The Verlag Freies Geistesleben & Urachhaus GmbH is a

publishing company Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

based in Stuttgart, publishing under the

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

s of ''Verlag Freies Geistesleben'' and ''Verlag Urachhaus''. The company has its roots in the

Anthroposophical Anthroposophy is a spiritualist movement founded in the early 20th century by the esotericist Rudolf Steiner that postulates the existence of an objective, intellectually comprehensible spiritual world, accessible to human experience. Followers ...

movement, and is publishing a wide range of titles, including many classic titles. The ''Verlag Freies Geistesleben'' (meaning free intellectual/spiritual life) was founded in 1947 on the initiative of the Free Waldorf School of Stuttgart and the Anthroposophical Society of Stuttgart, and has an emphasis on literature on or aimed at

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

, particularly

waldorf education Waldorf education, also known as Steiner education, is based on the educational philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of anthroposophy. Its educational style is holistic, intended to develop pupils' intellectual, artistic, and practical ski ...

, as well as

anthroposophy Anthroposophy is a spiritualist movement founded in the early 20th century by the esotericist Rudolf Steiner that postulates the existence of an objective, intellectually comprehensible spiritual world, accessible to human experience. Follower ...

in general, social sciences, culture and history, art and architecture, music, natural sciences, and children's literature. The ''Verlag Urachhaus'' was founded in 1925 by Gertrud Spörri, Emil Bock and Ernst Scheiffele under the name ''Verlag der Christengemeinschaft'', and originally published mostly Christian literature, being affiliated with

The Christian Community The Christian Community (german: Die Christengemeinschaft) is an esoteric Christian denomination. It was founded in 1922 in Switzerland by a group of ecumenically oriented, mainly Lutheran theologians and ministers led by liberal theologian Fr ...

, although it since broadened its publishing profile. Due to

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

persecution, the company changed its name to ''Verlag Urachhaus'', after the street where its offices in Stuttgart were located, in 1936. However, the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one orga ...

stormed the office of the company on June 9, 1941, and seized all its holdings, the company was subsequently liquidated in 1942. Following the war, it was reestablished in 1946. After the Christian Community inherited the personal archive of

Christian Morgenstern Christian Otto Josef Wolfgang Morgenstern (6 May 1871 – 31 March 1914) was a German author and poet from Munich. Morgenstern married Margareta Gosebruch von Liechtenstern on 7 March 1910. He worked for a while as a journalist in Berlin ...

, the Verlag Urachhaus published a complete edition of the work of Morgenstern in nine volumes, known as the "Stuttgart edition". The two companies merged under the name ''Verlag Freies Geistesleben & Urachhaus'' in the mid 1990s, but continue to operate as separate imprints.

References

External links

Verlag Freies GeisteslebenVerlag Urachhaus
{{DEFAULTSORT:Verlag Freies Geistesleben and Urachhaus Book publishing companies of Germany 1925 establishments in Germany Publishing companies established in 1925 Mass media in Stuttgart