Alexander Wittek (12 October 1852,

Sisak Sisak (; also known by other alternative names) is a city in central Croatia, spanning the confluence of the Kupa, Sava and Odra rivers, southeast of the Croatian capital Zagreb, and is usually considered to be where the Posavina (Sava basin ...

– 11 May 1894,

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

) was an Austrian-Hungarian architect and

chess Chess is a board game for two players. It is an abstract strategy game that involves Perfect information, no hidden information and no elements of game of chance, chance. It is played on a square chessboard, board consisting of 64 squares arran ...

master. As an architect, Wittek worked in

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

during

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...

. His most well-known works in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

are the City Hall building called "

Vijećnica Sarajevo City Hall ( Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian: Gradska vijećnica Sarajevo / Градска вијећница Сарајево), known as Vijećnica (Вијећница), is located in the city of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was d ...

" (1892–1894) which later became the National Library and the Sebilj public fountain (1891), and in

Mostar Mostar () is a city and the administrative centre of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the historical capital of Herzegovina. Mostar is situated on the Neretva Riv ...

Hotel Neretva, all designed and built in the pseudo-Moorish style. Wittek was also a chess master. He tied for 5–6th at Berlin 1881 (2nd DSB–Congress,

Joseph Henry Blackburne Joseph Henry Blackburne (10 December 1841 – 1 September 1924) was a British chess player. Nicknamed "The Black Death", he dominated the British scene during the latter part of the 19th century. Blackburne learned the game at the relatively late ...

won), and was in 9th place at Vienna 1882 (

Wilhelm Steinitz William Steinitz (born Wilhelm Steinitz; May 14, 1836 – August 12, 1900) was a Bohemian-Austrian, and later American, chess player. From 1886 to 1894, he was the first World Chess Champion. He was also a highly influential writer and c ...

and

Simon Winawer Szymon Abramowicz Winawer (March 6, 1838 – November 29, 1919) was a Polish chess player who won the German Chess Championship in 1883. Tournament and match results At the Paris 1867 tournament held at the Café de la Régence, his first inte ...

won). In 1882 he was ranked 9th in the world. Wittek died in a

lunatic asylum The lunatic asylum, insane asylum or mental asylum was an institution where people with mental illness were confined. It was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. Modern psychiatric hospitals evolved from and eventually replace ...

in Graz in 1894, having been diagnosed with a "paralytic mental disorder" the previous year.http://www.klinikum-graz.at/cms/dokumente/10094691_2096265/888a95f9/Ztg%20KlinOptikum%206_07%20druckverson_070725n.pdf One source says that he committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

but another cites

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

. File:Stari Grad Sarajevo, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina - panoramio.jpg, National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1891-1896) File:Sebilj (by day).jpg, Sebilj (1891) File:Image taken from page 71 of 'The Outgoing Turk- impressions of a journey through the western Balkans ... With seventy-six illustrations ... and three maps' (11298136376).jpg, Sebilj in 1897 File:Hotel Neretva 1960s.jpg, Neretva Hotel 1890-92

References

External links

Alexander Wittek games of chess
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wittek, Alexander 1852 births 1894 deaths People from Sisak Architects from Austria-Hungary Chess players from Austria-Hungary Suicides in Austria-Hungary 1890s suicides Bosnia and Herzegovina architects

See also

References

External links