Georg Ludwig Maurer, from 1831 Georg Ludwig von Maurer (2 November 1790 – 9 May 1872) 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 ...

statesman A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level. Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States * ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a n ...

and

legal historian Legal history or the history of law is the study of how law has Sociocultural evolution, evolved and why it has changed. Legal history is closely connected to the development of civilisations and operates in the wider context of social history. C ...

from the

Electoral Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate (german: Kurpfalz) or the Palatinate (), officially the Electorate of the Palatinate (), was a state that was part of the Holy Roman Empire. The electorate had its origins under the rulership of the Counts Palatine of ...

Biography

Maurer was born at Erpolzheim, near Dürkheim as the son of 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 ...

pastor. Educated at

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 ...

, he went in 1812 to reside in

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 ...

, where he entered upon a systematic study of the ancient legal institutions of the Germans. Returning to Germany in 1814, he received an appointment under the Bavarian government, and afterwards filled several important official positions. In 1824 he published at Heidelberg his ''Geschichte des altgermanischen und namentlich altbairischen oeffentlich-muendlichen Gerichtsverfahrens'', which obtained the first prize of the academy of Munich, and in 1826 he became professor in the

university of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's List of universities in Germany, sixth-oldest u ...

. In 1829 he returned to official life, and in 1831 he was appointed lifelong Reichsrat of Bavaria and awarded the (non-hereditary) title "von Maurer". Soon after, he was offered an important post. In 1832, when Otto (Otho), son of Louis I, king of Bavaria, was chosen to fill the throne of

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

, a

regency council A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state ''pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy, ...

was nominated during his minority, and Maurer was appointed a member. He applied himself energetically to the task of creating institutions adapted to the requirements of a modern civilized community; but grave difficulties soon arose and Maurer was recalled in 1834, when he returned to Munich. This loss was a serious one for Greece. Maurer was the ablest, most energetic and most liberal-minded member of the council, and it was through his enlightened efforts that Greece obtained a revised penal code, regular tribunals and an improved system of civil procedure. Soon after his recall he published ''Das griechische Volk in öffentlicher, kirchlicher, und privatrechtlicher Beziehung vor und nach dem Freiheitskampf bis zum 31. Juli 1834'' (Heidelberg, 1835–1836), a useful source of information for the history of Greece before Otto ascended the throne, and also for the labours of the council of regency to the time of the authors recall. After the fall of the ministry of

Karl von Abel Karl von Abel (September 17, 1788 – September 3, 1859) was a Bavarian statesman. Born in Wetzlar, Abel was the son of a procurator at the superior Court of Justice. He studied law in Gießen from 1806-1809, and became a civil servant of Bavari ...

(1788–1859) in 1847, he became chief Bavarian minister and head of the departments of foreign affairs and of justice, but was overthrown in the same year. He died at Munich on 9 May 1872. Georg Ludwig von Maurer was married to a member of the Krefelder silk family Heydweiller, Johanna Wilhelmina Friederike Heydweiller. Their only son, Konrad von Maurer (1823–1902), was a Scandinavian scholar of some repute, and like his father was a professor at the university of Munich.

Works

Maurer's most important contribution to history is a series of books on the early institutions of the Germans. These are: *''Einleitung zur Geschichte der Mark-, Hof-, Dorf-, und Stadtverfassung und der offentlichen Gewalt'' (Munich, 1854) *''Geschichte der Markenverfassung in Deutschland'' (Erlangen, 1856) *''Geschichte der Fronhöfe, der Bauernhöfe, und der Hofverfassung in Deutschland'' (Erlangen, 1862–1863) *''Geschichte der Dorfverfassung in Deutschland'' (Erlangen, 1865–1866) *''Geschichte der Städteverfassung in Deutschland'' (Erlangen, 1869–1875) These works are still important authorities for the early history of the Germans. Among other works are: *''Stadt- und Landrechtsbuchs Ruprechts von Freysing, ein Beitrag zur Geschichte des Schwabenspiegels'' (Stuttgart, 1839) *''Über die Freipflige'' (plegium liberate), ''und die Entstehung der grossen und kleinen Jury in England'' (Munich, 1848) *''Uber die deutsche Reichsterritorial- und Rechtsgeschichte'' (1830) See KT von Heigel, ''Denkwürdigkeiten des bayrischen Staatsrats G. L. von Maurer'' (Munich, 1903).

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Maurer, Georg Ludwig von 1790 births 1872 deaths 19th-century regents of Greece People from Bad Dürkheim (district) People from the Electoral Palatinate Naturalized citizens of Greece Politicians from Bavaria Members of the Bavarian Reichsrat 19th-century German historians Heidelberg University alumni Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich faculty German male non-fiction writers