Ludolf Wienbarg
Ludolf Wienbarg was a German scholar and nationalist born in 1802 in Altona, Germany. He pursued his education in theology and philosophy at the University of Kiel, earning his degree in 1825. Wienbarg's early career included serving as a private tutor and later teaching Danish language and literature at the University of Kiel; however, his opposition to Danish rule in Germany led him to lecture instead on contemporary German literature. He published his lectures in 1834 under the title *Aesthetische Feldzüge*, which garnered attention but also resulted in a government investigation due to their liberal content. A staunch advocate for the purity of the German language, he criticized the social divisions created by the use of different German dialects, emphasizing the need for educational reform centered on the German language. Wienbarg faced personal challenges, including the death of his wife in 1848 and struggles with alcoholism, which culminated in his institutionalization in 1868. He passed away in 1872 at the age of seventy, leaving behind a complex legacy intertwined with German nationalism and language advocacy.
On this Page
Subject Terms
Ludolf Wienbarg
Writer
- Born: December 25, 1802
- Birthplace: Altona, Germany
- Died: January 2, 1872
Biography
Ludolf Wienbarg was born in Altona, Germany, in 1802, the son of Wilken Wienbarg, a blacksmith, and Maria Margaretha Giese Wienbarg. He received his primary education in local public schools. In 1815, he enrolled at the Altona Gymnasium, where he completed his secondary education before entering the University of Kiel to study theology and philosophy. In 1825, after receiving his degree from the University of Kiel, Wienbarg served as a private tutor in Lauenburg, Germany, for three years. He entered the University of Bonn in 1828, and in 1829 he completed his dissertation on Plato and received his doctoral degree. Wienbarg then began his literary career by translating the works of Pindar and Julius Max Schottky.
In 1833, Wienbarg was appointed to teach Danish language and literature at the University of Kiel. However, Wienbarg was a proud German nationalist who opposed Denmark’s sovereignty in Germany. Therefore, instead of teaching Danish language and literature, he delivered lectures on contemporary German literature and theory. While his lectures were popular with students, he was fired for insubordination. Despite this loss of employment, Wienbarg’s lectures were gathered and published under the title Aesthetische Feldzüge: Dem jungen Deutschland gewidmet (1834). Upon the publication of his lectures, Wienbarg became the subject of a government investigation. As a result, much of his work fell under the 1835 decree of the German Confederation, which banned publication of liberal works.
At this time, Wienbarg devoted his literary career to defending the purity of the German language. He was against the use of the Low German dialect, which was prevalent in the northern regions of Germany. Wienbarg was primarily concerned with how the use of two German dialects, High and Low German, separated the social classes. He argued that Low German speakers were unable to obtain access to modern literature or receive adequate legal representation due to their inability to express themselves intelligibly in court. In 1839, Wienbarg published an essay, “Das Studium der Alten,” promoting educational reform that would put German language at the core of the curriculum.
In 1839, Wienbarg married Dorothea Marwedel. The couple had three sons, one of whom survived to adulthood. His wife died in 1848. After her death, Wienbarg joined a military campaign against Denmark. He also worked as a journalist, editor, and coowner of several local newspapers. In 1868, he was institutionalized for alcoholism and he died in 1872, at the age of seventy.