August Hermann Niemeyer (1 September 1754 in

Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (; from the 15th to the 17th century: ''Hall in Sachsen''; until the beginning of the 20th century: ''Halle an der Saale'' ; from 1965 to 1995: ''Halle/Saale'') is the largest city of the Germany, German States of ...

– 7 July 1828 in

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

) was a German Protestant

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, teacher, a

librettist A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the text of major litu ...

, a

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 ...

, a

travel writer The genre of travel literature encompasses outdoor literature, guide books, nature writing, and travel memoirs. One early travel memoirist in Western literature was Pausanias, a Greek geographer of the 2nd century CE. In the early modern period ...

, a

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

church song poet and a Prussian political educator. He was professor of theology in 1780, then vice-chancellor of the

University of Halle-Wittenberg Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg (german: Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg), also referred to as MLU, is a public, research-oriented university in the cities of Halle and Wittenberg and the largest and oldest university i ...

. He studied at the University of Halle, where his teachers included Johann August Nösselt (1734-1807),

Johann Jakob Griesbach Johann Jakob Griesbach (4 January 1745 – 24 March 1812) was a German biblical textual critic. Griesbach's fame rests upon his work in New Testament criticism, in which he inaugurated a new epoch. His solution to the synoptic problem bears his name ...

(1745-1812) and

Johann Salomo Semler Johann Salomo Semler (18 December 1725 – 14 March 1791) was a German church historian, biblical commentator, and critic of ecclesiastical documents and of the history of dogmas. He is sometimes known as "the father of German rationalism". Youth ...

(1725-1791). In 1775 he published a highly regarded work, titled ''Charakteristik der Bibel'' (Characteristics of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

). In 1778 he met with

Johann von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as trea ...

, with whom he established a friendship that lasted until Niemeyer's death in 1828. Around 1802, Niemeyer translated

Terence Publius Terentius Afer (; – ), better known in English as Terence (), was a Roman African playwright during the Roman Republic. His comedies were performed for the first time around 166–160 BC. Terentius Lucanus, a Roman senator, brought ...

’s ''

Andria Andria (; Barese: ) is a city and ''comune'' in Apulia ( southern Italy). It is an agricultural and service center, producing wine, olives and almonds. It is the fourth-largest municipality in the Apulia region (behind Bari, Taranto, and Fogg ...

'' for Goethe under the title ''Die Fremde aus Andros''. Soon afterwards the play was performed by the Weimar theatre. In 1807, after Halle fell to French forces, Napoleon ordered the closure of the university, with Niemeyer being deported to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. During this time, the city of Halle was incorporated into the

Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a kingdom in Germany, with a population of 2.6 million, that existed from 1807 to 1813. It included territory in Hesse and other parts of present-day Germany. While formally independent, it was a vassal state of the ...

. On 1 January 1808,

Jérôme Bonaparte Jérôme-Napoléon Bonaparte (born Girolamo Buonaparte; 15 November 1784 – 24 June 1860) was the youngest brother of Napoleon I and reigned as Jerome Napoleon I (formally Hieronymus Napoleon in German), King of Westphalia, between 1807 and 1 ...

re-opened the University of Halle and appointed Niemeyer chancellor. Among Niemeyer's 125 known publications is ''Grundsätze der Erziehung und des Unterrichts für Eltern, Hauslehrer und Erzieher'' (Principles of education and teaching for parents, tutors and schoolteachers), being published over numerous editions and translated into several languages.August Hermann Niemeyer (1754-1828)
by Gilbert de Landsheere

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External links

August Hermann Niemeyer (1754-1828)
by Gilbert de Landsheere * {{DEFAULTSORT:Niemeyer, August Hermann 1754 births 1828 deaths Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg faculty German poets 18th-century German Protestant theologians German male non-fiction writers People from Halle (Saale) German male poets 18th-century German male writers Heads of universities in Germany

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External links