Alfred Mombert (6 February 1872, in

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the third-largest city of the German state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital of Stuttgart and Mannheim, and the 22nd-largest city in the nation, with 308,436 inhabitants. ...

– 8 April 1942, in

Winterthur , neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell , twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...

) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

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 ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

Biography

Mombert was the son of the Jewish-German merchant Eduard Mombert and his wife Helene Gombertz. The economist Paul Mombert was his cousin. In 1890, he passed his Abitur at the humanistischen Grossherzoglichen Gymnasium in his home city of Karlsruhe, and then completed his one-year military service as a volunteer. From 1891 to 1895 he studied law at the universities of

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as wel ...

and

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

. In 1896, he passed his first states exam in Heidelberg, and received his doctorate one year later without a dissertation. Afterwards, he proceeded to work as a legal trainee and assistant, he passed his second state exam in 1899. From 1899 to 1906 he practiced law in Heidelberg, where he lived until 1940, a few years in Munich (1909-1911), until 1940. After 1906, he left his occupation and proceeded to devote himself to his literary work. Accompanying his literary pursuits, Mombert studied subjects such as geography, oriental studies, along with taking many trips, particularly to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. Mombert managed also to visit a multitude of other countries: Egypt, Algeria, Greece, The Netherlands, Croatia, Morocco, Monaco, Norway, Austria, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Syria, Czechoslovakia, and Tunisia. All the while he was intensively studying ancient Nordic, Oriental, and Indian mythology. This intense study, along with serious contact with the works of

Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...

, and a visionary, life-defining experience from January 1894 lay the groundwork for a kind of mythological-cosmological private religion that he developed through subsequent poetry after The Glowing One. His mythological-visionary works were highly valued by Friedrich Kurt Benndorf,

Richard Benz Richard Benz (12 June 1884, Reichenbach im Vogtland – 9 November 1966, Heidelberg) was a historian and writer. He came to Heidelberg in 1902, where he was made honorary citizen in 1954. The historian, son of a pastor, is not related to the a ...

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Hans Carossa Hans Carossa (15 December 1878 in Bad Tölz, Kingdom of Bavaria – 12 September 1956 in Rittsteig near Passau) was a German novelist and poet, known mostly for his autobiographical novels, and his "innere Emigration" ( inner emigration) during ...

Richard Dehmel Richard Fedor Leopold Dehmel (18 November 1863 – 8 February 1920) was a German poet and writer. Life A forester's son, Richard Dehmel was born in Hermsdorf near Wendisch Buchholz (now a part of Münchehofe) in the Brandenburg Province, Ki ...

Herbert Eulenberg Max Herbert Eulenberg (1876–1949), was a German poet and author born in Cologne-Mülheim, Germany. He was married from 1904 to Hedda Eulenberg. Biography 1920s Eulenberg was the publisher of many books, for which he wrote the introducti ...

Oskar Loerke Oskar Loerke (13 March 1884, Jungen – 24 February 1941, Berlin) was a German poet, prose writer, literary critic and essayist. Loerke was a prominent representative of Expressionism and magic realism in Germany. Life and career Loerke was ...

, Alfons Paquet und

Stanisław Przybyszewski Stanisław Przybyszewski (; 7 May 1868 – 23 November 1927) was a Polish novelist, dramatist, and poet of the decadent naturalistic school. His drama is associated with the Symbolist movement. He wrote both in German and in Polish. Life Stanis� ...

, who translated portions of his work into Polish. Mombert spent his years as a writer unmarried, living very secluded, solitary life, often travelling alone. From 1939 until his death, he lived with his widowed sister Ella Gutman. He, however, was friendly with other artists and writers of the time such as: Hans Carossa,

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, Richard Dehmel, Martin Buber,

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, Herbert Eulenberg,

Hermann Hesse Hermann Karl Hesse (; 2 July 1877 – 9 August 1962) was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. His best-known works include ''Demian'', ''Steppenwolf (novel), Steppenwolf'', ''Siddhartha (novel), Siddhartha'', and ''The Glass Bead Game'', ...

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Rudolf Pannwitz Rudolf Pannwitz (27 May 1881 in Crossen/Oder, Province of Brandenburg, Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia – 23 March 1969 in Astano, Ticino, Switzerland) was a German writer, poet and philosopher. His thought combined nature philosophy, Nietzsche, an o ...

, Hans Reinhart, Emanuel Lešehrad, who translated portions of his work into Czech, Hermann Haller,

Karl Hofer Karl Christian Ludwig Hofer or ''Carl Hofer'' (11 October 1878, Karlsruhe – 3 April 1955, Berlin) was a German expressionist painter. He was director of the Berlin Academy of Fine Arts. One of the most prominent painters of expressioni ...

, Arthur Zweiniger,

Emil Rudolf Weiß Emil Rudolf Weiß (or Weiss; 12 October 1875, Lahr – 7 November 1942, Meersburg) was a German painter, typographer, graphic artist and poet. Biography His father was a police officer and he grew up in Breisach and Baden-Baden.Gustav Wolf, who created images to accompany Mombert's poetry. Letters also indicate, despite great distances, Mombert maintained a love affair with a long-unknown pianist, with the alias Vasanta, who has since been identified as Charlotte Kaufmann (1880-1960). Mombert was also in regular correspondence with a singer by the name of Gertrud Full, whose repertoire included some of his poetry.

Published works

* ''Der Sonnengeist'' (1905). * ''Aeon, der Weltgesuchte'' (1907). * ''Aeon vor Syrakus'' (1911). * ''Der Himmlische Zecher'' (1909). * ''Der Held der Erde'' (1919). * ''Aeon Zwischen den Frauen'' (1920).Alfred Mombert
de.Wikisource (bibliography)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mombert, Alfred 1872 births 1942 deaths 20th-century German lawyers 20th-century German poets Writers from Karlsruhe People from the Grand Duchy of Baden Heidelberg University alumni Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni Leipzig University alumni Humboldt University of Berlin alumni German male poets 20th-century German male writers