Friedrich Christoph Förster (24 September 1791 in Münchengosserstädt on the

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale ( ) and Thuringian Saale (), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Fränkische Saale, Franconian Saale, a right-bank tributary of the M ...

– 8 November 1868 in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

) was a German historian and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

Biography

He was the second son of Karl Christoph Förster (1751-1811), and consequently an older brother of the painter

Ernst Joachim Förster Ernst Joachim Förster (8 April 1800 – 29 April 1885) was a German painter and an art critic, author of a number of elaborate and important works bearing on the history of art in Germany and Italy. Biography He was born in Saaleplatte, and ini ...

(1800-1885). He received his early education at

Altenburg Altenburg () is a city in Thuringia, Germany, located south of Leipzig, west of Dresden and east of Erfurt. It is the capital of the Altenburger Land district and part of a polycentric old-industrial textile and metal production region betw ...

, and after a course of

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Jena Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...

, devoted some time to

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

and the history of art. At the outbreak of the War of Liberation against

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

in 1813, he joined the

Lützow Free Corps Lützow Free Corps ( ) was a volunteer force of the Prussian army during the Napoleonic Wars. It was named after its commander, Ludwig Adolf Wilhelm von Lützow. The Corpsmen were also widely known as the “''Lützower Jäger''“ or “''Schwa ...

with Theodor Körner, quickly attaining the rank of captain. Like Körner, he wrote spirited war songs, which added to the national enthusiasm. On the conclusion of the war, he was appointed professor at the school of

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

and

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

, but on account of some democratic writings he was dismissed from this office in 1817. He then became connected with various journals until about 1829, when he received an appointment at the

royal museum The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland, is a museum of Scottish history and culture. It was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, ...

in Berlin, with the title of court councillor (). He was the founder and secretary of the ''Wissenschaftlicher Kunstverein'' in Berlin.

Works

Förster's principal works are: * ''Beiträge zur neueren Kriegsgeschichte'' ("Contributions to the history of modern wars," Berlin, 1816) * ''Grundzüge der Geschichte des preussischen Staates'' ("Essentials of Prussian history," Berlin, 1818) * ''Der Feldmarschall Blücher und seine Umgebungen'' ("Field marshal Blücher and his surroundings," Leipzig, 1820) * ''Friedrich der Grosse, Jugendjahre, Bildung und Geist'' ("

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

: Youth, Education and Intellect," Berlin, 1822) * ''

Albrecht von Wallenstein Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein, Duke of Friedland (; 24 September 1583 – 25 February 1634), also von Waldstein (), was a Bohemian military leader and statesman who fought on the Catholic side during the Thirty Years' War (1618–16 ...

'' (Potsdam, 1834) * '' Friedrick Wilhelm I, König von Preussen'' (Potsdam, 1834-1835) * ''Die Höfe und Kabinette Europas im 18. Jahrhundert'' ("The courts and ministries of Europe in the 18th century," Potsdam, 1836-1839) * ''Leben und Taten Friedrichs des Grossen'' ("Life and deeds of Frederick the Great," Meissen, 1840-1841) * ''Wallensteins Prozess'' (Leipzig, 1844) * ''Preussens Helden in Krieg und Frieden, neuere und neueste preussische Geschichte'' ("Prussia's heroes in war and peace, late and modern Prussian history," 7 vols., Berlin, 1849-1860). This is a history of Prussia from 1640-1815. The three concluding volumes of this work contain the history of the war of liberation of 1813-1815. This worked provoked severe criticism. He brought out an edition of

Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (27 August 1770 – 14 November 1831) was a 19th-century German idealism, German idealist. His influence extends across a wide range of topics from metaphysical issues in epistemology and ontology, to political phi ...

's works, adapted several of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

's plays for the theatre, wrote a number of poems and an historical drama, ''Gustav Adolf'' (Berlin, 1832). Many of his lesser writings were collected and published as ''Kriegslieder, Romanzen, Erzählungen und Legenden'' ("War songs, romances, stories and legends," Berlin, 1838). The beginning of an autobiography of Förster, edited by H. Kletke, has been published under the title, ''Kunst und Leben'' ("Art and Life," Berlin, 1873).

Notes

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Forster, Friedrich Christoph 1791 births 1868 deaths 19th-century German historians 19th-century German poets 19th-century German male writers Prussian Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars German male poets Hegelian philosophers