Charlotte Pistorius (5 November 1777 – 14 September 1850) was a German poet and letter-writer. She belonged to the circle of friends around Ernst Moritz Arndt, and corresponded with him and other notable writers, including
Friedrich Schleiermacher
Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher (; 21 November 1768 – 12 February 1834) was a German Reformed theologian, philosopher, and biblical scholar known for his attempt to reconcile the criticisms of the Enlightenment with traditional P ...
. She took care of family members, and supported education for the lower classes of the population.
Life
Born Charlotte Helene Henriette Pritzbuer in (now part of
Sundhagen
Sundhagen is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, located in Amt Miltzow in the district of Vorpommern-Rügen. Sundhagen was constituted on 7 June 2009 by fusion of the following municipalities: and his third wife, Helena Dorothea Margarete von Hellström, who died in 1816. In 1787, the family moved to the small town of Garz on the island of Rügen, where her father became pastor at the St.-Petri-Kirche. Charlotte Pritzbuer, inspired by her parental home, acquired an extensive education, mainly as an autodidact.
On 3 September 1797, she married Johann Philipp Pistorius (1767-1823), the second son of pastor
Hermann Andreas Pistorius Hermann Andreas Pistorius (8 April 1730 – 10 November 1798) was a German Protestant-Lutheran theologian and clergyman, philosopher, reviewer, translator and writer. During his lifetime he was regarded as "the most learned man on Rügen".
Early l ...
, who was an administrative assistant to her sick father. After the death of her father-in-law in 1798, her brother-in-law
Christian Pistorius Christian Brandanus Hermann Pistorius (12 May 1763 or 1765 – 9 November 1823) was a German writer and translator.
Life
Pistorius was born in Poseritz. The eldest son of the Poseritzer Provost (religion), provost Hermann Andreas Pistorius and hi ...
(1765-1823) moved in with the young couple. Since 1807 her husband had suffered from a lung disease, from which he died in 1823. The marriage had remained childless. Her brother-in-law died the same year, leaving her alone in the vicarage. From 1825 to 1826 she kept the household of the widowed professor Karl Schildener in Greifswald, but then returned to Garz. She devoted herself to charitable causes, such as further education for the lower classes of the population. In 1833 she took in her brother-in-law Karl Pistorius and cared for him until his death in 1844.
Charlotte Pistorius maintained an extensive correspondence. She had known the influential historian Ernst Moritz Arndt since her youth, and they later became friends. Arndt dedicated several poems to her. Correspondence between them has been published in several editions of his letters. As early as 1796 and 1797 she corresponded with
Ehrenfried von Willich Ehrenfried von Willich (5 September 1777– 2 February 1807) full name: ''Johann Ehrenfried Theodor von Willich'') was a Protestant chaplain at the Swedish Queen's Regiment in Stralsund.
Life
Ehrenfried von Willich was from a family of theologian ...
, who later became a friend of theologian
Friedrich Schleiermacher
Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher (; 21 November 1768 – 12 February 1834) was a German Reformed theologian, philosopher, and biblical scholar known for his attempt to reconcile the criticisms of the Enlightenment with traditional P ...
. Schleiermacher met her in 1804 during his visit to Rügen on the occasion of Willich's wedding. She corresponded with him for over ten years, discussing subjects such as literature - including the works of the author Novalis - and religion. She was friends with
Charlotte von Kathen
Charlotte von Kathen (1777–1850), was a German salonist
A salon is a gathering of people held by an inspiring host. During the gathering they amuse one another and increase their knowledge through conversation. These gatherings often consc ...
, who had already been in correspondence with Arndt and Schleiermacher. Through , the mayor of Stralsund, she was inspired to conduct her own studies on the history of Rügen. She sent essays and drawings to the , which were partly used in the . In addition she wrote a biography of her father. She left a collection of unpublished poems and poetry drafts.
Pistorius died in Garz at age 72.
Further reading
* Erich Gülzow: ''Heimatbriefe Ernst Moritz Arndts.'' In: Rügisch-Pommerscher Geschichtsverein (ed.): ''Pommersche Jahrbücher'' 3rd supplementary volume, Julius Abel, Greifswald 1919, pp. 3f.
* Otto R. Gervais: 'E. M. Arndt und Charlotte Pistorius', ''Unser Pommerland'', vol. XIX, no. 4 (1934), pp. 134–139.