Moritz Hartmann (15 October 1821 – 13 May 1872) was a

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

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 ...

, politician and author.

Biography

Hartmann was born of

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

parentage at Duschnik (now Trhové Dušníky) in

. His maternal grandfather, Isaac Spitz, served as ''

av beit din The ''av beit din'' (), abbreviated ( ''avad''), was the second-highest-ranking member of the Sanhedrin during the Second Temple period and served as an assistant to the nasi. The av beit din was known as the "Master of the Court;" he was consid ...

'' in Bunzlau. As a young man, Hartmann abandoned Judaism although he never formally converted to Christianity. Having studied

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

and

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, he travelled in south Germany,

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and became tutor in a family at

. In 1845, he proceeded to

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

and there published a volume of patriotic poems, ''Kelch und Schwert'' (1845). Fearing in consequence prosecution at the hands of the authorities, he abided events in

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and

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, and after issuing in ''Leipzig Neuere Gedichte'' (1846) returned home, where he suffered a short term of imprisonment. In 1848, he was elected member for Leitmeritz district in the short-lived German parliament at Frankfurt-am-Main, in which he sided with the extreme radical party. He took part with

Robert Blum Robert Blum (10 November 1807 – 9 November 1848) was a German democratic politician, publicist, poet, publisher, revolutionary and member of the National Assembly of 1848. In his fight for a strong, unified Germany he opposed ethnocentrism and ...

in the revolution of that year in Vienna. On its collapse, he joined the "rump parliament" (a remnant of the Frankfurt parliament) in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

, and finally escaped to

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and Paris. In 1849, he published ''Reimchronik des Pfaffen Mauritius'', a satirical political poem in the style of

Heine Heine is both a surname and a given name of German origin. People with that name include: People with the surname * Albert Heine (1867–1949), German actor * Alice Heine (1858–1925), American-born princess of Monaco * Armand Heine (1818–1883) ...

. During the

Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...

(1854–56) Hartmann was correspondent of the ''Kölnische Zeitung''. In 1860, he settled in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

as a teacher of German literature and history, became in 1865 editor of the ''Freya'' in Stuttgart and in 1868 a member of the staff of the ''Neue Freie Presse'' in Vienna. Moritz Hartmann died at

Oberdöbling Oberdöbling (Central Bavarian: ''Obadöbling'') was an independent municipality until 1892 and is today a part of Döbling, the 19th district of Vienna. It is also one of the 89 Katastralgemeinden. Geography Oberdöbling lies in the south of ...

, near Vienna, in 1872, aged 50.

Works

Among Hartmann's numerous works may be especially mentioned ''Der Krieg um den Wald'' (The War over the forest; 1850), a novel, the scene of which is laid in Bohemia; ''Tagebuch aus Languedoc und Provence'' (Diary from Languedoc and Provence; 1852); ''Erzählungen eines Unsteten'' (Tales of a restless person; 1858); and ''Die letzten Tage eines Konigs'' (The last days of a king; 1867). He also produced an idyll, ''Adam and Eva'' (1851), and a collection of poetical tales, ''Schatten'' (Shadows; 1851). His ''Gesammelte Werke'' (collected works) were published in 10 vols. in 1873–1874, and a selection of his ''Gedichte'' in the latter year. The first two volumes of a new edition of his works contain a biography of Hartmann by O. Wittner. See also E. Ziel, "Moritz Hartmann" (in ''Unsere Zeit'', 1872); A. Marchand, ''Les poètes lyriques de l'Autriche'' (1892); Brandes, ''Das junge Deutschland'' (Charlottenburg, 1899).

Evaluation

Notes

References

* * *''Jewish Encyclopedia''
“Hartmann, Moritz”
by Isidore Singer & Frederick Haneman (1906). {{DEFAULTSORT:Hartmann, Moritz Jews from Austria-Hungary German nationalists Poets from Austria-Hungary 19th-century Czech Jews Members of the Frankfurt Parliament Charles University alumni People from Příbram District 1821 births 1872 deaths 19th-century German Jews Jewish poets Spitz family Poets from the Austrian Empire