![Jindrich Fuegner](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/Jindrich_Fuegner.gif)
Jindřich Fügner (born Heinrich Fügner, 12 September 1822,
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
– 15 November 1865, Prague) was co-founder (together with
Miroslav Tyrš
Miroslav Tyrš (born Friedrich Emanuel Tirsch, in Czech: Bedřich Tyrš; 17 September 1832 – 8 August 1884) was a Czechs, Czech philosopher, Art history, art historian, sports organizer and together with Jindřich Fügner the cofounder of the ...
) and the first ''starosta'' (leader) of the Czech sport organization
Sokol
The Sokol movement (, ''falcon'') is an all-age gymnastics organization first founded in Prague in the Czech region of Austria-Hungary in 1862 by Miroslav Tyrš and Jindřich Fügner. It was based upon the principle of " a strong mind in a so ...
.
Biography
He was born in Prague (baptized in the church. Stephen) to Peter (1787-1863) and Frances (Františka) (1794-1863) Fügner. His father was a businessman (Handelsmann), a native of
Leitmeritz. Police records show that the family of Peter and Frances had two daughters: Caroline and Julia and three sons: Ferdinand, Heinrich and Wilhelm.
Thanks to private study and study abroad he gained a broad education and learned several foreign languages. Later, he run a trade insurance business. Though his business was successful, he had higher goals. He was devoted to music, sports and social interests.
Thanks to the legacy of his grandfather (inherited his vineyards and boats) his family was quite wealthy. As a successful businessman, he became the owner of the Italian company ''Nuova Societa Commerciale d'Assecurazioni'', a general trade company.
[MUCHA, Vilém. Dějiny dělnické tělovýchovy v Československu. Praha : Olympia, 1975. Kapitola Doba vzniku Sokola, s. 14.]
Fügner, a German by birth, never mastered the
Czech language
Czech (; Czech ), historically also Bohemian (; ''lingua Bohemica'' in Latin), is a West Slavic language of the Czech–Slovak group, written in Latin script. Spoken by over 10 million people, it serves as the official language of the Czech Re ...
. His decision to adopt a political and national identity as a Czech was derived from a strong sense of his local identity as a "Praguer" and from his disenchantment with social pretensions of the German elite in
Prague
Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...
and the northern
Bohemia
Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
.
The Czech patriotic circles introduced him to
Tyrš. Soon after, Fügner and Tyrš worked together on founding the Czech gymnastic association. The association was named
Sokol Prague and Fügner became the association first leader (''
starosta
The starosta or starost (Cyrillic: ''старост/а'', Latin: ''capitaneus'', german: link=no, Starost, Hauptmann) is a term of Slavic origin denoting a community elder whose role was to administer the assets of a clan or family estates. Th ...
'').
[Jindřich Fügner (online article)](_blank)
/ref> He introduced and promoted tykání, i.e. the way of addressing one person using the second person singular (you) among the association members and addressing the members as "brothers". The red jacket he used to wear, became part of the Sokol uniforms. Thanks to him the first Sokol society was established in the Sokol Street (a former fortification) in Prague.[Dějiny dělnické tělovýchovy, str.11] He died at the age of 43; the cause of his death was most likely blood poisoning
Sepsis, formerly known as septicemia (septicaemia in British English) or blood poisoning, is a life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage is follo ...
. His funeral became a national manifestation.[Pohřeb Jindřicha Fügnera. Národní listy. 1865-11-20, roč. 5, čís. 259, s. 1.]
References
Literature
* Otto Urban: Hienrich/Jindřich Fügner - Ein Typus des modernen Böhmischen Bürgers in Robert Hoffmann: Bürger zwischen Tradition und Modernität, Böhlau Verlag Wien, Jan 1, 1997 pp. 271–280
* Jaroslav Zyka-Borotínský: Jindřich Fügner: Vzpomínky sokolské, F. Topič, 1925
* Renata Tyršová: Jindřich Fügner: paměti a vzpomínsky na mého otce, Volume 1, Český čtenář, 1926
* Jindřich Fügner 1822-1922: k stým narozeninám prvého starosty pražské tělocvičné jednoty Sokol, Matice Sokola pražského, 1922
* Jindřich Fügner: nástin jeho života a působeni : k uctění 20 leté památky úmrtí prvního starosty svého, Nákladem vlastním, 1896
External links
Jindřich Fügner viz též Jindřich Fügner
Jindřich Fügner zakladatel Sokola
Výstavní panel výstavy Pod křídly Sokola: Jindřich Fügner a Miroslav Tyrš
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fuegner, Jindrich
1822 births
1865 deaths
Czech people of German descent
Czech sports executives and administrators
People associated with physical culture
Sportspeople from Prague
Burials at Olšany Cemetery