![Friedrich Wilhelm Schirrmacher](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Friedrich_Wilhelm_Schirrmacher.jpg)
Friedrich Wilhelm Schirrmacher (28 April 1824 in
Danzig – 19 June 1904 in
Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, ...
) was a German historian. He is best known for the discovery of the original files and protocols of the
Marburg Colloquy
The Marburg Colloquy was a meeting at Marburg Castle, Marburg, Hesse, Germany, which attempted to solve a disputation between Martin Luther and Ulrich Zwingli over the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. It took place between 1 October and 4 ...
. The original texts are reprinted until today.
Biography
Schirrmacher was the son of the school principal
Carl Friedrich Schirrmacher and his wife Charlotte von Modrach. He assed his matriculation examination in Danzig,
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
in 1845. From 1845–47, Schirrmacher studied history and philosophy in Berlin and from 1846 to 1847 at the
University of Bonn
The Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (german: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn) is a public research university located in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the ( en, Rhine ...
. He thereafter returned to Berlin.
He completed doctoral studies under
Leopold von Ranke
Leopold von Ranke (; 21 December 1795 – 23 May 1886) was a German historian and a founder of modern source-based history. He was able to implement the seminar teaching method in his classroom and focused on archival research and the analysis of ...
in 1848 and passed the state teacher's examination in 1849. During the years 1849–54 he was an auxiliary teacher at a Berlin high school and was also employed as a schoolmaster (1854–66). Beginning in 1863 Schirrmacher worked as a history professor at the Royal Liegnitz Ritter Akademie (knight academy) in
Silesia
Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...
. While in
Liegnitz
Legnica (Polish: ; german: Liegnitz, szl, Lignica, cz, Lehnice, la, Lignitium) is a city in southwestern Poland, in the central part of Lower Silesia, on the Kaczawa River (left tributary of the Oder) and the Czarna Woda. Between 1 June 1975 ...
he began publishing his multi-volume work on Kaiser Friedrich II, for which he was awarded the Wedekind Foundation prize from the
University of Göttingen
The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...
. This resulted in his being called to teach at the
University of Rostock
The University of Rostock (german: link=no, Universität Rostock) is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continen ...
(1866). He taught there for 38 years as a full professor.
In 1866, while he was in Rostock, he brought out the city of Liegnitz registry book covering the time up to 1455. In addition, he turned his attention to areas relating to Spanish research. In 1881 the first volume of his history of Spain was published. It covered the time period beginning with the 12th century. Between the years 1890 and 1902 three additional volumes followed, which continued coverage of Spanish history up to 1516.
Schirrmacher received numerous honors and was conferred diverse orders. Beginning in 1874 he held the position of second librarian, then first and senior university librarian, and from 1869 onward he was a member of the board of examiners for teaching posts at upper level schools. Beginning in 1871 he was director of the academic numismatic collection, and from 1878/79 onward he held the rectorship of the university and was dean of the university's philosophical faculty in 1871/72 and in 1893/94.
Schirrmacher was particularly well known for his various works on the
House of Hohenstaufen
The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynast ...
. In
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
research he gained recognition for discovering and publishing the records and minutes of the Religious Colloquium of Marburg.
Honours
The his contribution to science he received several awards:
* 1871 Knight 1. Class of the
Order of Saint Michael (Bavaria)
The Order of Saint Michael (german: Orden zum Heiligen Michael), later Order of Merit of Saint Michael (german: Verdienstorden vom Heiligen Michael) was founded on September 29, 1693 by Joseph Clemens of Bavaria, then Archbishop-Elector of Colog ...
* 1879 Memorial Medal of
Frederick Francis III, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Frederick Francis III (german: Friedrich Franz Paul Nikolaus Ernst Heinrich; 19 March 1851 – 10 April 1897) was the penultimate Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
Biography
He was born in Schloss Ludwigslust as the son of Frederick Francis II, ...
* 1898 Commander of the
House Order of the Wendish Crown
The House Order of the Wendish Crown (german: Hausorden der Wendischen Krone) was an Order of the House of Mecklenburg, jointly instituted on 12 May 1864 by Grand Duke Friedrich Franz II of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Grand Duke Friedrich Wilhelm of ...
Books
* ''Kaiser Friderich der Zweite'', Göttingen 1859–1865.
* ''Johann Albrecht I. Herzog von Mecklenburg'', Wismar 1885.
* ''Die Entstehung des Kurfürstenkollegiums''. 1876. Nachdruck Bonn 2003, .
* ''Allgemeine Staatengeschichte'' 1902 (several parts)
See also
*
Thomas Schirrmacher
Thomas Paul Schirrmacher is a German Christian moral philosopher and a specialist in the Sociology of Religion and religious freedom. He is known as a global human rights activist and holds a chair in Theology (Ethics, Missiology, World Religions). ...
, philosopher and Schirrmacher's great-grandson
*
References
External links
*
* archived, German (PDF; 9 kB)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schirrmacher, Friedrich
19th-century German historians
1824 births
1904 deaths
Writers from Gdańsk
People from West Prussia
German male non-fiction writers