the mid-1890s, he began to attend Catholic churches, and in early 1900 he converted to Catholicism. He now directed his reformist tendencies toward the Catholic Church, and began to attack liberal segments. Langbehn died on 30 April 1907 of

stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a cancer that develops from the lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a number of subtypes, including gastric adenocarcinomas. Lymph ...

. He was buried in Puch near the Edignalinde at his own request because of his admiration for Edigna.

Views

Langbehn's efforts at reform were a reaction against modernism. He particularly disliked

materialism Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materiali ...

, democracy, and internationalism; he favored

aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At t ...

, individualism, and peace. He believed that Germany should abandon

industrialization Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...

and urbanization in favor of an agrarian society ruled by a monarch. While Langbehn's vision did away with the

bourgeois The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...

, proletarians, and the Junkers, he strongly opposed a

classless society The term classless society refers to a society in which no one is born into a social class. Distinctions of wealth, income, education, culture, or social network might arise and would only be determined by individual experience and achievement ...

, stating that " equality is death." He was also an

antisemite Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

and an early figure in the

Völkisch movement The ''Völkisch'' movement (german: Völkische Bewegung; alternative en, Folkist Movement) was a German ethno-nationalist movement active from the late 19th century through to the Nazi era, with remnants in the Federal Republic of Germany af ...

. A widely read antisemite, Langbehn held that “A Jew can no more become a German than a plum can turn into an apple.”

Work

* ''Rembrandt als Erzieher'' (1890) * ''40 Lieder von einem Deutschen'' (1891) * ''Dürer als Führer'' (1928) * ''Der Geist des Ganzen'' (1930) * ''Briefe an Bischof Keppler'' (1937)

Notes

References

* * * * *

(In German) * Bernd Behrendt: ''August Julius Langbehn, der "Rembrandtdeutsche".'' In: Uwe Puschner, Walter Schmitz u. Justus H. Ulbricht (Hrsg.): ''Handbuch zur "Völkischen Bewegung" 1871-1918.'' Saur, München u.a. 1999. S. 94-113. * Bernd Behrendt: ''Zwischen Paradox und Paralogismus. Weltanschauliche Grundzüge einer Kulturkritik in den neunziger Jahren des. 19. Jahrhunderts am Beispiel August Julius Langbehn''. Lang, Frankfurt am Main u.a. 1984. (= Europäische Hochschulschriften; Reihe 1; 804) * Bürger-Prinz, Hans: ''Über die künstlerischen Arbeiten Schizophrener'' In: Bumke, O. (Hrsg.): Handbuch der Geisteskrankheiten. Band IX (Spezieller Teil V: Die Schizophrenie), S.668-704. Julius Springer, Berlin 1932. * Bürger-Prinz, Hans und A. Segelke: ''Julius Langbehn der Rembrandtdeutsche: Eine pathopsychologische Studie.'' Johann Ambrosius Barth, Leipzig 1940. * Jörg Hobusch: ''Der Deutschunterricht in den Anfängen der bürgerlichen Reformpädagogik.'' Lang, Frankfurt am Main u.a. 1989. (= Studien zur Germanistik und Anglistik; 5) * Hubertus Kunert: ''Deutsche Reformpädagogik und Faschismus.'' Schroedel, Hannover u.a. 1973. * Ulf-Thomas Lesle: ''Bestseller des Bürgertums und Kursbuch der Plattdeutschen: "Rembrandt als Erzieher" von August Julius Langbehn. '' In: Kieler Blätter zur Volkskunde 32 (2000). S. 51-83. * Benedikt Momme Nissen: ''Der Rembrandt-Deutsche Julius Langbehn''. Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 1927. * Momme Nissen: '' Des Rembrandtdeutschen und mein Weg zur Kirche, ''in: Joseph Eberle (Hrsg.) Unser Weg zur Kirche, Luzern 1948. * Johannes G. Pankau: ''Wege zurück. Zur Entwicklungsgeschichte restaurativen Denkens im Kaiserreich. Eine Untersuchung kulturkritischer und deutschkundlicher Ideologiebildung.'' Lang, Frankfurt am Main u.a. 1983. (= Europäische Hochschulschriften; Reihe 1; 717) * Fritz Stern: ''Kulturpessimismus als politische Gefahr.'' Scherz, Bern u.a. 1963. / München. dtv. 1986. / Stuttgart. Klett-Cotta. 2005. (Rezension Deutschlandradio Kultu

*

Vincenzo Pinto Vincenzo is an Italian male given name, derived from the Latin name Vincentius (the verb ''vincere'' means to win or to conquer). Notable people with the name include: Art *Vincenzo Amato (born 1966), Italian actor and sculptor * Vincenzo Bell ...

: ''Apoteosi della germanicità. I sentieri di Julius Langbehn, Kulturkritiker tedesco di fine Ottocento.'' Icaro, Lecce 2009.

External links