Dichter Berthold Sigismund(1819-1864):Kurz-Biographie & Latein-Aufsatz Bruder

You are bidding on one handwritten short biography of Doctor, educator, writer, poet and politician Berthold Sigismund (1819-1864).

Written after his death, probably by his family, as this manuscript was also accompanied by a handwritten Latin essay (from 1839) by his brother Ottomar Sigismund, who wrote early on (on 17. December 1839) died and whose death is also mentioned in the biography.

There are also some inserts in the margins, which suggests that this is not a copy of a short printed biography.

The biography also mentions details that cannot be found in his printed biographies, for example that he was "born apparently dead."

The biography includes 3 ½ Pages measuring 31.5 x 21.5 cm.

The handwritten Latin essay (including about writers and philosophers) by his brother Ottomar Sigismund is entitled: "Exercitum solomnibus Gymnasii anno MDCCCXXXIX subito scriptum ab Ottomaro Sigismund." It covers a little more than three pages (20.7 x 16.3 cm) and has been corrected by the teacher in red pen.

Condition:With severe defects: paper browned and stained; the biography in the middle of the sheet with tears and strong brown spots; Some words are difficult or barely legible in the area of ​​the tears. The essay with severe edge damage/edge creases. Please also note the pictures!

Internal note: Wiesentheid Hilda

About Berthold Sigismund (source: wikipedia):

Berthold August Richard Sigismund (*19. March 1819 in Stadtilm; † 13. August 1864 in Rudolstadt) was a German doctor, educator, writer, poet and politician.

Childhood and youth: Berthold August Richard Sigismund was born in Stadtilm at the foot of the Thuringian Forest as the first child of the notary and later justice councilor Florenz Friedrich Sigismund (1791–1877). His great-grandfather was a school teacher in Schmalenbuche, his grandfather was a teacher in Schwarzburg, later in Schmalenbuche and finally in Blankenburg. His mother was the daughter of the late mayor Fischer in Blankenburg. This marriage had seven children. According to his father, Berthold was said to have been “wild, questioning, eager to learn, but soft-hearted, with a great interest in nature” as a child.

In 1829 the family moved to Blankenburg, where their grandparents lived, for professional reasons. Berthold attended high school in Rudolstadt and learned Hebrew and English at the same time. In 1837, after graduating from high school, he decided to study medicine at the University of Jena. There he discovered his talent for drawing and painting, as well as music, playing the piano and writing his first poems. The death of his brother, who suffered from tuberculosis, shortly before Christmas 1839 shocked him so deeply that he stayed in Blankenburg over the winter. During this time he got to know Friedrich Fröbel, who was setting up his first kindergarten in Blankenburg, and also took part in his lectures. In 1840 he moved to the University of Leipzig. From 1841 to 1842 he spent his final year of study at the University of Würzburg. There he received his doctorate in medicine. In Rudolstadt he passed his medical state examination with honors before the medical examination commission.

Professional career: At the age of 23, he settled down as a doctor in his hometown of Blankenburg, but after a short time he realized that he could not make a living among the poor population. He also began to experience health problems. In July 1843 he traveled via Saalfeld, Sonneberg, Coburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Donauwörth to Augsburg and Munich. From there he traveled via Zurich to Lenzburg near Aargau in Switzerland to teach there as a private tutor. In his free time he devoted himself increasingly to scientific and medical literature. He was also attracted to the Swiss Republic's liberal institutions. His democratic-minded compatriot, Prof. Julius Fröbel, who spent some time in Zurich, exerted influence on him.

In September 1844 he took up a teaching position at a private school in Worksop, near Sheffield. There he mainly taught natural sciences, anthropology and the German language. At the Mechanics Institute in Derby he gave a lecture about A lecture in English on the human and animal vocal organs to 400 listeners. He returned to Thuringia in July 1845 and briefly stayed in Paris, where he acquired further medical knowledge by attending surgical courses at clinics and hospitals there. Here too, his old stomach problem was bothering him again. Back in Blankenburg he settled down as a doctor again. During this time as a “peasant doctor,” as he once described himself, his poems were written, which he later published under the title Asklepias, Pictures from the Life of a Country Doctor.

New tasks and starting a family: In the spring of 1845, Sigismund was elected mayor of Blankenburg. For this additional and unusual work he received an annual salary of 80 guilders. In the revolutionary year of 1848, Sigismund sympathized with patriotic aspirations and wanted a unified, large, economically and politically strong Germany, but when rebellion and unrest also spread in Blankenburg, he opposed them. He, like many of his compatriots, considered leaving Germany for America. However, his love for his homeland stopped him from the plan.

In the summer of 1850 he accepted a position as a teacher at the high school in Rudolstadt. There he taught science, mathematics and English. After just four years he received the title of professor. In December 1851 he married Pauline Henning from Rudolstadt. Two children were born. His books “Child and World” and “The Family as a School of Nature” come from this time.

As a teacher, he attached particular importance to not only looking at natural objects from the outside, but also to delving deeper into the interior. Students should base their knowledge not only on faith in authority, but also on their own views and considerations. He often hiked with them over the wooded heights and colorful meadows of his Thuringian homeland.

Now his literary activity developed. He headed the trade association in Rudolstadt, worked at a training school and interpreted in court. From 1860 he was a member of the state parliament. His literary activities now focused on his experiences during his forays into the Thuringian Forest, in particular the nature there, the inhabitants, their language, their customs and peculiarities.

The stories from this time appeared mainly in the Leipziger Zeitung and in the Gartenlaube. Due to the great interest, he received a commission from the Saxon government to travel and describe the Erzgebirge, Upper Lusatia and Vogtland. In 1859 he received an application from Dresden to take a job at the local statistical office. He declines primarily for health reasons.

He was commissioned by the government in Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt to write an in-depth regional history of the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. The first volume appeared in 1862 in which he described nature, landscape, population, dialects, customs, economics, state, church, school and history. Just a year later, the second volume, the local history of the suzerainty, was published.

Early death: In July 1864, during an excursion in the Thuringian Forest, he suffered a violent attack from which he never recovered. At 13th. Berthold Sigismund, 45 years old, died in his home in Rudolstadt in August 1864. On the 31st In August a memorial service was held in his honor at the Rudolstadt high school. He was buried in the new cemetery in Rudolstadt, “close to the eastern cemetery wall”. Three years after his death, a monument was erected in his honor in Rudolstadt: a boulder with an embedded medallion image.

Famous works

child and world

The family as a school of nature

Songs of a traveling student

Asclepias. Pictures from the life of a country doctor

Regional studies of the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt

I. Part: General regional studies of the suzerainty

II. Theil: Local history of the suzerainty