Johann Thomas Ludwig Wehrs (18 July 1751, in

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a college town, university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the Capital (political), capital of Göttingen (district), the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, t ...

– 26 January 1811, in

Isernhagen Isernhagen ( Eastphalian: ''Isernhogen'') is a municipality in the district of Hanover, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated in the north-east of Hanover. According to the average income per capita it is the most affluent municipality in Low ...

) was a German

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and a founder of the

Göttinger Hainbund The ''Göttinger Hainbund'' ("Grove League of Göttingen") was a German literary group in the late 18th century, nature-loving and classified as part of the ''Sturm und Drang'' movement. Origin and description It was by means of a midnight ritual ...

literary group. Wehrs, the son of an official, studied theology from 1769 to 1775. His knowledge of French, English and Italian led in 1772 to his being invited to be part of the ''Hainbund''. Just one poem by him appeared in the ''

Göttinger Musenalmanach ''Göttinger Musenalmanach'' was the title of two different literary magazines published in Göttingen, Germany, one running from 1770 to 1807, the other 1896 to 1953. A ''Musen-Almanach'' was a kind of literary annual, and the Göttingen magazine ...

'' of 1777. The poet Hölty died in his arms in 1776 in

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

, during Wehrs's employment as house tutor (1775–79). In 1780 he became a pastor in Kirchhorst near Hannover, moving in 1788 to

Bibliography

* Max Mendheim
Wehrs, Johann Thomas Ludwig
In: ''

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...

'' (ADB). Band 41, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1896, pages 440-1 * Walter Schachner: ''Das Generationsproblem in der Geistesgeschichte''. Gießen 1937, p. 49. * Karl Geodeke, Eduard Goetze: ''Grundriss zur Geschichte der deutschen Dichtung'', 3. Aufl., 4. Bd., 1. Abt., Dresden 1916, p. 1050 * Moritz Heyne: ''Mitteilungen zur Vorgeschichte der Loge Augusta zum goldenen Zirkel...'' Göttingen 1896, p. 17; * Alfred Kelletat: ''Der Göttinger Hain'', Stuttgart 1967 -Reclam Nr. 8789-93-, p. 396 {{DEFAULTSORT:Wehrs, Johann Thomas Ludwig 1751 births 1811 deaths German Protestant clergy