''Die Gartenlaube – Illustriertes Familienblatt'' (; ) was the first successful mass-circulation

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

newspaper and a forerunner of all modern magazines.Sylvia Palatschek: ''Popular Historiographies in the 19th and 20th Centuries'' (Oxford: Berghahn, 2010) p. 41 It was founded by publisher Ernst Keil and editor Ferdinand Stolle in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

Kingdom of Saxony The Kingdom of Saxony (german: Königreich Sachsen), lasting from 1806 to 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. The kingdom was formed from the Electorate of Sax ...

in 1853. Their objective was to reach and enlighten the whole family, especially in the German middle classes, with a mixture of current events, essays on the natural sciences, biographical sketches, short stories, poetry, and full-page illustrations.Kirsten Belgum: "Domesticating the Reader: Women and Die Gartenlaube" in: ''Women in German Yearbook 9'' (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1993) p. 93-100 At the height of its popularity ''Die Gartenlaube'' was widely read across the German speaking world. It could be found in all German states, the

German colonies in Africa The German colonial empire (german: Deutsches Kolonialreich) constituted the overseas colonies, dependencies and territories of the German Empire. Unified in the early 1870s, the chancellor of this time period was Otto von Bismarck. Short-live ...

and among the significant German-speaking minorities of

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

, such as

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n composer

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ove ...

even published a waltz dedicated to its readers, with the English title " Gartenlaube Waltz", in 1895. During its 91-year history the journal changed owners several times. By the turn of the century it had become more focused on entertainment, and in the buildup to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

it came under the control of right-wing nationalists. These changes corresponded to a decline in its readership. It was finally purchased outright by the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

publishing house Eher Verlag in 1938, who renamed it ''Die neue Gartenlaube'', and ceased publication in 1944. Despite this, today ''Die Gartenlaube'' remains important for comprehensive historical analysis in many fields and is regarded as an essential source for the understanding of German cultural history.

Circulation and format

Circulation of ''Die Gartenlaube'' increased steadily following its initial 1853 print run of 5,000 copies, reaching 60,000 by the end of its fourth year. After the magazine introduced serialized novels, its paid circulation increased dramatically, rising to 160,000 by 1863 and 382,000 by 1875. By comparison, most daily newspapers of the period had a circulation of only 4,000 copies. Since ''Die Gartenlaube'' became common family reading and many lending libraries and cafes took delivery, estimates of actual readership run between two and five million. It kept this market supremacy until at least 1887 and at one time it claimed to have the largest readership of any publication in the world.Michael Minden: ''Modern German Literature'' Cambridge, Polity Press, 2011 pp 67–68 The format of the magazine consisted of 52 weekly issues, 16–20 pages each, in

quarto Quarto (abbreviated Qto, 4to or 4º) is the format of a book or pamphlet produced from full sheets printed with eight pages of text, four to a side, then folded twice to produce four leaves. The leaves are then trimmed along the folds to produc ...

size (242mm x 305mm). The text, printed in a

Fraktur Fraktur () is a calligraphic hand of the Latin alphabet and any of several blackletter typefaces derived from this hand. The blackletter lines are broken up; that is, their forms contain many angles when compared to the curves of the Antiq ...

(''alt Deutsch'') font, was typeset with elaborate

engraved Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an i ...

illustrations An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, video ...

and, later, with some photographs. Die Gartenlaube's masthead depicted a grandfatherly figure reading aloud to a family around a table. Between 1853 and 1880 works by prominent German writers such as

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

and

Schiller Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friends ...

dominated its pages. Goethe was featured 75 times in print and 14 times in illustrations, and Schiller was featured 90 times in print and 15 times in illustrations. Publication of works by novelist E. Marlitt in serial form, such as ''Goldelse'' beginning in 1866, had a significant impact on the magazine's popularity and on Marlitt's celebrity. A particularly famous image by

Willy Stöwer Willy Stöwer (22 May 1864 – 31 May 1931) was a German artist, illustrator and author during the Imperial Period. He is best known for nautical paintings and lithographs. Many of his works depict historical maritime events such as the sin ...

of the

sinking of the RMS Titanic The sank in the early morning hours of 15 April 1912 in the North Atlantic Ocean, four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City. The largest ocean liner in service at the time, ''Titanic'' had an estimated 2,224 pe ...

was published by the magazine in 1912.

Editorial stages

''Die Gartenlaube'' went through a number of distinct phases throughout its history.

