Anton Hubert Fischer (Antonius Fischer) (30 May 1840, in

Jülich Jülich (; in old spellings also known as ''Guelich'' or ''Gülich'', nl, Gulik, french: Juliers, Ripuarian: ''Jöllesch'') is a town in the district of Düren, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. As a border region betwe ...

Rhine Province The Rhine Province (german: Rheinprovinz), also known as Rhenish Prussia () or synonymous with the Rhineland (), was the westernmost province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia, within the German Reich, from 1822 to 1946. It ...

– 30 July 1912, in Neuenahr) was a Roman Catholic

Archbishop of Cologne The Archbishop of Cologne is an archbishop governing the Archdiocese of Cologne of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and is also a historical state in the Rhine holding the birthplace of Beethoven and northern Rhineland-Pala ...

and Cardinal.

Life

The son of a professor, he was educated at the Friedrich Wilhelm Gymnasium at

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

, making his theological studies at the

University of Bonn The Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (german: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) is a public research university located in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the ( en, Rhine ...

and the Academy of Münster. Ordained priest, 2 September 1863, he was for twenty-five years professor of religion at the Gymnasium at

Essen Essen (; Latin: ''Assindia'') is the central and, after Dortmund, second-largest city of the Ruhr, the largest urban area in Germany. Its population of makes it the fourth-largest city of North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne, Düsseldorf and ...

. In 1886, he received his doctorate at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

, his thesis being "De salute infidelium". He was preconized titular Bishop of Juliopolis, 14 February 1889, and was thenceforth associated in the administration of the Diocese of Cologne as assistant to the auxiliary Bishop

Johann Anton Friedrich Baudri Johann Anton Friedrich Baudri (b. 20 February 1804 in Elberfeld (today part of Wuppertal), d. 29 Juni 1893 in Cologne) was a German Roman Catholic priest, the Vicar General of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne and the auxiliary bishop ...

, then very old. When Baudri died (29 June 1893), Fischer succeeded him, and in 1895 he became Dean of

Cologne Cathedral Cologne Cathedral (german: Kölner Dom, officially ', English: Cathedral Church of Saint Peter) is a Catholic cathedral in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Cologne and of the administration of the Archdiocese of ...

. In 1902 the See of Cologne became vacant by the death of Mgr. Theophilus Simar, and Fischer was elected archbishop on 6 November 1902. On 23 June 1903,

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

made him a cardinal. During the ten years of his episcopate Cardinal Fischer consecrated in the diocese several hundred churches and more than one thousand altars. He was a devoted protector of the religious orders. On several occasions during religious or *''national celebrations he spoke of

Kaiser Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Emp ...

in very warm terms, which caused much comment. At the Congress of Liège in 1890 he called for the intervention of the State in matters of

labour legislation Labour laws (also known as labor laws or employment laws) are those that mediate the relationship between workers, employing entities, trade unions, and the government. Collective labour law relates to the tripartite relationship between employee, ...

. He declared "Aspiration towards progress, towards the betterment and preservation of earthly well-being is deeply enrooted in human nature and does not contradict the Christian moral laws." On 13 November 1905, he advised the Catholic miners assembled in Congress at Essen to co-operate with non-Catholic workmen in the discussion of common economic questions. He was likewise the defender with the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

of Christian interdenominational syndicates, whose headquarters were at

Mönchengladbach Mönchengladbach (, li, Jlabbach ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located west of the Rhine, halfway between Düsseldorf and the Dutch border. Geography Municipal subdivisions Since 2009, the territory of Mönchengladba ...

, and he exerted himself to counterbalance the influence brought to bear in behalf of purely sectarian syndicates by the Catholics of Berlin, the Bishop of Trier, and the

Cardinal-Bishop of Breslau A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

References

*''Kölnische Volkszeitung'' (August, 1912) *''Germania'' (August, 1912) ; Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Fischer, Anton Hubert 1840 births 1912 deaths People from Jülich Archbishops of Cologne 20th-century German cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Leo XIII Members of the Prussian House of Lords People from the Rhine Province University of Bonn alumni University of Münster alumni University of Tübingen alumni Burials at Cologne Cathedral Cathedral deans of Cologne