August Karl Herold (August 7, 1902 in

Neckarsulm Neckarsulm () is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, near Heilbronn, and part of the district of Heilbronn. , Neckarsulm had 26,800 inhabitants. The name Neckarsulm derives from the city's location where the Neckar and Sulm rivers ...

– January 8, 1973 in Neckarsulm) 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 ...

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

breeder. Herold graduated from the Agricultural College Hohenheim in 1925, worked at a grape breeding station in

Naumburg Naumburg () is a town in (and the administrative capital of) the district Burgenlandkreis, in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany. It has a population of around 33,000. The Naumburg Cathedral became a UNES ...

1926–1928 and in 1928 became the head of a grape breeding station in

Weinsberg Weinsberg (South Franconian: ''Weischberg'') is a town in the north of the state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It was founded around 1200 and is situated in the Heilbronn district. The town has about 11,800 inhabitants. It is noted for its win ...

, which during his early years was called ''Württembergischen Anstalt für Rebenzüchtung und Rebenpfropfung'' and from 1947 Staatliche Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt für Wein- und Obstbau Weinsberg (LVWO). During the years 1941–1948 Herold was first called up for military service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and then ended up as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. After coming home in 1948, he resumed his duties in Weinsberg and stayed on this post until retirement at the end of 1964.LVWO Weinsberg: Biografie
accessed on October 14, 2009 Gesellschaft für Geschichte des Weines: Herold, August (1902-1973)
accessed on October 14, 2009 Herold's main contributions to

viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

was a scientifically based grape breeding programme in Weinsberg, which produced several much-cultivated grape varieties. Among the varieties bred by him are

Helfensteiner Helfensteiner is a dark-skinned German wine grape crossing of the species ''Vitis vinifera'', that was created in 1931 with the crossing of Frühburgunder (Pinot Précoce noir) and Trollinger (Schiava Grossa). It was created by August Herold at ...

Heroldrebe Heroldrebe is a red German wine grape variety produced by crossing Blauer Portugieser and Lemberger. It was created by August Herold at the grape breeding institute in Weinsberg in the Württemberg region in 1929, and was named after him. On ...

(named after him),

Dornfelder Dornfelder is a dark-skinned variety of grape of German origin used for red wine.

and Kerner.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herold, August 1902 births 1973 deaths German viticulturists German agronomists 20th-century agronomists