Founding

The early volumes up to German unification in 1871 were envisioned to be a "people's encyclopedia", covering a wide range of interests. Founded by radical liberal publisher Ernst Keil, it was committed to the creation of a national democratic unity government and an enlightened population. The promotion of bourgeois values contrasted with the decline of aristocratic norms. During this period ''Die Gartenlaube'' was also noted for a neutral to positive view of Jews, with occasional articles on Jewish family life. In the years following the founding of the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

in 1871, ''Die Gartenlaube'' became increasingly antisemitic, publishing among other things Otto Glagau's violent attacks on "the Jews" from 1874 to 1876. The weekly was also seen as a defender of

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an e ...

n policy. Their dedicated and highly polemical interest in the culture war (proclaimed by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

in his " Dogma of Infallibility" in 1870), came to the defense of the liberal world view. Arguments in support of the National Liberal Party were supported in particular. When Ernst Keil died in 1878 the magazine had reached the height of its success and influence, with a paid circulation of 372,000. Its actual readership was at least 2 million, making it one of the most widely read publications in the world.

Kröner Verlag

In 1886, Keil's widow sold ''Die Gartenlaube'' to new publisher Adolf Kröner and his son Alfred. As co-owner/editors, under their guidance the paper changed dramatically in scope and content. ''Die Gartenlaube'' became increasingly conservative and political or religious issues were no longer covered. The topics of divorce and suicide were entirely taboo after this repositioning. Instead of a popular encyclopedia meant to enlighten and educate, by the turn of the century ''Die Gartenlaube'' was primarily an entertainment paper.

Scherl Verlag

In 1904, ''Die Gartenlaube'' was purchased by entrepreneur and right-wing nationalist August Scherl and the tone of the newspaper became increasingly political. In the run up to

, one article stated that the coming war was to be "the happy, great hour of struggle", not only because of German technological advances but because it would be "more beautiful and more magnificent to live forever on the plaque of heroes than to die a hollow death without name in a bed". By buying up numerous other publishers, Scherl's company "Scherl-Verlag" had the largest circulation in Germany. However, his various costly business projects were not economically successful, so he sold the company to the "German Publishers Society" in 1914 and retired.

Hugenberg and Eher Verlag

In 1916 the Scherl-Verlag publishing house was acquired by industrialist

Alfred Hugenberg Alfred Ernst Christian Alexander Hugenberg (19 June 1865 – 12 March 1951) was an influential German businessman and politician. An important figure in nationalist politics in Germany for the first few decades of the twentieth century, Hugenbe ...

. During the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relative ...

, Hugenberg used his new media empire to help

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945. He rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party, becoming the chancellor in 1933 and the ...

become

Chancellor of Germany The chancellor of Germany, officially the federal chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany,; often shortened to ''Bundeskanzler''/''Bundeskanzlerin'', / is the head of the federal government of Germany and the commander in chief of the Ge ...

, hoping to use Hitler as a "tool". Hugenberg instead became increasingly isolated and had little influence in the Third Reich. These changes, as well as ''Die Gartenlaube''s expressly antisemitic articles, resulted in readership declines. Attempts to stem the loss by merging it with similar weeklies had little effect. The largest part of Hugenberg's press group were finally purchased by the

publishing house

Eher-Verlag Franz Eher Nachfolger GmbH (''Franz Eher and Successors, LLC'', usually referred to as the Eher-Verlag (''Eher Publishing'')) was the central publishing house of the Nazi Party and one of the largest book and periodical firms during the Third Rei ...

, where the journal was renamed ''Die neue Gartenlaube'' ("The New Garden Arbor") in 1938. A much-diminished ''Gartenlaube'' struggled on, finally folding in 1944.Richard S. Levy: ''Antisemitism: A Historical Encyclopedia of Prejudice and Persecution, Volume 1''

List of major contributors

* Christian Wilhelm Allers (1857–1915), illustrator * Alfred Edmund Brehm (1829–1884), zoologist and writer (

Brehms Tierleben ''Brehms Tierleben'' (English title: ''Brehm's Animal Life'') is a scientific reference book, first published in the 1860s by Alfred Edmund Brehm (1829–1884). It was one of the first modern popular zoological treatises. First published in ...

) * Elisabeth Bürstenbinder (1838–1918), writer * Rudolf Cronau (1855–1939), journalist and painter * (1839–1916), chemist and writer *

Rudolf Doehn Rudolf Doehn (2 February 1821, Hinrichshagen – 9 April 1895, Dresden) was a German writer and journalist. He belonged to the Forty-Eighters who participated in the American Civil War as volunteers in the Union Army. Here, he became also known ...

(1821–1894), politician and writer *

Fedor Flinzer Fyodor, Fedor Alexis Flinzer (4 April 1832 in Reichenbach im Vogtland – 14 June 1911 in Leipzig) was an author, educator and one of the greatest Germany, German illustrators of the Gründerzeit, who was called Raphael of Cats (disambiguation ...

(1832–1911), writer and illustrator *

Theodor Fontane Theodor Fontane (; 30 December 1819 – 20 September 1898) was a German novelist and poet, regarded by many as the most important 19th-century German-language realist author. He published the first of his novels, for which he is best known to ...

