Conrad von Bolanden (9 August 1828 – 30 May 1920), born Joseph Eduard Konrad Bischoff, was a German prelate and

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living wage, living writing novels and other fiction, while other ...

in the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Speyer The Diocese of Speyer () is a Latin Church, Latin diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is located in the South of the Rhineland-Palatinate and comprises also the Saarpfalz Districts of Germany, district in the east of the Saa ...

, who wrote ''A Wedding Trip'', ''Queen Bertha'' and ''Historical Tales of Frederick II''.

Life

A German novelist, son of a rich merchant, b. 9 August 1828, at

Niedergailbach Niedergailbach is a small village in the German state of Saarland and belongs to the community of Gersheim in the Saarpfalz-Kreis. In 2000 it had 581 inhabitants. Located on the border with France France, officially the French Republic, is a ...

, a village of the Palatinate, in that time a part of

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

. Now Niedergailbach belongs to the

Saarland Saarland (, ; ) is a state of Germany in the southwest of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the smallest in ...

, although the main portion of the

Palatinate (region) The Palatinate (; ; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Palz''), or the Rhenish Palatinate (''Rheinpfalz''), is a historical region of Germany. The Palatinate occupies most of the Southern Germany, southern quarter of the German States ...

became a part of the neighbour-state

Rheinland-Pfalz Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

. Bolanden attended the Latin school at

Blieskastel Blieskastel () is a city in the Saarpfalz-Kreis, Saarpfalz (Saar-Palatinate) district, in Saarland, Germany which is divided into villages. It is situated on the river Blies, approximately southwest of Homburg (Saar), west of Zweibrücken, and e ...

, the seminary at

Speyer Speyer (, older spelling ; ; ), historically known in English as Spires, is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate in the western part of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located on the left bank of the r ...

, and in 1849 entered the University of

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

to study theology. Ordained priest in

1852 he was appointed assistant pastor at

Speyer Cathedral Speyer Cathedral, officially ''the Imperial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption and St Stephen'', in Latin: Domus sanctae Mariae Spirae (German: ''Dom zu Unserer lieben Frau in Speyer'') in Speyer, Germany, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Bish ...

. There he became the first priest of the diocese to receive a driver's license. Two years later he became pastor at

Kirchheimbolanden Kirchheimbolanden is the capital and the second largest city of the Donnersbergkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate. Situated in south-western Germany, it is approximately 25 km west of Worms, Germany, Worms, and 30 km north-east of Kaisersla ...

. The following year he was transferred to

Börrstadt Börrstadt is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the n ...

and three years later to . During this time he wrote his first four works. From the castle and village of Bolanden (between Kirchheim-Bolanden and Börrstadt) he chose his pen name "Conrad von Bolanden". In 1870 the priest resigned his parish to devote himself exclusively to literary work, and lived in strict retirement at Speyer.

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

granted Bolanden the title of a

Papal Chamberlain A papal gentleman, formally a Gentleman of His Holiness, is a lay attendant of the pope and his papal household in Vatican City. Papal gentlemen serve in the Apostolic Palace near St. Peter's Basilica in ceremonial positions, such as escorting d ...

. In his birth-village of

a street was named in his honour in 1993.

Works

Bolanden published more than 60 books, mostly novels. These include: The 1913

Catholic Encyclopedia ''The'' ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'', also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedi ...

describes his novels, written in a simple style for a popular audience, as "not all of equal worth", but praises their conception, Bolanden's defense of Catholic positions, and his frequent quotations from original sources. Bolanden's works were widely read and have been translated into English and other European languages. At one time his publications were prohibited in the Kingdom of

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

References

Meyers Konversations-Lexikon or was a major encyclopedia in the German language that existed in various editions, and by several titles, from 1839 to 1984, when it merged with the . Joseph Meyer (publisher), Joseph Meyer (1796–1856), who had founded the publishing hous ...

External links

* * * German Wikipedia article with copious illustrations {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolanden, Conrad von People from the Palatinate (region) 1828 births 1920 deaths German male writers Papal chamberlains