Johann Gottfried Schnabel
Johann Gottfried Schnabel was a notable German author and medical practitioner born on November 7, 1692, in Sandersdorf, Germany. Orphaned at a young age, he pursued his education in Halle and later became involved in the medical field, serving troops during the War of the Spanish Succession and working as an assistant medical officer. In 1719, he settled in Querfurt, where he became a barber and established a professional guild. Schnabel married Johanna Sophie in 1721 and eventually moved to Stolberg, where he not only continued his barbering practice but also became the town's official lottery collector and a newspaper publisher.
His most significant literary contribution is the four-volume novel "Wunderliche Fata einiger See-Fahrer," also known as "Die Insel Felsenberg," published under the pen name Gisander. This work is distinguished as a Robinsonade, inspired by Daniel Defoe's "Robinson Crusoe," and is celebrated as the best such novel by a German author. Despite facing challenges later in life, including the death of his wife and the decline of his newspaper, Schnabel's literary legacy endured, appealing to readers over the centuries. His works continue to be published and studied, with a dedicated scholarly journal, Schnabeliana, established to honor his contributions.
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Johann Gottfried Schnabel
Writer
- Born: November 7, 1692
- Birthplace: Sandersdorf bei Bitterfeld, Germany
- Died: c. 1755
Biography
Johann Gottfried Schnabel was born on November 7, 1692, at Sandersdorf bei Bitterfeld, Germany, to Johann Georg Schnabel, a pastor, and Hedwig Sophie Hammer Schnabel, the daughter of a pastor. Both his parents died in 1694, and Schnabel lived with relatives. In 1702, he was sent to Halle for his education. Some biographers speculate that Schnabel might have pursued medical education at the university in Leipzig or another German college.
During the War of the Spanish Succession, Schnabel provided medical care for troops led by Prince Eugene of Savoy from around 1708 to 1712. He served four years as an assistant medical officer beginning in 1714. Schnabel moved to Querfurt in 1719 and worked as a barber with two colleagues, forming a professional guild.
Schnabel married Johanna Sophie, the daughter of a local innkeeper whose surname was not recorded, in July, 1721. They had three sons and two daughters. Schnabel and his family settled in the German state of Stolberg, where he worked as a barber at the court of Count Friedrich von Stolberg-Stolberg. He became a citizen of Stolberg on August 4, 1724. He also provided medical services to patients in the community and was Stolberg’s official lottery collector.
In 1731, Schnabel secured the count’s approval to publish a newspaper. The weekly publication, Stolbergische Sammlung Neuer und Merckwürdiger Welt-Geschichte, included local and international news, agricultural information, crime reports, literary reviews, editorials, puzzles, and Schnabel’s poems and fiction. Schnabel also earned income as Stolberg’s book commissioner, locating texts for customers.
Schnabel’s wife died on February 26, 1733. Four years later, Schnabel became the court’s official agent. In 1738, Count Stolberg-Stolberg died. Without the support of the count and his heirs, Schnabel printed his newspaper less frequently and it ceased publication in 1741. There is scarce information about Schnabel’s life after 1743, although he is credited as the author of a novel published in 1750. There is no record of the precise date and location of his death, but scholars believe Schnabel died sometime between 1750 and the mid-1760’s.
Schnabel probably began writing books to supplement his income from his many jobs. He also published pamphlets chronicling such events as the death of Prince Eugene of Savoy and the removal of the Protestants from Salzburg in 1731.
Using the pen name Gisander, he published his best-known fiction from 1731 to 1743, the four-volume novel Wunderliche Fata einiger See-Fahrer, absonderlich Alberti Julii . . . , also known as Die Insel Felsenberg. Schnabel described this utopian tale as a Robinsonade, in imitation of Daniel Defoe’s novel, The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York (1719). Scholars praised Schnabel’s work as the best Robinson Crusoe-inspired novel created by a German author. Although many authors attempted Robinsonades, Schnabel’s unique depiction was most eighteenth century readers’ favorite German book and Robinsonade. Writers appropriated Schnabel’s story to create similar tales. Schnabel’s novel endured, appealing to modern readers. Publishers issued revised and abridged editions and reprinted some of Schnabel’s other books. Since 1982, the Röhrig Universitätsverlag publishing house has published an annual scholarly journal, Schnabeliana. Jahrbuch der Johann-Gottfried-Schnabel-Gesellschaft