(1819–1898), writer * Ludwig Ganghofer (1855–1920), writer * (1839–1907), illustrator * Karl Gutzkow (1811–1878), writer * Edmund Harburger (1846–1906), illustrator * Jakob Christoph Heer (1859–1925), Swiss writer and editor * Wilhelmine Heimburg (1848–1912), writer * (1826–1878), actor and writer *

Georg Hirth Georg Hirth (13 July 1841 in Tonna – 28 March 1916 in Tegernsee) was a German writer, journalist and publisher. He is best known for founding the cultural magazine '' Jugend'' in 1896, which was instrumental in popularizing Art Nouveau. B ...

(1841–1916), journalist, later publisher in Munich * (1813–1888), permanent employee, 1883–1886 Editor in Chief * Carl Karlweis (1850–1901), columnist *

Kaspar Kögler Kaspar Kögler (12 February 1838, Molsberg (Germany), Molsberg - 1 April 1923, Wiesbaden) was a German painter, illustrator and writer. Life and work He was the third of seven children born to a farming family. Originally, their name was spel ...

(1838–1923), illustrator, poet * Herbert König (1820–1876), illustrator * Eugenie Marlitt (1825–1887), writer * Charlotte Niese (1854–1935), Holsteinische poet * (1817–1864), writer * Max Ring (1817–1901), doctor and writer *

Anna Ritter Anna Ritter (February 23, 1865 – October 31, 1921) was a German poet and writer. Biography Ritter was born Anna Nuhn in Coburg, Bavaria, (then part of the duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha) on February 23, 1865, but she was only a young child w ...

(1865–1921), poet * Friedrich Emil Rittershaus (1834–1897), poet * August Scherl (1849–1921), publisher *

Carl Ludwig Schleich Carl Ludwig Schleich (19 July 1859 – 7 March 1922) was a German surgeon and writer. He is best known for his contribution to clinical anesthesia. In addition, he was also a philosopher, poet and painter. Biography Family Schelich's ancest ...

(1859–1922), doctor * (1833–1893), politician and writer *

Levin Schücking Levin Schücking (full name: ''Christoph Bernhard Levin Matthias Schücking''; September 6, 1814 – August 31, 1883) was a German novelist. He was born near Meppen, Kingdom of Prussia, and died in Bad Pyrmont, German Empire. He was the uncle of ...

(1814–1883), writer * (1819–1864), doctor, professor, politician and writer * (1803–1881), writer *

(1864–1931), illustrator *

Moritz Wiggers Moritz Karl Georg Wiggers (October 17, 1816 – July 30, 1894), German politician, started out as a lawyer and a notary in his home town of Rostock. The Revolution of 1848 The Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Springtime of ...

(1816–1894), politician and judge

Footnotes

References

Literature

* Alfred Estermann: ''Inhaltsanalytische Bibliographien deutscher Kulturzeitschriften des 19. Jahrhunderts''. Vol. 3, "Die Gartenlaube (1853–1880 ��1944". (München: Saur, 1995) * Heidemarie Gruppe: ''"Volk“ zwischen Politik und Idylle in der "Gartenlaube“ 1853–1914''. Lang, Frankfurt/M. 1976 (''Europäische Hochschulschriften''/19; Vol. 11), * * * Marcus Koch: ''"Nationale Identität im Prozess nationalstaatlicher Orientierung, dargestellt am Beispiel Deutschlands durch die Analyse der Familienzeitschrift "Die Gartenlaube" von 1853–1890''". Lang, Frankfurt/M. 2003 (''Europäische Hochschulschriften''/22; Vol. 389), * Matthias Leupold: ''Künstlerische Bildfolge zum Ideologiegehalt des vielgelesenen Blattes "Leupolds Gartenlaube–Liebhaberaufnahmen in Erinnerung an ein deutsches Familienblatt 1994"''. In ''Die Vergangenheit hat erst begonnen'' (Köln: Schaden Verlag, 2004) * * Anne-Susanne Rischke: ''"Die Lyrik in der "Gartenlaube“ 1853–1903. Untersuchungen zu Thematik, Form und Funktion"''. Lang, Frankfurt/M. 1982 (''Europäische Hochschulschriften''/1; Vol. 516), . * * ''"Sächsische Keilschrift"'', article about ''Die Gartenlaube'' in ''

Der Spiegel ''Der Spiegel'' (, lit. ''"The Mirror"'') is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. With a weekly circulation of 695,100 copies, it was the largest such publication in Europe in 2011. It was founded in 1947 by John Seymour Chaloner ...

'', issue 16 / 1963, 17 April 1963, p. 67

External links

Microfiche Edition
(Kommerzielle Seite des Verlags) in German. {{DEFAULTSORT:Gartenlaube, Die 1853 establishments in Germany 1944 disestablishments in Germany Defunct magazines published in Germany Magazines established in 1853 Magazines disestablished in 1944 German-language magazines Weekly magazines published in Germany Magazines published in Leipzig Magazines published in Berlin