Leopold Witte (9 June 1836, in

Halle an der Saale Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (), is the second largest city of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is the sixth-most populous city in the area of former East Germany after (East) Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Chemnitz and Magdeburg as well as t ...

– 2 December 1921) was a German Protestant

theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of ...

and educator. He was the son of

Dante Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...

scholar

Karl Witte Johann Heinrich Friedrich Karl Witte (July1, 1800March6, 1883) was a German jurist and scholar of Dante Alighieri. Biography Karl Witte was born in Lochau, now part of Schkopau. He was the son of pastor Karl Heinrich Gottfried Witte (1767–1845) ...

(1800–1883). From 1853 to 1857 he studied Protestant theology at the universities of Halle and

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

, and afterwards worked as a tutor at the Prussian Embassy in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. In 1861 he was ordained as a minister 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 ...

, and he subsequently served as a pastor in the town of Cöthen, near

Eberswalde Eberswalde () is a major town and the administrative seat of the district Barnim in Brandenburg in north-eastern Germany, about northeast of Berlin. Population 42,144 (census in June 2005). The town is often called Waldstadt (forest town), beca ...

. From 1873 to 1879 he lived in the United States, and following his return to Germany, served as a professor and superintendent at

Schulpforta Schulpforta, otherwise known as Pforta, is a school located in Pforta monastery, a former Cistercian monastery (1137–1540). The school is located near Naumburg on the Saale River in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. The site has been a sch ...

(1879–1900). In 1888 he received an honorary doctorate in theology from the

University of Greifswald The University of Greifswald (; ), formerly known as Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University of Greifswald, is a public research university located in Greifswald, Germany, in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. Founded in 1456, it is one of th ...

Published works

He was the author of a well-received biography on theologian August Tholuck, titled ''Das Leben d. Friedrich August Gottreu Tholuck's'', (2 volumes, 1884–86). His treatise on humanist

Pietro Carnesecchi Pietro Carnesecchi (24 December 1508 – 1 October 1567) was an Italian humanist. Biography Born in Florence, he was the son of a da Andrea Carnesecchi, a merchant who under the patronage of the Medici, and especially of Giulio de' Medici ...

and the Italian Inquisition, ''Pietro Carnesecchi : ein Bild aus der italienischen Märtyrergeschichte'' (1883), was translated into English and published as
''A glance at the Italian Inquisition: a sketch of Pietro Carnesecchi: his trial before the supreme court of the papal inquisition in Rome, and his martyrdom in 1566''
(John Thomas Betts, 1885). His other principal works include: * ''Friedrich der Grosse und die Jesuiten'', 1892 –

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 ...

and the

Jesuits The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

. * ''Die erneuerung der Schlosskirche zu Wittenberg : eine that evangelischen Bekenntnisses'', 1894 – The renewal of the

All Saints' Church, Wittenberg All Saints' Church, commonly referred to as ''Schlosskirche'' (Castle Church) to distinguish it from the ''Stadtkirche Wittenberg, Stadtkirche'' (Town Church) of St. Mary's, sometimes known as the Reformation Memorial Church, is a Lutheranism, Luth ...

. * ''Richard Rothe über Jesus als Wundertäter'', 1907 –

Richard Rothe Richard Rothe (28 January 1799 – 20 August 1867) was a German Lutheran theology, theologian. Biography Richard Rothe was born at Poznań, Posen, then part of Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia. He studied theology in the universities of university of ...

on Jesus as a miracle worker.HathiTrust Digital Library
(published works)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Witte, Leopold 1836 births 1921 deaths People from Halle (Saale) University of Halle alumni Heidelberg University alumni 19th-century German Protestant theologians 20th-century German Protestant theologians 19th-century German educators